Virtualization lets your PC emulate a different operating system, like Android™ or Linux. Enabling virtualization gives you access to a larger library of apps to use and install on your PC. If you upgraded from Windows 10 to Windows 11 on your PC, these steps will help you enable virtualization.
Note: Many Windows 10 PCs—and all PCs that come preinstalled with Windows 11—already have virtualization enabled, so you may not need to follow these steps.
Before you begin, determine your device model and manufacturer. You’ll need this info later in the process.
Before you begin, we recommend opening this page on a different device. Here’s how to get to the UEFI from Windows:
-
Save your work and close any open apps.
-
Select Start > Settings > System > Recovery > Advanced startup, then select Restart now.
-
Once your PC restarts, you’ll see a screen that displays Choose an option. Select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > UEFI Settings > Restart.
-
Your PC will restart again and you’ll be in the UEFI utility. At this step, you might see the UEFI referred to as the BIOS on your PC.
These instructions may apply if you upgraded your PC from Windows 10 to Windows 11.
Note: Many Windows 10 PCs—and all PCs that come preinstalled with Windows 11—already have Virtual Machine Platform enabled, so you may not need to follow these steps.
Here’s how to turn it on:
-
Select Start, enter Windows features, and select Turn Windows features on or off from the list of results.
-
In the Windows Features window that just opened, find Virtual Machine Platform and select it.
-
Select OK. You might need to restart your PC.
For more advanced info or help with troubleshooting, go to Microsoft Docs.
Android is a trademark of Google LLC.
Related topics
-
Install mobile apps and the Amazon Appstore
-
More help on Microsoft Docs
Need more help?
Want more options?
Explore subscription benefits, browse training courses, learn how to secure your device, and more.
Communities help you ask and answer questions, give feedback, and hear from experts with rich knowledge.
Environment
C:\Users\Liu.D.H>ver Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.19041.264] C:\Users\Liu.D.H>bcdedit Windows Boot Manager -------------------- identifier {bootmgr} device partition=\Device\HarddiskVolume1 description Windows Boot Manager locale en-US inherit {globalsettings} default {current} resumeobject {8c132511-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} displayorder {current} {89f269f4-cc9f-11e6-8727-64006a16df31} {8c132516-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} toolsdisplayorder {memdiag} timeout 5 Windows Boot Loader ------------------- identifier {current} device partition=C: path \WINDOWS\system32\winload.exe description Windows 10 locale en-US inherit {bootloadersettings} recoverysequence {8c132514-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} displaymessageoverride Recovery recoveryenabled Yes allowedinmemorysettings 0x15000075 osdevice partition=C: systemroot \WINDOWS resumeobject {8c132511-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} nx OptIn bootmenupolicy Legacy hypervisorlaunchtype Off Windows Boot Loader ------------------- identifier {89f269f4-cc9f-11e6-8727-64006a16df31} device partition=\Device\HarddiskVolume1 path \Windows\system32\winload.exe description Windows 7 locale zh-CN inherit {bootloadersettings} osdevice partition=\Device\HarddiskVolume1 systemroot \Windows resumeobject {89f269f3-cc9f-11e6-8727-64006a16df31} nx OptIn detecthal Yes Windows Boot Loader ------------------- identifier {8c132516-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} device partition=C: path \WINDOWS\system32\winload.exe description Windows10 with Hyper-V locale en-US inherit {bootloadersettings} recoverysequence {8c132514-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} displaymessageoverride Recovery recoveryenabled Yes allowedinmemorysettings 0x15000075 osdevice partition=C: systemroot \WINDOWS resumeobject {8c132511-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} nx OptIn bootmenupolicy Legacy hypervisorlaunchtype Auto C:\Users\Liu.D.H>systeminfo Host Name: DESKTOP-LDH OS Name: Microsoft Windows 10 Education OS Version: 10.0.19041 N/A Build 19041 OS Manufacturer: Microsoft Corporation OS Configuration: Standalone Workstation OS Build Type: