• Home
  •  > 
  • Browser plugins
  •  > 
  • Installing virtual pc on windows 10. The process of creating a VM and launching

Installing virtual pc on windows 10. The process of creating a VM and launching

To have several operating systems with separate workspace and applications at hand, you don’t need to buy a second (third, fourth, etc.) computer. Because it all fits into your single PC. How? Thanks to virtual machines (VMs) - special programs that create (emulate) imaginary (virtual) computers inside the main operating system.

A virtual PC is almost like a real one. It has its own processor, memory, hard drive, network adapter and everything else. Of course, these are not physical devices, but they are made in such a way that operating systems consider them to be just that - real.

Several virtual computers can work simultaneously on one physical computer. Exactly how much depends on the hardware resources: the faster the processor, the larger the RAM, the more spacious the storage, the more. A typical average-performance home PC running Windows 10 can handle three to five lightweight operating systems simultaneously (for example, Windows XP, Android and Lubuntu + the main system). Or two or three relatively heavy ones (for example, the main Windows 10 + virtual Windows 7 and Mac OS X). As you already understand, virtual computer emulator applications allow you to install and run a variety of operating systems on them.

General purpose virtual machines (as opposed to specialized ones, such as the Java VM) use:

  • To run applications that the main system does not support.
  • To protect the system from potential harm from untested programs.
  • As an additional barrier against viruses when visiting dubious web resources.
  • To create an isolated environment for studying the activities of malware.
  • As a testing ground for debugging your own developments.
  • To master network construction technologies.
  • For double authorization on some gaming portals and much more.

And of course, virtual machines are widely used to distribute server work resources.

Today we will not touch on the industrial use of VMs, but will only consider what can be useful to home users of Windows OS.

Oracle Virtualbox

Let's look at the process of creating a new virtual machine and starting to install Windows 10 on it.

  • Click the “Create” button in the top panel.

  • In the first window of the VM creation wizard, we will indicate the name of the OS (it will be displayed in the list of guest systems), its type (Windows, Linux, etc.) and version. In our example, this is Windows 10 32 bit (you can also install 64 bit, but it will require more resources). To move to the next step, click Next.

  • Next, we will indicate the size of the VM RAM. By default, Windows 10 x86 is allocated 1 GB, but you can increase this amount by moving the slider to the right. If your PC does not have a lot of RAM, do not give the VM more than 2-3 GB, otherwise the main system will slow down due to lack of memory.

  • Next we create a virtual hard disk. If you are installing the system for the first time, select the “Create new” option.

  • Leave the virtual disk type as default.

  • A storage format is an area on your computer's physical drive that is allocated to a VM. It can have a constant or dynamically expanding volume within the limits that you define further. To save space, we will choose a dynamic format.

  • Next we indicate the name of the volume (virtual disk C) and its size. The default is 32 GB.

  • After clicking the “Create” button in the last window, a new virtual machine will appear in the list. Its parameters are shown in the frame on the right.
  • To proceed to installing Windows, click the “Run” button in the top panel.

  • In the window that opens after this, the “Select boot disk” window will appear. Click on the folder icon and specify the path to the system distribution. This can be an image in .iso format or physical media (DVD, flash drive). After selecting your distribution, click Continue.

  • The further course of installing the OS into a virtual machine is no different from installing it on a physical computer.

Some VM and guest system settings

Clicking on the virtual machine window will capture the mouse cursor (i.e. it will only move within the virtual screen). To return the cursor to the main OS, press the Ctrl+Alt combination.

To access the full range of features of the guest OS, you need to install special add-ons. Go to the "Devices" menu, click "Mount Guest Additions Disk Image" and follow the further instructions.

To connect a folder to the guest system for exchanging files with the main one, click the “Shared Folders” item in the “Devices” menu. Click on the “folder+” icon in the window that opens and use the “path to folder” field to specify it in Explorer (it shows the directories of the main system).

If you want the setting to work permanently, check “Auto-connect” and “Create permanent folder”. The shared folder will be accessible from the virtual machine explorer as a network folder.

To change the order in which boot devices are polled (for example, to boot a virtual machine from a DVD), shut down the guest OS, open its settings (in the main Virtualbox window) and go to the first tab of the “System” section. In the "Load Order" list, select the desired media and press the arrow buttons to move it to the top.

VMware Workstation Pro

Some Hyper-V virtual machine options

To take a snapshot of a running guest OS, open the top menu of its Action window and click Checkpoint. Or press the combination Ctrl+N.

Access to the settings of an individual virtual machine is opened from its context menu in the list of the main manager window and hidden behind the “Settings” button.

Other features of the program are also very simple and can be mastered without much difficulty.

