The folks at VirtualBoxes.org aim to make it easy to try out any open-source OS by hosting the latest build of all open-source operating systems for FREE. All you have to do is download the image for the distribution you wish to run, register the image using their nifty registertimage tool, and run the virtual machine in VirtualBox. That’s it.

Visit VirtualBoxes.org to download your favorite distribution images and make sure to check out the list of distributions you can download below.

Fedora running on Mac OS.

List of Available Distributions

GNU/Linux (GNU userland tools running on top of the Linux kernel)

• Archlinux
• CentOS
• Damn Small Linux
• Debian
• DeLi Linux
• Dreamlinux
• Fedora
• Fluxbuntu
• Gentoo
• gNewSense
• gOS
• Kubuntu
• and more…

GNU/OpenSolaris Distributions

• OpenSolaris
• Nexenta
• MILAX
• GNU/FreeBSD
• Debian GNU/kFreeBSD

BSD Distributions

• FreeBSD

Other Distributions

• AROS
• FreeDOS
• Haiku
• MINIX
• ReactOS
• SYLLABLE
• Android-x86

Via OneThingWell.org, screenshot via VirtualBoxes.org

If you’re new to virtualization or have any questions, please post them below.

Note: I used Windows Virtual PC running on Windows 7 Ultimate Edition.

How to Create a Virtual Machine

1. Click on the Orb to open the Start Menu.

2. Type virtual pc into the Windows Search box.

3. Click on the Windows Virtual PC shortcut that will appear under Programs in the search results.

4. The Virtual Machines Explorer window will open. Click on Create virtual machine from the toolbar.

5. The Create virtual machine window will open. Specify a (A) Name for the virtual machine you are creating and choose a (B) Location to store the virtual machine.

6. Click Next when you are done.

7. Specify the amount (A) RAM that you want to allocate for the virtual machine and whether or not the machine will use a (B) Network.

Note: If you choose not to use the computer’s network connections, the virtual machine will not be able to connect to the internet.

8. Click Next when you are done.

9. Add a virtual hard disk by choosing the (A) type of virtual disk and (B) enabling or disabling Undo Disks.

Note: Information on Undo Disks can be found at the end of this article.

Types of Virtual Disks

Dynamically Expanding Disks – This type requires a minimum of 8 MB free space on the physical storage media. The size of the disk (and the .vhd file) grows as the disk is used, up to the maximum size specified when the disk was created.

Existing Virtual Disk – If you already have virtual hard disk (.vhd) file you wish to use with this virtual machine, locate and add it to the list.

Advanced Options – Will allow you to select the following disk types:

• Dynamically Expanding – This type requires a minimum of 8 MB free space on the physical storage media. The size of the disk (and the .vhd file) grows as the disk is used, up to the maximum size specified when the disk was created.
• Fixed Size – This type of disk requires as much physical storage space as the size you specify for the disk when you create it. The size of the .vhd file is the same as the virtual hard disk size and remains unchanged.
• Differencing – This type requires a small amount of physical storage when you create the disk, and requires more storage as the size of the disk grows. The maximum size of a differencing disk is restricted by the maximum size of its parent hard disk.

10. Click Create to complete the virtual machine creation process.

The wizard will close and the new virtual machine should appear in the Virtual Machines window.

Undo Disks

Undo Disks is a feature that saves changes to a virtual machine in a separate undo disk file in case you want to reverse the changes. The Undo Disks setting applies to all virtual hard disks attached to the virtual machine.

When you run a virtual machine that is using Undo Disks, any changes to a virtual hard disk are temporarily stored in an undo disk (.vud) file, rather than in the virtual hard disks attached to the virtual machine. As you continue to make changes to a virtual machine, those changes continue to grow in the undo disk. If you decide to either apply or discard the changes stored in an undo disk, that action applies to all changes stored in the undo disk—in other words, you cannot selectively apply or discard changes on an undo disk.

