Ubuntu Virtual Machine

By Jamsi • Oct 23rd, 2008 • Category: Linux

One of the biggest problems I faced when I made the switch to Ubuntu was my workplace. You see, I’m often assigned to projects that require me to work on websites and online systems using ASP.NET and C#. It’s these projects that require me to have access to Visual Studio 2005 and mSQL on my laptop. So the problem? These are all Windows applications. At first I was going to setup a dual boot system on my laptop, but first I told myself I’d give Sun’s VirtualBox a whirl, and I’m sure glad I did.

If you’re an Ubuntu user who needs access to Windows applications for work or university like myself, VirtualBox is certainty the way to go and I’ll briefly tell you why.

  • It’s free
  • It’s fast
  • I can store files on my Ubuntu system and access them from Windows
  • Once the VirtualBox tools addon had been installed within Windows, it made switching between Windows and Ubuntu a dream.
  • VirtualBox’s networking features are superb. Setup a virtual interface to allow your Virtualbox to be its own networking device, or use the inbuilt Network Address Translation (NAT) feature to streamline network connectivity to your VirtualBox OS.
  • Because VirtualBoxes are stored in a single .VDI file, its never been easier to backup your entire virtual operating system. Simply burn the VDI file to disc and in case of an emergency you can simply restore your entire Virtualbox operating system.

So How Do you Go About Installing VirtualBox?

Lucky for you, its dead simple.

Simply download the .DEB package that suits your Ubuntu operating system (depending on whether you have Hardy, Gusty or Drapper) and install.

Download VirtualBox .DEB Packages here

Once downloaded, use

dpkg -i VirtualBox_1.3.8_Ubuntu_yourubuntuversion.deb

You may get asked a question telling you to accept the terms and conditions so simply select yes. Once installed, you should see VirtualBox under Accessories > System Tools > Sun xVM VirtualBox.

Enjoy!

Related posts:

  1. Installing Google Chrome on Ubuntu Hardy
  2. How To Install Twhirl on Ubuntu
  3. Resize Photos with ease in Ubuntu
  4. Meebo Crashes Firefox on Ubuntu


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Jamsi is currently studying a full time Bachelor of Computer/Business degree and working part time as an Internet Security Consultant.
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One Response »

  1. James on October 29th, 2008 at 11:35 am:

    Great article. I myself find that having Windows as a client running on a Linux Desktop host is the only to run Windows Applications. Best of all, if you keep a copy of the VDI file you can quickly “Fall Back” to a clean (lol) instance of Windows.

    You also may have better results using a newer version of VirtualBox. VirtualBox 2.04 was recently released and is much more stable.

    But be carefull using the Windows Client VDI that was built on an older version to newer version.

    James (veeDee-Eyes)
    http://virtualboximages.com

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