Installing Ubuntu Using Virtualbox

This is a short tutorial for people who want to try out Ubuntu but don’t want to completely wipe out their OS (yet) to do so.

First thing’s first, download a copy of VirtualBox from http://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads

If you are having trouble seeing what you should download, it’s the links under the “VirtualBox Binaries” heading. Just match to your current Operating System (Windows, Mac, Linux).

**If you are already on Ubuntu, but need Virtualbox, go to your Ubuntu Software Center, and type “virtualb” into the search bar. Download and instal VirtualBox OSE.

Once you have VirtualBox Installed, it’s time to get the image for Ubuntu. Since we want Ubuntu to be installed, and also have fullscreen enabled, we’re going to use the 10.10 build.

Go to this address to begin the download of Ubuntu 10.10 – http://releases.ubuntu.com/10.10/. If you have a 64 bit processor, be sure to get the 64 bit version.

Next, create a directory for your VirtualBox images. You can place them wherever you like (ie: C:\Virtualbox\ or maybe C:\User\Uname\Desktop\My Stuff\VirtualBox.. ). Move your downloaded iso to this directory.

Next, start up VirtualBox, and click the “new” star-like icon in the top-left area. If you need to, click the “Next” button to get past the intro. On the next screen, in the name field type “Ubuntu 10.10″ select “Linux” as the Operating System, and “Ubuntu” as the Version, click “Next”.

Next, we have to set the Ram Size. Set it to something reasonable based on how much RAM you currently have. Ubuntu runs great with even 1 gig. Click the “Next” button.

Next, we have to create a virtual Hard Disk. Click Next to begin the Hard Disk wizard. Click “Next” Again to skip the intro. I’d set it to default (dynamically expanding) simply because the hard disk can grow to accommodate your info on the virtual OS. Click next, and set it to something reasonable like 10 – 35 gigs.
Click “Next”, and it will tell you it created a .vdi hard drive. Next click “Finish”.

You’ll see the VirtualBox area update with the OS we are creating. Now we want to go into the settings to set the iso image as our boot media. Click on the “Settings” icon. In the left control column, click “Storage”. Now we want to add a cd-rom image to boot from. Click the small plus over the round cds located at the bottom of the pane, then select “Add CD/DVD Device”. Select “Choose Disk”, and browse to the location of your iso file. Once it’s been selected, click “OK” to close the Settings.

Now we can boot up and install Ubuntu. Just click the green “Start” Icon to boot up. You’ll be greeted with a black screen with a little keyboard at the bottom, at this point, hit a key on the keyboard. This simply tells Ubuntu you want to boot from the cd. Now you can install ubuntu.

For instructions on making Ubuntu 10.10 run fullscreen (after you have installed), proceed here – http://www.unixmen.com/linux-tutorials/1157-install-guest-addition-in-ubuntu-1010-maverick-meerkat-fix