For internal testing, we used D4s_v5 machines. Microsoft provides a helpful list on Azure VM sizes and highlights the sizes that currently support nested virtualization. Nested virtualization is supported by Microsoft for running Hyper-V inside an Azure VM.įor Azure virtual machines, check that the VM size chosen supports nested virtualization. Enable nested virtualization on Microsoft Hyper-V For internal testing, we used a VM that had 1 CPU with 4 cores and 12GB of memory.įor steps on how to expose hardware-assisted virtualization to the guest OS, see VMware’s documentation. However, running Hyper-V VM in a VMware ESXi VM is technically possible and, depending on the version, ESXi includes hardware-assisted virtualization as a supported feature. Nested virtualization of other hypervisors like Hyper-V inside a vSphere VM is not a supported scenario. Enable nested virtualization on VMware ESXi You must enable nested virtualization before you install Docker Desktop on a virtual machine. This may not be the case for VMWare ESXi. For example, Microsoft supports running nested Hyper-V both on-prem and on Azure, with some version constraints. Each hypervisor vendor offers different levels of support. For more information on Docker Desktop support, see Get support.įor troubleshooting problems and intermittent failures that are outside of Docker’s control, you should contact your hypervisor vendor. The only hypervisors we have successfully tested are VMware ESXi and Azure, and there is no support for other VMs.

The support available from Docker extends to installing and running Docker Desktop inside the VM, once the nested virtualization is set up correctly.

Support for running Docker Desktop on a virtual desktop is available to Docker Business customers, on VMware ESXi or Azure VMs only. This is because, under the hood, Docker Desktop is using a Linux VM in which it runs Docker Engine and the containers. To run Docker Desktop in a virtual desktop environment, it is essential nested virtualization is enabled on the virtual machine that provides the virtual desktop. However, Docker Desktop for Windows can run inside a virtual desktop provided the virtual desktop is properly configured. In general, Docker recommends running Docker Desktop natively on either Mac, Linux, or Windows. Run Docker Desktop for Windows in a VM or VDI environment

Vmware vdi setup