Introduction:
Virtual machine technology is gaining in popularity daily. The
latest version (at the time of this writing) is called Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 and is offered as
a free download. When installed, users can run multiple operating
systems on a single computer and can quickly switch between these
applications with the click of a mouse button.
System Requirements:
The Physical Computer Requirements:
The minimum system requirements for the host computer (which is the
computer system that you are physically installing the Virtual
Machine software) is as follows:
Note: In a dual
processor environment, only one processor is recognized by Virtual
Machine 2007.
The Guest Operating System
Requirements:
When installing guest operating systems keep in mind that they can
quickly fill up your disk space and use up available memory. Below,
you will see a table that gives the amount of memory and disk space
that is needed to run the guest operating system:
|
Guest
Operating System |
Minimum
Hard Disk Space |
Minimum
Memory |
| Windows
98, Windows 98 Second Edition |
500 MB |
64 MB |
| Windows
Millennium Edition (Windows ME) |
2 GB |
96 MB |
| Windows
2000 Professional |
2 GB |
96 MB |
| Windows
XP Home Edition |
2 GB |
128 MB |
| Windows
XP Professional |
2 GB |
128 MB |
| Windows
Vista Enterprise |
15 GB |
512 MB |
| Windows
Vista Business |
15 GB |
512 MB |
| Windows
Vista Ultimate |
15 GB |
512 MB |
| OS/2 |
500 MB |
64 MB |
Caution: Installing a virtual operating system on a physical
computer system with less than the specified system
requirements will create serious performance issues.
Installing Virtual PC
2007:
Once you have calculated all of the necessary system requirements
and find your physical computer is capable of handling the
additional memory loads and your hard drive has plenty of space
available, you are ready to start installing the Virtual PC
software. Follow the steps below to install Microsoft Virtual PC
2007:
- To download
Microsoft Virtual PC 2007, click the link below:
Virtual PC 2007
- Once you have
downloaded the proper Setup.exe file, locate the file and
double-click Setup.exe to start the installation.
- When the
installation wizard appears, click Next.
- You will need
to accept the terms in the license agreement to continue. Click
Next.
- Enter your
customer information and choose whether you would like to make
Virtual PC available to all who use the computer (default) or
make it available only to a certain user name. Click Next to
continue.
- Virtual PC 2007
will recommend installing to your program files folder. If this
is fine with you, simply click the Install button or click the
"Change" button to install Virtual PC 2007 to a location of your
choosing.
- Click the
Finish button
Create a Virtual Machine:
Once you have successfully downloaded Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 to
your computer, you can now install the operating system(s) of your
choice. Follow the instructions below to install an operating system
to Virtual PC 2007:
- Open Virtual PC
2007 and select New.
- The Virtual
Machine wizard will start. Select "Create a Virtual Machine",
then click Next.
- In the Name and
Location window, browse to a location where you would like to
place your Virtual Machine. It is recommended that you do not
use the same hard disk location as your physical operating
system. If you do not have a separate drive partitioned, then I
recommend using an external drive such as a USB 2.0 thumb drive.
Click Next.
- Select the
operating system that you would like to install from the
"Operating System" drop down menu. Click Next.
- In the Memory
window, Virtual Machine will calculate the memory usage for the
operating system you are installing. You can either use the
recommended value or change the memory usage to a specified
amount. Click Next.
- In the Virtual
Hard Disk Options windows, Virtual Machine will need to add a
new virtual hard disk to your system. Select the option: "A new
virtual hard disk". If you already know that you have an
existing virtual hard disk install, select the option: "An
existing virtual hard disk". Click Next.
- In the Virtual
Hard Disk Location window, click the Browse button and locate
the new hard disk that Virtual Machine has created and type in a
name for it. Review the calculated sizes for your hard disk size
making sure that there is enough space allotted for the
operating system and any other software you plan to install on
it. Once you are satisfied with these figures, click Next.
- Click Finish.
Congratulations! You
now have a bootable Virtual PC installed on your physical computer
system. The next step is to install the Virtual Operating System.
Here's how:
Install a Virtual
Operating System using Virtual PC 2007:
- Open your
Virtual PC Console. From here you will see 4 available options:
- New:
Use this option to install a Virtual operating system. Using
Microsoft Virtual PC 2007, you can install up to 3 virtual
operating systems. Once installed, they will show up in the left
pane of the Virtual PC Console window.
- Settings:
Use this option when it is necessary to change the settings of
your virtual operating system.
- Remove:
You can easily remove a virtual operating system from the
console using this option.
- Start:
Click any of the available virtual operating systems in the left pane
of your console window and select the "Start" button to start
the selected virtual operating system.
Now that you are familiar with the option in your Virtual PC
Console, let's begin the installation of your virtual operating
system. Select your configured virtual machine from the left
pane and then click the "Start" button.
- Virtual Machine
will boot to its Main window. Insert your installation media in
to your CD or DVD drive for the operating system you are
attempting to install.
- Once the media
is installed, reset your Virtual Machine by selecting Action>>
Reset.
- The
installation process should begin. You may need to press any key
to continue.
- Follow the
on-screen prompts and continue the installation just as you
would any operating system installation.
Once the
installation of your virtual operating system is complete. You can
re-enter your Virtual PC Console and start using your new virtual
operating system. Enjoy!
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