Windows virtualisation options can affect workstation performance and how your Impact Nalpeiron-based software licence detects your device configuration. These features create a lightweight hypervisor layer that can cause a physical machine to appear as if it is running inside a virtual machine, which may result in unexpected licensing behaviour.
Windows may enable certain virtualisation technologies automatically—for example, after Windows updates, driver or security changes, or when installing tools such as Docker Desktop, WSL2, or other development environments. As a result, these components may remain partially active even if the associated Windows Features appear to be turned off.
Unless you intentionally use any of the following virtualisation or security options, we recommend ensuring that the following features are disabled:
- Hyper-V in Turn Windows Features on or off
- Windows Hypervisor Platform in Turn Windows Features on or off
- Virtual Machine Platform in Turn Windows Features on or off
- Windows Sandbox in Turn Windows Features on or off
- Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) in Turn Windows Features on or off
- Virtual Machine Platform (dependency of WSL) in Turn Windows Features on or off
- Core Isolation in Windows Security > Device Security
- Hypervisor-protected Code Integrity (HVCI) (also known as Memory Integrity) in Windows Security > Device Security
In some situations, turning these features off may not completely disable the underlying virtualisation layer. Windows may continue loading certain hypervisor or Virtualisation-Based Security (VBS) components at startup, which can cause Impact to continue reporting a virtual machine environment.
Where this occurs, additional configuration changes may be required. These may include adjustments to Windows startup settings or specific registry values that control VBS and hypervisor behaviour. These steps should only be performed where necessary and may require elevated permissions.
To check whether a hypervisor is currently running, you can use systeminfo.exe or msinfo32.exe (via Start > Run). Near the bottom of the window, look for:
"A hypervisor has been detected. Features required for Hyper-V will not be displayed."
If this message appears, at least one virtualisation or security component is still active, even if Windows Features appear disabled.
Common reasons for virtualisation components remaining active include:
- Installation of Docker Desktop, WSL2, or similar development tools
- Windows enabling Memory Integrity (HVCI) automatically
- Recent Windows updates reactivating virtualisation components
- Previous use of Hyper-V, Sandbox, or WSL leaving underlying services enabled
All of the above features can be safely disabled and re-enabled if required. However, if Impact continues to detect a virtual machine environment after disabling them, please contact Support. Additional remediation steps are available where Windows requires deeper configuration changes to fully disable the virtualisation layer.