Up until a couple of years ago, virtual computing was more aligned to the business world. Corporations began to consolidate multiple computer server operating systems on to lower amounts of physical hardware. Instead of having 10 smaller servers, a company could put 10 operating systems on 2 servers with the use of virtual computing, thus saving time and money administrating these systems.
But what does virtual computing mean for the home user? Much like the corporate environment, it can be used to test software, without altering your installed operating system. Virtual computers can run alternate operating systems without the need for running a dual boot computer, and repartitioning your hard drive. Perhaps one would use it to simply surf the Internet on one copy of Windows XP that, if ravaged by spyware, can be deleted instead of having to rebuild their entire computer.
Enter Innotek's Virtual Box. Virtual Box is software that can help get one's feet wet in the arena of virtual computing. The installation of the software takes very little time, and setting up your first virtual computer will not destroy a weekend. We will walk through the initial steps in creating a new virtual machine. I will be using Ubuntu Linux as my test virtual operating system.
When your start Virtual Box for the first time, you will be greeted with a modest window and a blue button labeled New. Click on the New button to begin the virtual machine wizard.
The first thing you will need is a name for your computer. I recommend adding either the word Virtual, or an abbreviation like VPC, the first time out, just to help tell the difference between your real computer and your virtual computer. It is important to note, in the following screen, that you will need to know what your virtual operating system will be (Windows, Linux, etc.). The drop down box will help you pick your operating system.
The next screen asks you to choose the amount of memory you want to use with this virtual machine. Here is a basic formula to keep in mind. The amount of memory you select here will be used by your virtual computer, when it is in use. For instance, your real computer has 1 GB of RAM and you allocate 512 MB for your virtual computer. When the virtual machine runs, it will have 512 MB available, and your real computer will now have 512 MB available. Allocate too much RAM to the virtual machine, and Windows will fire off a low memory error when your run your virtual computer.
Now we need to create a virtual hard drive. You have two options for this step. You can create a dynamic or fixed-sized hard drive. Here is the run down: A dynamic hard drive only uses as much space as it needs. You install an operating system that needs 2.14 GB, that is all that shows up as used on your real hard drive (C:\ for example). A fixed-sized hard drive takes up the space you assign it. If you create a fixed virtual hard drive at 30 GB in size, it will show as 30 GB being used on your real hard drive regardless of when you install or add into the 30 GB space.
First we will click on New to create a boot hard disk.
To make the first installation quick, we will choose a dynamic setup.
Add a name for the hard drive image file, and click on the small yellow folder icon to locate the hard drive file somewhere other than the default setting, if you want. Use the slider to adjust the hard drive size, or simply type in the text box on the right-hand side. Remember, since this is a dynamic hard drive, it will start small, we are just assigning a maximum size right now. When finished, click Next.
Once you are done with the hard drive, this was the last step in the initial setup for the virtual machine. To add an operating system, you can use an installation CD, or DVD; or an ISO image file. First click on your system name, which will show up on the let hand side of the original startup window, then click on Settings. Once here, click on CD / DVD-ROM.
For this example, we will click on the yellow folder, and browse to find an ISO file. After clicking on the folder icon, we will choose the CD/DVD images tab to add an image. Click on Add to locate the ISO file. When finished, click on Ok on the bottom of this screen.
It seems like a long process, but we are ready to boot your virtual computer! Back on the main screen, click on your virtual computer, then click on Start. Done correctly, you will see a boot splash screen, and you are ready to install your virtual operating system.