Multiprocessor Free Registered Owner: Windows User Registered Organization: Product ID: 00328-10000-00001-AA635 Original Install Date: 2020-05-11, 22:13:14 System Boot Time: 2020-06-08, 10:12:11 System Manufacturer: Dell Inc. System Model: Vostro 3900 System Type: x64-based PC Processor(s): 1 Processor(s) Installed. [01]: Intel64 Family 6 Model 60 Stepping 3 GenuineIntel ~3601 Mhz BIOS Version: Dell Inc. A10, 2015-07-30 Windows Directory: C:\WINDOWS System Directory: C:\WINDOWS\system32 Boot Device: \Device\HarddiskVolume1 System Locale: zh-cn;Chinese (China) Input Locale: zh-cn;Chinese (China) Time Zone: (UTC+08:00) Beijing, Chongqing, Hong Kong, Urumqi Total Physical Memory: 16,301 MB Available Physical Memory: 9,703 MB Virtual Memory: Max Size: 33,709 MB Virtual Memory: Available: 26,300 MB Virtual Memory: In Use: 7,409 MB Page File Location(s): C:\pagefile.sys Domain: WORKGROUP Logon Server: \\DESKTOP-LDH Hotfix(s): 6 Hotfix(s) Installed. [01]: KB4552925 [02]: KB4534170 [03]: KB4537759 [04]: KB4545706 [05]: KB4557968 [06]: KB4556803 Network Card(s): 4 NIC(s) Installed. [01]: TAP-Windows Adapter V9 Connection Name: 以太网 Status: Media disconnected [02]: Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller Connection Name: Ethernet_Realtek DHCP Enabled: Yes DHCP Server: 113.55.112.1 IP address(es) [01]: 113.55.127.140 [02]: fe80::3d0a:ecde:2178:d77c [03]: 2001:250:2800:cc09:6600:6aff:fe16:df31 [03]: Realtek RTL8188CU Wireless LAN 802.11n USB 2.0 Network Adapter Connection Name: Wi-Fi 2 Status: Media disconnected [04]: Microsoft KM-TEST Loopback Adapter Connection Name: Npcap Loopback Adapter DHCP Enabled: Yes DHCP Server: 255.255.255.255 IP address(es) [01]: 169.254.104.11 [02]: fe80::d8bf:11ab:7b05:680b Hyper-V Requirements: VM Monitor Mode Extensions: Yes Virtualization Enabled In Firmware: Yes Second Level Address Translation: Yes Data Execution Prevention Available: Yes C:\Users\Liu.D.H>
Steps to reproduce
Open Ubuntu 18.04 or 20.04.
Expected behavior
Works as expected.
Actual behavior
I can confirm that I have enabled
Virtual Machine PlatformandVT-x. But the errors when I started Ubuntu is confused. And for some reasons I do not want to enable Hyper-V features. From the doc (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/), it is not a requirement for WSL2.
Environment
C:\Users\Liu.D.H>ver Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.19041.264] C:\Users\Liu.D.H>bcdedit Windows Boot Manager -------------------- identifier {bootmgr} device partition=\Device\HarddiskVolume1 description Windows Boot Manager locale en-US inherit {globalsettings} default {current} resumeobject {8c132511-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} displayorder {current} {89f269f4-cc9f-11e6-8727-64006a16df31} {8c132516-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} toolsdisplayorder {memdiag} timeout 5 Windows Boot Loader ------------------- identifier {current} device partition=C: path \WINDOWS\system32\winload.exe description Windows 10 locale en-US inherit {bootloadersettings} recoverysequence {8c132514-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} displaymessageoverride Recovery recoveryenabled Yes allowedinmemorysettings 0x15000075 osdevice partition=C: systemroot \WINDOWS resumeobject {8c132511-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} nx OptIn bootmenupolicy Legacy hypervisorlaunchtype Off Windows Boot Loader ------------------- identifier {89f269f4-cc9f-11e6-8727-64006a16df31} device partition=\Device\HarddiskVolume1 path \Windows\system32\winload.exe description Windows 7 locale zh-CN inherit {bootloadersettings} osdevice partition=\Device\HarddiskVolume1 systemroot \Windows resumeobject {89f269f3-cc9f-11e6-8727-64006a16df31} nx OptIn detecthal Yes Windows Boot Loader ------------------- identifier {8c132516-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} device partition=C: path \WINDOWS\system32\winload.exe description Windows10 with Hyper-V locale en-US inherit {bootloadersettings} recoverysequence {8c132514-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} displaymessageoverride Recovery recoveryenabled Yes allowedinmemorysettings 0x15000075 osdevice partition=C: systemroot \WINDOWS resumeobject {8c132511-806f-11e9-8860-f798d1b7a8f1} nx OptIn bootmenupolicy Legacy hypervisorlaunchtype Auto C:\Users\Liu.D.H>systeminfo Host