On Tue, Mar 22, 2011 at 9:59 AM, Bob Goodwin <bobgoodwin@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > I've installed "virtualbox" on this F-14 computer and it appears > to be working, however now I need a copy of Windows to run in it > in order to solve my other problem. I have several copies of > WindowsXP Pro including the one that came with this computer but > refuses to run unless that drive is plugged into the first slot. > > That problem occurs because initially I had a computer failure > and elected to replace the computer and install the hard drives > from the failed unit into the "new" one. The old one had a > Windows partition that was selectable from grub and would > operate normally if needed. Once the drives were swapped into > this computer and Windows selected it would protest that perhaps > I had a virus and refuse to boot. :-) > > The details go on and on but my question is would I have to buy > a copy of Windows to use virtualbox or is there a way to make it > use the original copy on the disk containing WindowsXP that came > with this computer? If I swap data cables around Windows still > boots. It is installed by itself on an 80 gig sata drive. As long as you don't mind using the original drive, you might consider raw disk/partition access. It's in the VirtualBox documentation, somewhere in chapter 9 I think. I did this for a while before deciding I didn't need native Windows anymore. What I did was setup a separate hardware profile in XP which allowed me to boot natively or in VBox. I managed this without sysprep but it might be a good idea. Richard -- users mailing list users@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx To unsubscribe or change subscription options: https://admin.fedoraproject.org/mailman/listinfo/users Guidelines: http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