A virtual machine (VM) is another computer running on your desktop. That is, it’s as if a second (virtual) monitor is launched in the window, and another computer is loaded on it.

This computer has its own virtual hardware and you can install any real operating system (OS), for example, virtual Windows. You can work fully on such a “computer” and I really like this topic.

What can you use virtual machines for?

  • for tests or training on other operating systems (Windows, Linux, MacOS, etc.)
  • development of programs for other operating systems
  • work in different places with the same software environment
  • for anonymity

I think you can come up with other ways to use it, this is the first thing that came to my mind. For example, at my former job, I could not install the programs I needed on the computer, even though I was an administrator. This was due to security and licensing issues. Then I installed a virtual machine, installed Windows and all the programs I needed on it, and worked in it. In the evening I recorded the image on an external hard drive and took it home with me.

In addition, the working Internet was greatly reduced in speed, but there was access to another provider. I installed a second network card and configured it in the virtual machine. That is, in “regular” Windows there were no drivers for it, but in a virtual environment fast Internet worked through it.

The virtual hard disk is stored in a single file and its data can be encrypted. That is, if someone comes to you without asking, then you can simply close the virtual operating system and you won’t be able to find anything on your computer except the browser and Excel :)

What virtual machines are there for Windows?

The most popular and used:

  • Oracle VM VirtualBox is free, it can do almost everything that an average user needs
  • Hyper-V is free, built into Windows 8/8.1/10 Pro and Enterprise versions
  • – paid, maximum functionality, for professional developers

VMware is a fairly massive software package, costs a lot, and is designed for commercial use. For the purposes I described, the first two will suffice. But if you know how to download from torrents, you can install it too. The operating principle and plus/minus settings are the same everywhere.

How to install a virtual machine on VirtualBox

The whole process takes place in several simple steps:

  • Download and install VirtualBox
  • Create a VM using the wizard
  • Connect the installation image with the operating system
  • Install the OS as on a regular computer

Actually, I made a video:

To download the program you need to click here:

During installation, windows will pop up asking you to install additional virtual device drivers; you need to agree to everything.

In the main program window, click the “Create” button and get into the virtual machine wizard. To see all the options, you also need to click on the “Expert Mode” button:

Name: any name

Type: select the future operating system (Windows, Linux, BSD, etc.)

Version: exact version of the installed OS (seven, ten, ).

There may not be a choice of x64 versions in the list if there is no hardware virtualization, but this will be discussed below.

RAM

The amount of memory is the RAM that will be available in virtual Windows. For example, if your computer has 8 GB of RAM, then up to 4 GB can be allocated for the VM. And after starting the VM, these 4 gigabytes will be taken away from your Windows, because... will be used by the virtual OS. Therefore, you need to choose this volume based on the following considerations:

  • For Windows 7/8/10 x86 you need at least 1 GB of memory, and for more or less normal operation from 2 GB
  • For Windows x64 you will need at least 2 GB of memory, and for everything to work somehow - at least 3 GB

Accordingly, we select such an amount of virtual memory so that the installed virtual Windows is enough, and your Windows also has as much left as it needs. In general, if you have 4 gigabytes of memory, then set here 1024 MB, and if you have 8 GB or more, then choose 3000-4000 megabytes here.

Hard drive

I suspect that you don’t have a virtual hard disk, so let’s move on to creating one in the next step:

The first important thing is “ Location" Change to a folder on the disk with more space. For example, many people have a C: drive that is not very large and is designed for one operating system, and a D: drive for other files. Now, if this is the case for you too, then select there and create some folder on drive D:

Size– for the Windows family, set it to 40 GB.

Type– leave the default “VDI”. It is unlikely that you will need to connect this “disk” to other virtual systems.

Storage format– “Dynamic”. In this case, the file size of such a disk will grow as it fills up. If you set “Fixed”, then all 40 GB will immediately take up space on the D: drive, for example.

This completes the creation of the virtual machine.

Setting up VM VirtualBox

Now you can start a virtual machine, but it is empty, without an operating system. You need to insert a “disk” into the virtual drive. The installation “DVD” is an ISO image, the same one that we burn to a real DVD or flash drive.

We go to the settings of our VM on the “Media” tab:

Click on the “drive” with the value “Empty”, then on the DVD disk icon and select “Select optical disk image...” from the menu, where we indicate the path to the iso image. And if you have a physical disk with the installation, then simply insert it into the drive and check the “Live CD/DVD” checkbox. It is important that you need to install the version that you chose at the stage of creating the machine, especially regarding the bit capacity.