Name: DESKTOP-LDH OS Name: Microsoft Windows 10 Education OS Version: 10.0.19041 N/A Build 19041 OS Manufacturer: Microsoft Corporation OS Configuration: Standalone Workstation OS Build Type: Multiprocessor Free Registered Owner: Windows User Registered Organization: Product ID: 00328-10000-00001-AA635 Original Install Date: 2020-05-11, 22:13:14 System Boot Time: 2020-06-08, 10:12:11 System Manufacturer: Dell Inc. System Model: Vostro 3900 System Type: x64-based PC Processor(s): 1 Processor(s) Installed. [01]: Intel64 Family 6 Model 60 Stepping 3 GenuineIntel ~3601 Mhz BIOS Version: Dell Inc. A10, 2015-07-30 Windows Directory: C:\WINDOWS System Directory: C:\WINDOWS\system32 Boot Device: \Device\HarddiskVolume1 System Locale: zh-cn;Chinese (China) Input Locale: zh-cn;Chinese (China) Time Zone: (UTC+08:00) Beijing, Chongqing, Hong Kong, Urumqi Total Physical Memory: 16,301 MB Available Physical Memory: 9,703 MB Virtual Memory: Max Size: 33,709 MB Virtual Memory: Available: 26,300 MB Virtual Memory: In Use: 7,409 MB Page File Location(s): C:\pagefile.sys Domain: WORKGROUP Logon Server: \\DESKTOP-LDH Hotfix(s): 6 Hotfix(s) Installed. [01]: KB4552925 [02]: KB4534170 [03]: KB4537759 [04]: KB4545706 [05]: KB4557968 [06]: KB4556803 Network Card(s): 4 NIC(s) Installed. [01]: TAP-Windows Adapter V9 Connection Name: 以太网 Status: Media disconnected [02]: Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller Connection Name: Ethernet_Realtek DHCP Enabled: Yes DHCP Server: 113.55.112.1 IP address(es) [01]: 113.55.127.140 [02]: fe80::3d0a:ecde:2178:d77c [03]: 2001:250:2800:cc09:6600:6aff:fe16:df31 [03]: Realtek RTL8188CU Wireless LAN 802.11n USB 2.0 Network Adapter Connection Name: Wi-Fi 2 Status: Media disconnected [04]: Microsoft KM-TEST Loopback Adapter Connection Name: Npcap Loopback Adapter DHCP Enabled: Yes DHCP Server: 255.255.255.255 IP address(es) [01]: 169.254.104.11 [02]: fe80::d8bf:11ab:7b05:680b Hyper-V Requirements: VM Monitor Mode Extensions: Yes Virtualization Enabled In Firmware: Yes Second Level Address Translation: Yes Data Execution Prevention Available: Yes C:\Users\Liu.D.H>
Steps to reproduce
Open Ubuntu 18.04 or 20.04.
Expected behavior
Works as expected.
Actual behavior
I can confirm that I have enabled
Virtual Machine PlatformandVT-x. But the errors when I started Ubuntu is confused. And for some reasons I do not want to enable Hyper-V features. From the doc (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/), it is not a requirement for WSL2.
How did you get all the environment info of your machine?
Once upon a time i installed WSL 2 on Windows 10 correctly, run it and also worked with it. However, i was messing around with BlueStack, an android emulator which uses hyper-V. After configuring all the gears to make it run i discovered, that my WSL 2 didn’t work anymore. When starting it would prompt:
Please enable the Virtual Machine Platform Windows feature and ensure virtualization is enabled in the BIOS There are 2 generally known fixes and one additional fix which in the end worked for me:
1. Activate VM-Plattform
As the error message suggest you need to activate the VM-Plattform feature. To do so:
- Under Windows > search for Windows-Features
- Activate VM-Plattform and Windows-Subsystem for Linux
- Remember to restart your computer
2. Enable Virtualization in your BIOS setting
As the error message suggest, activate the appropriate settings in your BIOS. The setting to be made is different from mainboard to mainboard and can be read in various other articles, e.g. at simplilearn.com. I will skip a detailed explanation here, as there are plenty other posts describing this configuration.
3. Configure hypervisorlaunchtype
What eventually did the trick was the following line, executed on the windows shell (and should be done as a last resort). Remember to restart your computer afterwards. Admittingly i don’t fully understand, how the following configuration works, but hey it worked for me! (source)
bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto
If this post helped you, or if you found another fix, I would be happy about a comment 🙂
You need to enable the Virtual Machine Platform Windows feature to use WSL 2. If this is not done, then you will get the following error:
wsl --set-version kali-linux 2
Conversion in progress, this may take a few minutes...
