Setting up a virtual machine can sound intimidating at first but with this guide hopefully I can break it down and make it a little easier to understand.
I will be showing you how to set up a program called VirtualBox, there are many alternative programs but this one is easy to use and made by Oracle. This program is also free and will only take 20 minutes to setup.
Before you get started there are a few things you will need to do:
1. Depending on your operating system you may need to update a BIOS setting to allow for virtualization (see spoiler)
2. A Windows ISO file (or whichever OS you wish to create)
Head over to (you need an account to see links) and start the download as that may take a few minutes. You want to select the option for "Create Windows 10 Installation Media"
3. Quite a bit of memory on your C drive. Each VM guest instance you setup will take about 15 gb of memory on your C drive. So make some room if you need to.
After you have done the prerequisites you are ready to download Virtualbox.
Step 1: Download and Install (you need an account to see links)
a. Choose the appropriate version for your operating system (Windows, macOS, Linux, etc.)
b. Download the installer file and run it.
c. Follow the on-screen instructions to install VirtualBox on your computer
Step 2: Create a New Virtual Machine
a. Launch VirtualBox after installation.
I have some setup already but it should look something like this
b. Click on the "New" button to create a new virtual machine
c. Provide a name for your virtual machine and select the operating system type and version
d. Click “Next”
e. Allocate the desired amount of memory (RAM) and CPUs for your virtual machine to use
f. Click "Next"
Step 3: Set Up Virtual Hard Disk
It should default to the "Create a virtual hard disk now" option, the values may differ depending on how much space you have but mine defaults to 50gb.
a. Specify the location and size of the virtual hard disk. The default values should be fine, but you can adjust them as per your requirements.
b. Click "Next"
c. Click “Finish”
Step 4: Configure Virtual Machine Settings
a. Select the newly created virtual machine from the VirtualBox Manager interface.
b. Click on the "Settings" button.
c. In the settings window, you can modify various options such as system, display, storage, network, and more. Adjust the settings based on your needs.
d. One setting I would suggest turning on to save you time is Shared Clipboard, this will allow you to copy and paste between your Host OS and the Guest OS.
Under settings select General>Advanced>Shared Clipboard: Bidirectional.
e. Once you have configured the settings, click "OK" to save the changes.
Step 5: Install the Guest Operating System
a. Select the virtual machine from the VirtualBox Manager interface
b. Click on the "Start" button to launch the virtual machine
c. Select the drop down and click "Other"
d. Navigate to your Windows ISO file and then click "Mount and Retry Boot"
e. Follow the on-screen instructions to install the guest operating system as you would on a physical computer
When you are prompted to enter a Windows Product key you must select “I don’t have a key”
Select “Windows 10 Home”
Select “Custom” and then the virtual hard drive you created should be there
Click “Next” and let Windows install
Once the installation is complete, you can run the guest operating system within VirtualBox
There is just one more step to allow for copying and pasting between Host and Guest
a. After the VM is running select Devices from the top menu bar and select “Insert Guest Additions”
b. Open your file explorer on your VM and select “This PC”
c. Double click “CD Drive (D:) VirtualBox Guest Additions”
d. Double click “VBoxWindowsAdditions-amd64” and follow prompts for installing
e. Your VM will reboot and you will now be able to copy and paste between your Host OS and Guest OS (you will have to follow the same process for each VM you set up to allow copy and pasting)
That's it! You have successfully set up VirtualBox and installed a guest operating system. You can create and manage multiple virtual machines within VirtualBox. Enjoy!
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