I actually submitted a few apps for compatibility issues during my 14-days trial now. I have two that don't install and one crashes upon loading. It's possible I'll get the lifetime license eventually....
Just thinking about it makes me 
for my tiny 
account.
VM solution is a free solution provided you already have a Windows licence.
My laptop is old and probably isn't powerful enough to efficiently run a VM. Also, I only have a 256GB M.2 SSD. No space in drive or my tiny desk to place external USB drives. LOL.
I forgot the spec of your machine. What was it?
Dell XPS 13-9343 Early 2015
Core i7-5500U 2.4Ghz
8GB RAM Soldiered
256GB Lite-On M.2 SSD SATA 2280
AX200 Wi-Fi 6 Card
It is better spec than my HP Elitebook.
It is enough to run VM.
You can keep your VM Windows on a USB connected HDD/SSD to save space on your internal drive.
The advantage is that you can easily move the VM to another machine with this external drive.
No place to put it on my tiny desk though. Space is very precious where I live. My desktop is only 60cm x 40cm. LOL.
Maybe an ultra-tiny usb thumbdrive with maybe 256GB storage like this?
I got rid of almost everthing on my Win10 partition except for a few messaging app, Nitro Pro PDF 13 editor, MS Office 2010, and Adobe Reader. It already took around ~100GB of space fully updated.
Even USB 3 connected, memory sticks are slow and tends to suffer corruption faster than SSD.
I was thinking something like this.
I have been contemplating getting a new 500GB or 1TB Samsung Evo 860 m.2 2280 SSD to replace my current one. Might as well do that instead. But, I do need an external enclosure to clone my drive anyway. I guess I can make my current drive the storage for VM and other things. I was thinking of making my current drive the external storage for my PS4. LOL.
I use this:
Make sure it is UASP standard.
It is faster than non-UASP type.
Is Sabrent really a good maker of drives? I never really heard of them until recently. Hesitant on getting their version of m.2 2280 SATA SSDs.
I have several of their products (USB hub, USB sound card) over a couple of years and none of them failed on me so far.
On the contrary, "Inateck" (supposed to be a brand name) external SSD case failed.
I'll see if I could get their products for cheap where I live, otherwise I'll look on Amazon.com instead. Free shipping when qualified item and order total is above US$49.00.
It does not have to be the same product.
All you need is UASP connected external case.
Another thing to check is the cable type.
I recommend NOT to go for mini USB 3 connectors.
They are very fragile compared with full size connectors.
I don't have many products with that plug. It's so weird. LOL.
But, I was thinking of trying to get the best bang for the buck on m.2 SATA 2280 SSD since the format is going obsolete and my laptop don't support NVMe. Not many options out there anymore.
You might have no choice but this mini USB plug.
My recommendation is unplug on the other end and leave this small plug alone.
For full size SSD, I also use this connector.
For a temporally connection it is very practical:
this i have on photo. opened external hard disk you can connect inside a computer.
Those SATA to USB connectors are very handy 
I usually have 3 or 4 of them floating around.
So far, I gave 1 to my daughter-in-law an 2 to my husband.
It is way more reliable to use SSD than USB memory stick as a backup storage.
Now on my desk is 10 pendrive. With hard disk external 3 now. but if you open external hard disk from a case then you can see this is normal hard disk with sata and have only adapter electronic connection with usb.