Member Avatar for compulove

I just made a virtual machine with windows 7 64-bit on my windows 7 desktop that is connected by LAN.

I am trying to access the internet and after playing with the settings enough I am able to be connected to my internet but when I go to open a webpage like google then it says internet explorer cannot display webpage. If I could connect with either NAT or bridged I am not sure. Neither have worked for me despite what internet articles have said. I am not sure if the problem is with my host computer or my virtual computer. I can send you IP's if that will help.

PLEASE HELP!

Thanks!

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by CimmerianX

Dani AI

Generated

Brief, prioritized checklist to isolate why the Windows 7 guest in VMware Player 4.0.2 shows a network connection but browsers fail to load pages. Building on and , the goal is to determine whether the issue is an IP/DHCP problem, routing/NAT on the host, DNS, or a host-side firewall/service conflict.

Recommended guest-side checks (collect these exact outputs first):

ipconfig /all
ping -n 4 8.8.8.8
ping -n 4 <default_gateway>   (if a gateway is listed)
nslookup google.com

Interpretation notes: an IP in the 169.254.x.x range means DHCP failed; successful pings to 8.8.8.8 but failed nslookup means DNS only; failure to reach 8.8.8.8 while the host has working internet points at host-side NAT/bridging or firewall problems.

Host-side checks and common causes to try next:

  • Verify VMware services are running (look for VMware NAT Service and VMware DHCP Service in Services).
  • Confirm VMnet adapters (VMnet1/VMnet8) exist and are enabled in Network Connections.
  • Temporarily disable the host firewall/AV to rule out blocking of VMware traffic.
  • On wireless hosts, bridging can be unreliable with some drivers; try NAT mode if bridged fails or switch to a wired adapter.
  • If custom mapping of bridged-to-physical adapter is required, the Virtual Network Editor (vmnetcfg.exe) may be needed (Player does not always expose it).

Quick repair commands (run in the guest if TCP/IP appears broken):

netsh int ip reset
netsh winsock reset
ipconfig /flushdns

Useful diagnostic outputs for deeper troubleshooting: ipconfig /all, route print, a screenshot/listing of host Network Connections showing VMnet adapters, and the Services list showing VMware services. These show whether the guest has a valid IP/gateway/DNS, whether the host’s VMware networking is active, and whether a firewall or driver is blocking traffic.

Recommended Answers

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Member Avatar for JorgeM

So whether you assign NAT or bridged depends on your needs. NAT wil hide the guest OS from other nodes on your LAN, just like your Internet router does for you network hosts on the LAN. If you choose bridged, it places the guest on the same logical network as your LAN so your guest can participate on the LAN like if it was directly connected to the network.

Choose one and then we can help troubleshoot.

Member Avatar for compulove

I want whichever one will allow me to access the internet on the vm. I read that both ways can do that but none have worked for me, so whatever you think is fine!

Member Avatar for CimmerianX

I would say to start with 'bridged'. That will make the VM appear to be directly connected to your internal network.

Does your network have DHCP off of a router or other device? Or are you assigning IP addresses manually? If it is manual, then you need to setup your VM with an IP on the network along with proper dns.

You should be able to ping the default gateway from the VM. Can you?

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