Setting Up Virtual O.S Environment Using Virtual Box

Introduction

This topic touches on:

1. Boot and install from ISO in Virtual Box
2. Create a Virtual Machine Clone of Your Existing Windows Hard Drive

Downloads

• Virtual Box
• Disk2vhd (For creating Windows VHD)

Boot and Install From ISO In Virtual Box

1. Launch VirtualBox. Click the New button to open Create Virtual Machine wizard.
2. Enter a name for the virtual machine, select the type of operating system you want to install by selecting an entry from the drop-down list, and then select the version before clicking on the Next button to continue.

   

3. Allocate a portion of the RAM to the virtual machine. Depending on the amount of RAM installed on your PC and the operating system you have selected in the previous step, Virtual Machine recommends you allocate x MB of RAM. You can either go with the recommended amount or allocate a little more, but make sure you don’t allocate less than the recommended amount. After selecting the RAM, click Next button.

   

4. Click on the Create button to open Create Virtual Hard Drive wizard. Here, select VDI or VHD as the virtual hard drive type. Click Next button.

   

   

5. Select Dynamically allocated option, the virtual hard drive will grow as you use it.

   

6. Select a location to save the virtual hard drive and also select the size of virtual hard drive. Please note that if you want to install Windows 7/8, you need to create a virtual hard drive with at least 16 GB for 32-bit or 20 GB for 64-bit. Click Create button to create a virtual hard drive.

   

7. In the left-pane of Settings, click Storage, double-click on the Controller (located under Storage tree) to expand the same and see newly created virtual hard drive entry.

   

   

8. Click Start button to boot from the selected ISO file and start installing your operating system.

Create a Virtual Machine Clone of Your Existing Windows Hard Drive

1. Start Disk2vhd.exe to clone your existing windows hard drive to vhd.
2. From the VirtualBox main window, click New.
3. Select the operating system (OS) to match the VHD.
4. Specify the base memory. Choose a value that matches the required memory for your virtualized OS while considering the memory available on your host machine.

   

5. Specify the VHD by clicking the yellow folder icon to launch the Virtual Media Manager. Click Next and then Finish having reviewed the summary.

   

6. Note, for Windows XP 64 bit and Windows 7 64 bit, there is 2 settings that you need to set, else launching Win XP 64 bit and Win7 64 bit will encounter BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death).

   

7. Perform the following settings on the virtual machine.
   • Ensure Enable I/O APIC checkbox is checked.

   

   • Storage > Set Controller to IDE and Attributes > Type, set to PIIX4.
8. For Wins 7 64 Bit O.S or Wins 8 O.S, Disk2vhd.exe clone the VHD with default controller set to SATA.

   

9. You have to delete the controller and click add new storage controller IDE, followed by click add harddisk icon to mount the vhd.

   

   

   

10. Click Start button to launch the virtual O.S.