Now everything is ready to start the virtual machine. Click the “Run” button

The virtual computer will begin loading and the Windows installation process will begin, as if you had done it on your computer or laptop. After installing Windows, you will launch the VM and your virtual Windows will boot.

Host key

An important detail is the host key. When you click on the virtual machine window, all the “attention” from pressing the keyboard buttons and mouse movements will go to the virtual machine (guest operating system). To “free up” the keyboard and mouse, i.e. return them to their native Windows, you need to click right Ctrl. This button can be changed in the settings. By the way, the clipboard of your system and the virtual one is, as it were, common. That is, if you copy text to the clipboard on a real computer, you can paste it in a virtual one, very convenient.

Hardware virtualization

In order for VMs to work faster and better, and also to be able to install 64-bit (x64) versions of operating systems, hardware virtualization must be enabled. This support itself is built into processors and all modern processors have it (only ancient dual-core processors and older ones may not have it).

The technologies are called Intel VT-x and VT-d (in expensive processors) and AMD-V. Its meaning is that commands are sent directly to the processor, bypassing the operating system drivers. Hardware virtualization is enabled in the VM settings on the “ tab System -> Acceleration»

But this may not work for you, because this option is disabled by default in the BIOS for security reasons. The error “VT-x/AMD-V hardware virtualization features are enabled but not functioning” may appear. Therefore, we need to restart the computer and .

If you don’t know how, and are too lazy to read the article, then in a nutshell: immediately after turning on the computer, press the F1, F2, Delete buttons for 10 seconds, or if it is written on the screen, then read which button to press. Let's look at what BIOS you have from the photos and look for a similar setting:

With GUI

Click Advanced, enter advanced mode, then “CPU Configuration”

We look for the “Intel Virtualization Technology” setting and change it to the “On” position. (On)

If you have an AMD processor, then the setting will be called “Secure Virtual Machines”. Save the changes with the “F10” button.

With text interface:

Go to “Security -> Virtualization"

Turn on hardware virtualization technology to the “Enabled” position

Save the settings F10, a reboot will occur. If you do not use virtual machines, then for security reasons it is better to turn off virtualization, because viruses can create their own spaces.

The second reason why hardware virtualization may not work in Windows 8/10 is the enabled built-in Hyper-V virtual machine.









As with any product still in development, launching the Windows 10 Technical Preview is a risky proposition. Here's the most reliable and easiest way to install and run a preview version of the next Windows - in a virtual machine.

This article covers recent changes to virtual machine (VM) software and the installation process for Windows 10 Technical Preview (Win10 Preview for short).

VMs are not only reliable and easy to install, but almost any operating system can run with them. And in this case, both Windows 10 Preview and the virtual PC creation program are 100 percent free. Best of all, running in a VM, Windows 10 Preview poses essentially no risk to your main system (host). It's as if Windows 10 was installed on its own, separate physical computer.

Three Basic Steps

These steps assume that you have not yet installed software to create virtual machines. We will use VirtualBox from Oracle. In addition to being free, it is also quite mature and relatively easy to install. (Note: VirtualBox is updated frequently. If you already have it installed, now is the time to get the latest version.) Steps:

  • Download and install VirtualBox on a standard PC;
  • In VirtualBox, create a new virtual machine optimized to run Win10 Preview;
  • Download Win10 Preview and install it on a new virtual machine.

Important Preliminary Steps

The requirements for running Windows 10 Preview inside a VirtualBox virtual machine are relatively modest. The vast majority of today's personal computers running any modern version of Windows - Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8.x - are likely to meet or exceed minimum specifications.

Here's what's required:

At least 3 GB of system RAM. Win10 Preview needs at least 1GB of RAM, VirtualBox needs another 512MB, and the host system usually needs at least another 1GB or so. Add some more memory for shared system functions. It's better to have more than 3GB of RAM - the typical PC sold today is designed with between 6GB and 12GB. (To quickly check the amount of memory installed on your system, click Start/Control Panel/System. Under System, look for the “Installed Memory (RAM)” heading.)

At least 30 GB of available disk space. Win10 Preview requires approximately 25GB of free space, plus another 4GB or so for the Win10 installation file, but as with RAM, more free disk space is always better. (You will, of course, make up this space when you remove the Win10 VM.) There is no requirement that the Win10 VM be on the primary disk ( C:), but this will make the installation process much easier.

Support for hardware virtualization. Almost all PCs sold in recent years have built-in hardware support for virtualization, as used in VirtualBox (and similar VPC/VM products). But older systems may not have this necessary feature.