Information about Virtual Hard Disks and Undo Disks from Virtual PC Help Files.

Windows XP mode is essentially a virtual installation of Windows XP that allows you to seamlessly run incompatible applications on your Windows 7 machine. When configured, the end-user will never know that they are running the application in an virtual environment. The How-to below will show you where you can download and install Windows XP Mode and how to set it up for first use.

If you have any comments please post them below or if you have any questions visit our forums.

Note: I used Windows 7 Ultimate in this tutorial.

1. Download and install the following (Microsoft website);

• Windows XP Mode
• Windows Virtual PC
• If necessary – Windows XP Mode update

Note: If your computer does not support hardware virtualization you will need to install the Windows XP Mode update (third download).

Once everything is installed and you restarted your computer, follow the steps below.

1. Open the Start Menu by clicking on the Orb.

2. Click on All Programs

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3. Click to expand the Windows Virtual PC folder. Here you will find the shortcuts to Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode.

Run Windows XP Mode

1. When you are ready to use Windows XP Mode, click on the Windows XP Mode shortcut located in the Start Menu (see above).

2. If you accept the license terms click on the check box.

3. Click Next to proceed.

4. If you wish to specify a different directory for the XP Mode installation, do so by clicking on the Browse button.

5. Enter the password you wish to use for the virtual machine. Unless you want to constantly enter the password I recommend you add click on Remember credentials.

6. Click Next to continue.

7. Select Help protect my computer by turning on Automatic Updates now.

Note: It is recommended you use this setting to keep the Virtual PC up to date.

8. Click Next to proceed.

9. Click on Start Setup to begin the setup process.

Installation progress…

Windows XP Mode running on Windows 7

Before we get started there are several things we need to understand;

• The default directory for VirtualBox virtual machines and hard drives is – C:\Users\ %USERPROFILE%\.VirtualBox
• The Machines directory contains the XML files with the configuration options for each of your virtual machines. When you move the default directories you will have to edit the XML file to update the several parameters or just run the Create New Machine Wizard and attach the appropriate virtual hard drive to it. The latter will recreate the XML file on the new directory and keep the other intact.

If you have any comments please post them below or if you have any questions visit our forums.

Note: I used VirtualBox 3.1.4 in this tutorial.

Open VirtualBox to get started.

1. Click on File to open the menu.

2. Click on Preferences…

3. When the Settings window opens, make sure that you are in the General area (pane to the left).

4. Click on the small arrow to open the menu to choose the Default Hard Disk Folder.

5. Click on Other from the menu.

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6. Locate and choose the folder you wish to use for Virtual Hard Disks.

7. Click OK

8. When you return to the Settings window, click on the small arrow to expand the Default Machine Folder.

9. Click on other and locate and choose the folder you wish to save the Virtual Machine files to (repeat steps 6-7).

10. When you are done customizing the directories, verify that they are correct and click OK to exit the Settings window.

VirtualBox includes Guest Additions for Windows, Linux, and Solaris OS environments. Guest Additions provide the following features;

• Mouse pointer integration - When using a virtual machine you will quickly develop an annoyance for the Alt + Ctrl key combination required to "recapture" your mouse pointer once it’s captured by the virtual environment. This tool will seamlessly integrate your host computer’s mouse pointer with that of the guest machine so you can switch from one another seamlessly.
• Better video support – You will be able to use advanced graphics (Direct3D) and you wont have to worry about setting the resolution for the guest computer when you resize the window. This tool will automatically do it for you.
• Time synchronization – This addition will ensure that the time on the guest machine matches that of the host.
• Shared folders – You will be able to exchange files between the host and the guest pc. This is great for folks who are testing software and need access to files located in a specific directory on the host machine but want to prevent the back and forth transferring that occurs when files cannot be shared.
• Seamless windows – This feature allows the mapping of windows on the guest machine to the host making it seem like the windows were running on the host rather than the guest machine.
• Shared clipboard - This is one of my favorite features that VirtualBox supports. The ability to share clipboards between host and guest operating systems makes working with virtual machines that much easier.
• Automated Windows logons – Passing credentials from the host to guest PC, this feature is only compatible with Windows guests.

