Introduction
VirtualBox is a virtualization tool for x86 and AMD64/Intel64 computing architectures that allows users to deploy desktops, servers, and operating systems as virtual machines. You can use this solution to deploy as many virtual machines as the resources available on the host architecture.
Users can install this cross-platform virtualization tool on any Intel or AMD-powered computer. The operating system runs on all major operating systems, including Windows, Linux, Oracle Solaris, and macOS.
VirtualBox can extend the technical capabilities of any compatible computer, enabling it to run multiple operating systems in different virtual machines simultaneously. For example, a user can run Windows 11 and Ubuntu on their MacBook Air without compromising their system configuration or existing applications.
How does VirtualBox work?
Oracle VM VirtualBox is a powerful cross-platform virtualization engine designed to be deployed on desktop or server hardware. VirtualBox is supported by all major operating systems including Windows, popular Linux kernels, macOS, and Oracle Solaris. It works by extending the capabilities of the existing operating system, allowing it to run virtual machines without any changes to the hardware or software configuration. The operating system on which VirtualBox is installed is called the host, while the operating systems running in VirtualBox are known as guests. Once a guest operating system is deployed and properly configured, no restrictions separate it from a machine for typical end users. Simply put, a guest is an operating system that runs as a virtual machine. It is a “system within a system” and can consist of any well-known or specific operating system. However, users will need a separate licensed version to legally run a virtual machine for operating systems that require a license, such as Windows and macOS.
A typical VirtualBox includes the following components:
- A hypervisor for the host system.
- A software development kit (SDK) and an application programming interface (API) for managing guest VM operations.
- A command line tool for managing Local.
- A web service that allows users to manage Guest remotely.
- A console that displays guest applications on the host.
- The Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) server allows users to access the Guest using a remote client.
Administrators can deploy guest systems using ISO images or VHD/VDI/VMDK images on the VirtualBox host platform. Deploying guests using an ISO image enables guest operating systems to be installed as normal but as a VM. Conversely, VHD/VDI/VMDK images allow administrators to quickly deploy virtual appliances without installing the operating system on the guest system. TurnKey Linux is a valuable resource for finding virtual appliances for VirtualBox.
VirtualBox is modular, which allows it to provide a similar set of features regardless of the host platform. In addition, virtual machines and disk images created on any host will be compatible with other supported hosts. Also, any user who learns to manage guest machines on a particular host can manage guests on different host systems.
Finally, some systems allow users to enable AMD-V or Intel VT-x hardware virtualization extensions at the BIOS level. Deploying VirtualBox on such systems can result in better guest performance.
Mechanism:
The Intel x86 architecture has four levels of storage protection, known as rings. These levels range from level 0 (the highest number of privileges) to level 3 (the lowest number of privileges). VirtualBox runs one process on the host for each guest instance. All guest user code runs natively at level 3 as if it were a regular program on the host system. This means that user code runs at native speed when running in the guest VM environment.
Some operating systems may additionally use level 1 device drivers, which increases the possibility of problems due to guest kernel code relocation. For such guests, hardware virtualization is required. We will teach you how to use Virtual-Box in another post.
Result
Virtual machines are steadily gaining popularity among personal and business users thanks to their efficiency and operational flexibility. Using VirtualBox to deploy virtual machines can reduce infrastructure costs, improve redundancy and security, enable easy cross-platform software development, and simplify remote deployment of software solutions.