Here are ways to determine if your PC supports virtualization:

1) One method is to simply install VirtualBox and install a new virtual machine (more on this below). Then, for the installed machine, right-click, select the "Customize..." menu and go to the "System" section. Click the Acceleration tab and check if the hardware virtualization option is enabled Enable VT-x/AMD-V, as shown in Figure 1. (Note: On some systems, you may have to enable hardware virtualization support in the system BIOS. Check out the Windows SevenForums page for a quick look.

If your system does not support hardware virtualization, you can simply remove VirtualBox.

2) Intel offers its free utility “Does my processor support Intel Virtualization Technology?” (“Does My Processor Support Intel Virtualization Technology?”) (). Likewise, AMD offers the “AMD Virtualization Technology and Microsoft Hyper-V System Compatibility Check Utility” on its . (Scroll to the bottom of the list or click here to download.) You can also try Microsoft's “Hardware-Assisted Virtualization Detection Tool,” but the app only works on Windows XP. Vista and Windows 7 - not in Windows 8.

3) You can also look up your CPU's model number on the manufacturer's website and look at the specifications listed.

But again, note that almost all machines sold in recent years have virtualization support.

And finally, before we continue, backup your current system (backup programs). While none of the steps below are particularly risky, this measure is simply a good backup habit before installing new software or making any changes to the host system.

Step 1: Download and Install VirtualBox

Go to the VirtualBox for Windows page (at the time of writing this is version 4.3.18). This program will work on all current versions of Windows.

Note: Oracle also offers the VirtualBox Extension Pack, a separate package that allows the guest operating system to more fully integrate with the host OS. Your specific case may - or may not - require an Extension Pack. To keep things simple, I suggest installing only the core VirtualBox package. If you need an Extension Pack, there will be a hint for you later. You can then return to the helpful links on the VirtualBox download page to install the Extension Pack.

Once the installation file VirtualBox forWindows downloaded completely, click on it to start the program installation process (Figure 2).

After the introductory window appears, VirtualBox will show two custom dialog boxes Custom Setup , the first of which is shown in Figure 3. Technical Preview works well with default settings - without making changes; just click Next(Next) in both dialog boxes.

You will receive a warning that your network interfaces will be reset (Figure 4). VirtualBox requires this step to integrate itself into your PC's network system and allow the VM (guest) operating system - Windows 10, in this case - to access the Internet.

This network outage will be short-lived, but it will temporarily interrupt your Internet connection. Make sure you are not currently running any tasks, such as downloading software. Click Yes to continue installing VirtualBox.

Then you will see a confirmation window Ready to install(Everything is ready to install). Click Install(Install). From now on, the process is mainly automated; the program will simply request permission for various powers as the process progresses. Give the required permissions and agree to all the default settings - eventually you will see the final dialog box (Figure 5) informing you that the VirtualBox installation is complete. Click the button Finish.

Step 2: Download Windows 10 Technical Preview

Depending on the speed of your Internet connection, downloading Win10 Preview will take approximately 30 - 45 minutes (ISO download sizes range from 2.91 to 3.96 GB). Setting up a virtual PC will only take a few minutes. Thus, now is the time to start downloading the Win10 Preview installation file. Let it download in the background while you set up a new Windows 10 virtual machine.

Win10 Preview doesn't require you to pay, but it does require that you have a Microsoft account and that you join the Windows Insider Program (). Once this is done, click on the "Install Technical Preview" link, which will direct you to download the ISO file. Select the language and bit depth (32 or 64) you need and click Download.

If you're currently running 64-bit Windows, you can download and run either the 32-bit or 64-bit versions of Win10 Preview; if you have a 32-bit system, you can only use the 32-bit version.

Please note that there is only one key - NKJFK-GPHP7-G8C3J-P6JXR-HQRJR- but you probably won't need it.

One thing to keep in mind is that an ISO image file is essentially a DVD image. VirtualBox can use the Win10 Preview installation file directly - you won't need to burn the image to an optical disc or flash device. Just leave it on your PC in a convenient place such as the Downloads folder.

Step 3: Create a new virtual machine for Windows 10 Technical Preview

When you launch VirtualBox for the first time, its main manager, VirtualBox Manager, will display a welcome dialog (Figure 6). Start the new virtual PC setup process by clicking the blue icon Create in the upper left corner of the manager.

VirtualBox will now guide you through a series of installation dialogs.

  • Tell them the OS type as well. (virtual PC name and operating system): it is better to give the virtual machine a simple and meaningful name. In the following examples, I will be installing the 64-bit version of Win10 Preview. Thus, in the field Name I entered a completely self-explanatory title: Win10-64 Preview. Name your virtual machine whatever you like.