The process is fairly simple, but I thought I’d cover it here for those of you who may not know how to install the Guest Additions. If you have any comments or questions, please post them below.

Note: I used VirtualBox and a Windows 7 virtual machine for this how-to.

Install Guest Additions

1. With your Virtual Machine running, open the Devices menu

2. Click on Install Guest Additions from the drop-down menu..

3. If AutoPlay is enabled you will see the prompt above, click on the Run VBox…..exe (depends on operating system running on the guest machine.

Note: If AutoPlay is disabled or the guest operating system does not support it then you need to browse to My Computer (guest/virtual machine) and double-click on the CD/DVD drive. VirtualBox inserts an image on the virtual drive that allows you to install the additions.

4. If you’re using Vista or Windows 7 you may be prompted by User Account Control about proceeding. Just click Yes to proceed.

Note: User Account Control (UAC) in Windows Vista and 7 prevents software and other things from inadvertently installing themselves on your computer. In this case we know what we are installing so please proceed.

5. The Guest Additions Setup Wizard will open, click Next to proceed.

6. Click I Agree to proceed.

7. If you wish to specify an install location other than the default, click Browse, otherwise click Next to proceed.

Note: Stick to the default installation location.

8. Direct3D support enable the use of advanced graphics in your virtual machine, notice that it is still experimental so it’s up to you to select it.

9. Click Install to begin the installation process.

Install progress...

10. If you chose to include the Direct3D component you will get this dialog box, click Install to proceed, otherwise skip to the next step.

11. You will be presented to restart your virtual machine. If you wish to take advantage of the Virtual Machine Additions right away choose Reboot now.

12. Click Finish to complete the installation and reboot your virtual machine.

For those that don’t know what virtualization is, it is simply a way of creating a virtual machine or virtual computer (guest) that runs on an existing computer (host) yet it is isolated from the host. Think of it as a computer within a computer. The beauty of virtualization is that you can virtually (no pun intended) run any operating system on say, a Windows computer. This is a great tool for tinkerers like me so that if I mess up/crash the virtual computer I can just reload a copy of the virtual computer without affecting the host.

Virtualization is also deployed in server environments to save electricity and use physical servers as efficiently as possible. Imagine a setup that includes a server for mail, one for storage, and another for applications. Instead of using three separate servers you would use one with multiple virtual machines for each of those functions.

I hope this brief and non-technical explanation helps those who may not know what virtualization is, if it does not suffice you can always stop by Wikipedia for a more thorough explanation.

The process is fairly simple, but I thought I’d cover it here for those of you who may not know how to get to the right place in VirtualBox right away. If you have any comments or questions, please post them below.

Note: I used VirtualBox and a Windows 7 image for this how-to.

Create a Virtual Machine

1. Open Virtual Box and click on the New virtual machine button.

2. The Create New Virtual Machine wizard will open. Click Next to proceed.

3. Enter a name for the virtual machine you are creating.

4. Choose an Operating System from the drop-down

5. Now choose the Version of the operating system you selected in the previous step.

6. Click OK to proceed.

7. VirtualBox automatically sets the recommended RAM allocation for the operating system you selected, but also gives you the flexibility of modifying the default to your liking. Use the slider to move the allocation back and forth or type it in the box displaying the current allocation.

8. Once you’ve decided on the memory allocation you wish to use, click Next to proceed.

Create A Virtual Hard Disk

Chances are you don’t have a spare Virtual Hard Disk laying around in your hard drive and so we need to create one. The virtual hard disk is the equivalent of a physical hard drive where the operating system, programs, files and anything else you add will reside. Without it we cannot create a virtual machine.

