How to create a new Virtual Machine in VMware and run Ubuntu 64-bit edition live inside a VM

1. Open VMware Workstation and click on File and select New Virtual Machine...

2. Select Typical (recommend) and click Next

3. Select I will install the operating system later and click on Next

4. Select Linux under the Guest operating system and then click on the drop down box under Version and choose Ubuntu 64-bit

5. Click on Next when you are done

6. On this screen you can give your VM a name or leave it as default and click on Next

7. On this screen, it is optional to set the size of the hard disk to any size you want. Since we are only running Ubuntu as a live and not as an install we can leave it as default. The second part is also optional. You can select Store virtual disk as a single file or Split virtual disk into multiple files depending on if you are planning to move the VM or keep it on the current system. I choose Store virtual disk as a single file because I am not planning to move it and this option does allow the VM to perform a little bit better because it does not have to read multiple files. Click the Next button once you are done. 

8. On this screen customizing the hardware is completely optional. Since we are only running Ubuntu as a live VM we can ignore it and click on Finish

 9. Now you should see you VM on the left pane at the top. Click on your VM and click on the Play button to turn on your VM machine.