How to Install Virtual Box in Ubuntu Linux 7.04

InnoTek's VirtualBox is a cross-platform, open source "virtual machine" software that will allow you to install almost any operating system "on top of" your current operating system.

With VirtualBox, Ubuntu Linux users can install Microsoft Windows "on top of" Ubuntu, and then run any Microsoft Windows application. Here's how to setup and configure VirtualBox in Ubuntu Linux 7.04.

Download VirtualBox

1. Go to http://www.virtualbox.org/.
2. Click "Downloads" from the menu on the left side of the page.
3. Click on the link labeled Ubuntu 7.04 ("Feisty Fawn").
4. Save the file to the location you prefer (to your desktop perhaps).

Install and Configure VirtualBox

1. After, the download is complete. Locate the file and double click on it.
2. Click the "Install Package" button in the Package Installer utility.
3. Authenticate with your root password. At this point, the Installer will download and install prerequisite packages automatically.
4. When the installer comes to the "Installing package file" dialog, the progress bar will shift back and forth indefinitely. Click the little black arrow next to the "Terminal" label.
5. Use the tab key to navigate to "OK" in the "Terminal" pane. When "OK" is highlighted, press <enter> on your keyboard.
6. At the next prompt, use your tab key to navigate to "Yes". When "Yes" is highlighted, press <enter> on your keyboard.
7. At the next prompt, make sure "Ok" is highlighted and press <enter>. This will create the "vboxusers" user group.
8. When the words "Installation finished" appear at the top-left of the window, click the "Close" button in the bottom-right corner.
9. Exit the Package Installer (by clicking the "X" button in the top-right corner of the window).

Privilege Your User-Account to Use VirtualBox

Only users who belong to the "vboxusers" group may use VirtualBox. Here's how to add your user account to this group:

1. From Ubuntu's menu, bring up the "Users and Groups" manager: System | Administration | Users and Groups.
2. If prompted, authenticate with the root password.
3. Click the "Manage Groups" button.
4. Scroll down to "vboxusers", select it, and click the "Properties" button.
5. In the "Group Members" list, check the check-box next to your user account name.
6. Click the "OK" button.
7. Click the "Close" button on the "Group Settings" window.
8. Click the "Close" button on the "User Settings" window.
9. Logout, to finalize the "User and Group" settings: System | Quit | Log Out.

Now, after you log back in, VirtualBox will be ready to go. You'll find it in the menu at: Applications | System Tools | InnoTek VirtualBox.

Install Guest Additions

After you install an operating system into a virtual box virtual machine, you'll want to make sure to install (onto the virtual machines OS) what virtualbox calls "Guest Additions". It is a piece of software that runs on the guest OS to facilitate communication between your host OS and the guest OS. For example, with "Guest Additions" installed, you'll be able to share a folder on your host OS, that can be accessed by the guest OS. This allows you to quickly move files between your host and guest operating systems. Also, "Guest Additions" can facilitate copy and paste between host and guest operating systems (but its not enabled by default - See: Select a virtual machine while it's off > Settings > General > Advanced > Share Clipboard > bidirectional).

My host OS is Ubuntu, and my guest operation system is Windows XP. To install the "Guest Additions", you don't have to download this software; it's already available from your virtualbox installation, but to install "Guest Additions" onto my Windows XP virtual machine, here are the steps I did:

1. Install windows XP onto a virtual machine.
2. Start the virtual machine, and boot until you get to the windows desktop.
3. Access the virtual machines "Devices" menu. This should be available from your menu bar, but for me it wasn't because I boot into full screen mode, and no menu bar is shown. I accessed it by holding down alt-ctrl-home keys, but you might be able to just hold down ctrl-home (I had to change my default "escape from virtual machine" key -- virtualbox calls it the "host" key -- see: Vitualbox's main menu: File > Preferences > Input > host key) from the right ctrl key to the left alt key, because my laptop doesn't have a right ctrl key!
4. From the "Devices" menu select "Install Guest Additions". Now, WindowsXP will display an installation wizard as though you just click on an exe (executable file). This wizzard will walk you through the remainder of the installation.

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