1. Since we are creating a new virtual machine we need to create a Boot Hard Disk, choose this option.

2. As indicated before we are creating a new hard disk, so choose Create new hard disk

Note: If you already had a virtual disk stored in your computer and wanted it to use it for this virtual machine you would have selected the second option, Use existing hard disk.

3. Click Next to start the Create New Virtual Hard Disk Wizard

4. Click Next to start the wizard.

5. VirtualBox provides you with two Storage Types when creating a virtual hard disk;

• Dynamically expanding storage uses a small amount of hard drive space initially and will expand as the virtual machine’s needs grow.
• Fixed-size storage uses the amount of storage specified in the next step and can take a while …a 20GB hard drive on my laptop took about 30 minutes to create. I like this option because the size of my virtual machine’s hard disk is limited and I know how much space it will use.

Choose the Storage Type you wish to use.

6. Click Next to proceed.

7. Before we allocate the space the hard disk will use we need to specify a location where the hard disk will reside. VirtualBox will default to the virtual machines directory, but since I have multiple virtual machines I usually store them on an external hard drive for easy access among my computers and it keeps them off my main hard drive. If you wish to store the virtual disk in a place other than the default location on your main hard drive, click on the small folder icon to select a new directory.

8. Name the virtual disk. If you plan on creating multiple virtual machines, I’d use something descriptive so you don’t get them confused.

9. Click Save when you are done.

10. Once you’ve designated a location for the virtual disk you’re going to have to specify the size of the hard disk. Use the slider to increase or decrease the size of the hard drive or enter the amount directly into the text box displaying the current size.

11. Click Next to proceed

12. Verify that the parameters are correct, click Finish to complete the Create New Virtual Disk Wizard.

You will be presented with a progress bar as the virtual disk is created.

13. Review the Summary of the virtual machine you just created, if satisfied click Finish to complete the creation of the virtual machine.

a. Your newly created virtual machine will be listed among others in the VirtualBox pane located on the left side of the screen.

The process is fairly simple, but I thought I’d cover it here for those of you who may not know how to get to the right place in VirtualBox right away. If you have any comments or questions, please post them below.

Note: I used VirtualBox and a Windows 7 image for this how-to

Add a CD/DVD Image to a VirtualBox Machine

1. Right-click on the machine you wish to add the image to.

2. Click on Settings

3. Click on Storage located on the left pane

4. Under IDE Controller click on Empty (the Disc Icon)

5. Click on the small folder icon located to the right of the CD/DVD Device drop-down.

6. When the Virtual Media Manager dialog box opens, click on Add – a separate dialog box will open

7. Another dialog box will open so that you can locate the image file you wish to add. Click on the image file.

8. Click on the Open button.

9. When you return to the Virtual Media Manager dialog box, ensure that the correct (a.) image is selected and click Select.

10. Click OK to close the machine Settings dialog box and you are done! The CD/DVD image you selected will now be accessible to your virtual machine.

Note: I used Virtual PC 2007 using Windows Vista with a Windows XP Virtual Machine.

The instructions below are very similar when using an Ubuntu (linux) and other versions of Windows operating systems.

1. While you are running one of your virtual machines, click on Action

2. Then click on Install or Update Virtual Machine Additions (or hit Right Alt + I)

3. You will be prompted with the window above which states that a CD image will be inserted in the Virtual Drive, the CD-ROM contains the installation files for the Virtual Machine Additions. Click Continue so that the virtual CD-ROM is loaded.

4. The installation will be started in your Virtual PC, click Next to proceed.

Installation of Virtual Machine Additions…

5. Once Setup is complete, click Finish.

6. Click Yes to restart your Virtual Machine.

Features Available with Virtual Machine Additions

Improved mouse cursor tracking and control

Greatly improved overall performance.

Virtual machine heartbeat generator.

Optional time synchronization with the clock of the physical computer.

Folder sharing between host and guest operating system.

To download Virtual PC 2007 use the following link from Microsoft.

More information on Virtual Machine Additions can be found on Microsoft’s Technet website