Best Virtualisation Software?

[2BIT]

Hi All,

any recommendations on the best virtualisation software for Windows (xp) - i want something easy to set up and use as I may need to set up lots of different system configurations - vmware workstation seems to be an obvious choice but can't but feel their could be a more obscure but better app out there

[VectraMan]

I use VirtualBox all the time. I think the way it manages snapshots is not as good as VMWare Workstation, but otherwise makes no difference and is considerably cheaper.

[PAH]

I think the choice depends on what host and guest OS combination(s) you want to use and how powerful the VM environment needs to be, for resource allocation, device sharing etc.

I tried out one of the VMware free solutions last year but it was a bit sluggish on my dual core Windows 7 PC, which only has 2gb due to the mobo being a bit crap.

I only needed something to allow me to isolate a VPN connection for my working from home stuff, so I could access my home network and internet outside the VPN. Decided on Windows Virtual PC which has been improved for Windows 7. Allows me to run the VPN inside an XP based VM and is ideal for my needs.

[Sysman]

There appears to be a problem in the latest version of VirtualBox (4.0.4) with Windows 64 bit clients freezing when idle.

Search the VirtualBox forums using "freezing".

I have reverted to version 3.2.12.

[VectraMan]

There appears to be a problem in the latest version of VirtualBox (4.0.4) with Windows 64 bit clients freezing when idle.

Search the VirtualBox forums using "freezing".

I have reverted to version 3.2.12.

They completely broke 64 clients a while back. I think that was one of the early v3 released.

I've found it pays not to update VirtualBox too often.

[Pondlife]

I use VirtualBox but for nothing too heavy.

Simple enough to use (even for me)

Plus it's FREE.

[Sysman]

They completely broke 64 clients a while back. I think that was one of the early v3 released.

I've found it pays not to update VirtualBox too often.

Good tip thanks.

[2BIT]

I think the choice depends on what host and guest OS combination(s) you want to use and how powerful the VM environment needs to be, for resource allocation, device sharing etc.

I tried out one of the VMware free solutions last year but it was a bit sluggish on my dual core Windows 7 PC, which only has 2gb due to the mobo being a bit crap.

I only needed something to allow me to isolate a VPN connection for my working from home stuff, so I could access my home network and internet outside the VPN. Decided on Windows Virtual PC which has been improved for Windows 7. Allows me to run the VPN inside an XP based VM and is ideal for my needs.

It will be XP Pro (I wont be going to win7) and yes I want to set up resource intensive environments which use a lot of RAM/Processor IO

I'm getting a new lappy and it will have an i7 Dual Core Mobile Processor i7-640 with 4GB RAM (and ill probably use the boot switch in windows so it only uses 1GB for o/s and 2GB for apps)

the software needs to be easy to use and importantly easy to remove instances from my machine, I may need to stand up a temporary environment as a proof of concept and then tear it down again so quite quickly

things I may wanna do is install a version of windows 7 or office 2010 or 64-bit windows or even windows server, install some apps, do some tests and then either save the snapshot (would be great if they can be backed up elsewhere) or remove it

will have a look at the suggestions and let you know

[Sysman]

It will be XP Pro (I wont be going to win7) and yes I want to set up resource intensive environments which use a lot of RAM/Processor IO

As far as could divine, you can't get hold of VirtualPC any more unless you have Windows 7 Professional or above. The download procedure takes you through a validation process to make sure you have a legit copy of Win7 Pro or above.

If you do download VirtualPC, then you can also download a virtual disk containing XP (which runs under Win7 VirtualPC) and it's covered by your Windows 7 license.

I tried VirtualPC and pretty quickly decided I preferred VirtualBox. The Personal User Evaluation License (PUEL) version comes with Guest Additions, which allow you to share folders with the host, move your mouse freely in and out of clients, and copy/paste between host and clients.

[VectraMan]

As for Windows 7 clients, I have a feeling VMWare had cracked the problem of getting Aero to work, but I don't think Virtual Box has.

Also you'll want to check that you can run 64-bit guests on a 32-bit host (assuming you have XP 32).

I have a build VM, and use it to test installs against a clean OS, but nothing really heavyweight. I find the performance for things like builds is virtually as good as on the host, but anything graphical is very clunky. I couldn't imagine wanting to use a web browser on a VM for example.