For information on key differences with WSL 2 please visit https://aka.ms/wsl2
Please enable the Virtual Machine Platform Windows feature and ensure virtualization is enabled in the BIOS.To enable WSL 2, Open the Windows Features window by navigating to Control Panel | Programs | Turn Windows feature on or off.
Ensure that the Virtual Machine Platform and Windows Subsystem for Linux features are selected.
After clicking on the OK button, Windows will enable WSL 2.
If you want to install WSL 2 on a Windows 10 virtual machine, the virtual machine should support nested virtualization.
With VirtualBox, right-click the VM and choose Settings. In the System section, under the Processor tab, check the box: Enable Nested VT-x/AMD-V.
On VMware Workstation, right-click the VM and choose Settings. In the Hardware section, under the Processor, make sure the Virtualize Intel VT-x/EPT or AMD-V/RVI checkbox is enabled.
You also have to make sure virtualization is enabled in the BIOS (Intel Virtualization Technology or SVM Mode in AMD).
Follow us on Social Media
Please Enable The Virtual Machine Platform Windows Feature And Ensure Virtualization Is Enabled In The Bios With Code Examples
In this lesson, we’ll use programming to attempt to solve the Please Enable The Virtual Machine Platform Windows Feature And Ensure Virtualization Is Enabled In The Bios puzzle. This is demonstrated by the code below.
1. Just to be sure, you do have the feature "Virtual Machine Platform" enabled 2. run this command, in the cmd as administrator: " bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto " 3. reboot your system
We have demonstrated, with a plethora of illustrative examples, how to tackle the Please Enable The Virtual Machine Platform Windows Feature And Ensure Virtualization Is Enabled In The Bios problem.
Enable or Disable Windows Virtualization:
- Launch the Windows Features tool: Click the Search icon. Type Turn Windows features on or off in the search field.
- Check (or clear) the Virtual Machine Platform and Windows Hypervisor Platform options.
- Click OK.
- Windows adds the required VMP dependencies and asks to reboot.
How do I enable Windows virtualization platform?
Here’s how to turn it on:
- Select Start, enter Windows features, and select Turn Windows features on or off from the list of results.
- In the Windows Features window that just opened, find Virtual Machine Platform and select it.
- Select OK. You might need to restart your PC.
Do I need to enable virtualization for WSL?
While WSL 2 uses Microsoft’s Hyper-V as a hypervisor under the hood to run the utility VM, it does not require you to enable Windows’ Hyper-V role or feature; WSL works perfectly fine without it.11-Mar-2022
How do I enable virtualization on a virtual machine?
Enabling Hardware Virtualization
- Reboot your Computer and Press the BIOS Key.
- Locate the section for CPU configuration.
- Find the Settings for Virtualization.
- Select the Option for Enabling Virtualization.
- Save the Changes You Have Made.
- Exit Your BIOS and Reboot Your Computer.
Is it safe to enable virtualization?
You will not improve security by disabling hardware-assisted virtualization. Because it requires such high privileges to use in the first place, any malware that is able to use it is already able to bypass any restrictions you set.20-Jun-2021
How do I know if virtualization is enabled in Windows 10?
To check if Virtualization is enabled/disabled on your desktop/laptop, simply press Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys to open the Task Manager. Click on the Performance tab and under CPU, you will find information about Virtualization on your desktop/laptop. If it says Enabled, then Virtualization is turned on.24-Aug-2022
How do I enable virtualization without BIOS?
Navigate to the Advanced tab and press Enter on CPU Setup. SelectIntel(R) Virtualization Technology, Press Enter, choose Enable and press Enter. Press F10. Press Enter on YES to save the settings and boot into Windows.13-Nov-2017
How do I change virtualization settings in BIOS Windows 10?
Use the following steps to enable virtualization.
- Boot systems to BIOS with the F1 key at power on.
- Select the Security tab in the BIOS.
- Enable Intel VTT or Intel VT-d if needed.
- Once enabled, save the changes with F10 and allow the system to reboot.
What is virtual machine platform in Windows features?
Virtual Machine Platform is a less powerful version of HyperV that still enables a hypervisor. VMP is a requirement for WSL2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux v2), which is really good. It can, and often is, used to create MSIX Application packages for an App-V or MSI.
How do I enable WSL in BIOS?
Ensure that you have the Windows Subsystem for Linux enabled, and that you’re using Windows Build version 18362 or later. To enable WSL run this command in a PowerShell prompt with admin privileges: Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux .29-Aug-2022
Follow us on Social Media