Finally, use this simple method to select the version. Win10 Preview uses the same VirtualBox presets as Windows 8.1. So, if you downloaded the 32-bit Win10 Preview, select Windows 8.1 (32-bit); if you downloaded the 64-bit Win10 Preview, select Windows 8.1 (64-bit). Figure 7 shows what I chose.

  • Adjust virtual memory size : In the Specify Memory dialog box (Figure 8), make sure your Win10 is assigned at least 1 GB of RAM. Better if more. Moving the control knob along the color-coded scale adjusts the total amount of RAM available to the VM. Set the control in the green area so that both the VM and the non-virtual host system have enough memory to operate normally.

  • Other settings : You will now go through dialogues Select your hard drive, Specify type(hard drive), Specify storage format(storing data on a physical hard drive), and Specify the file name and size(file location and size). Simply accept the suggested default settings in each dialog box: Create Virtual Hard Disk, VDI (VirtualBox Disk Image), Dynamic Virtual Hard Disk, and 25 GB for the virtual disk size.

As a result, you will have a simple, empty and untouched virtual PC created, ready to install a new operating system.

Step 4: Last two settings

By default, the new VM will try to boot from its virtual hard disk. But your virtual machine's virtual disk is currently empty. To install Win10 Preview on an empty disk, the VM must first load the downloaded ISO file using virtual optical drive (virtual optical disk device). (At this point, however, the file is most likely still downloading. Take a coffee break.)

Selecting the virtual optical drive for the VM requires only a few clicks, just like the other preset setting, selecting the VM's cursor handle. Let's start with the manipulator.

Select the new virtual machine in the VirtualBox manager and click the Configure icon (the big orange gear) as shown in Figure 9.

Go to section System in the Settings window to enter it. On the Motherboard tab, open the drop-down list Cursor manipulator and select PS/2 mouse, USB tablet or USB Multi-Touch Tablet, depending on which pointer you are using on your host machine. I'm using a standard PC with a mouse, so I chose PS/2 mouse(see Figure 10). When you select what you need, click " OK".

Now you need to make VirtualBox use the Win10 Preview (ISO) installation file. It's all about inserting the virtual installation DVD into the VM's virtual optical drive correctly. (The next few steps are illustrated in Figure 11.)

Click the main Customize icon again and select Media. Then, in the “Storage Media” section under the device Controller: IDE click Empty(this is No. 1 in Figure 11). New options will appear on the right side of the Media panel.

Now in the Attributes section, check the box Live CD/DVD(#2) and then click the disk icon to the right of the text Secondary IDE Master(No. 3). A pop-up menu will appear. Select Select optical disk image (№4).

At this step, a recognizable window in the form of Explorer opens. Find the ISO file you downloaded - most likely in your Downloads folder - and select it (usually it will be labeled something like WindowsTechnicalPreview-x; see figure 12). Click Open.

The program will then return you to the Settings/Media dialog. Click OK.

Note: As noted earlier, you may receive a dialog box prompting you to install the VirtualBox Extension Pack. This additional package does not need to be paid for and can be downloaded from the same page where you received the main VirtualBox installation file.

Congratulations! Now the installation of the virtual machine is complete, you can install and run Windows 10!

Step 5: Install Windows 10 Technical Preview

From the main menu of the VirtualBox manager, either double-click the Win10 virtual machine or select it and click the “Run” icon (Figure 13).

The VM will now boot from the installation ISO file located in the virtual DVD drive and start installing Win10 Preview. The initial dialog boxes will probably be familiar to you - they are very similar to those found in previous versions of Windows.

Note: When you first click inside a VM window, a VirtualBox message may appear telling you that your cursor will be temporarily locked within the window. This is a common situation. If you decide to go outside the VM window, simply click left (or on some systems right) Ctrl key to return control of the mouse to the host computer.

In the first Win10 installation dialog, the program will ask you to confirm or change the language and keyboard type. Select “Russian (Russia)” from the “Time and currency format” drop-down menu (Figure 14). Then you will see a window with a button Install now(Start installation). Click it. You will then be asked to accept the terms of the license agreement - do so.

The dialog box " Which type of installation do you want? " (What type of installation do you prefer?) Select installation Custom(Custom) as shown in Figure 15 - This option is suitable for installing Win10 on a previously unused hard drive, such as our VM drive.

After some time, the VM will reboot. Ignore the “Press any key to boot from the CD/DVD” prompt and let the VM boot from its own hard drive. Once you reboot, the program will walk you through a final series of Win10 settings (the defaults are fine) and personalization settings, such as prompting for Microsoft account information.

If you don't have a Microsoft account, or if you don't want to use an existing account, you can create a new one for free as you go. The final options and features of the installation procedure are self-explanatory; for Windows 8 or 8.1 users, they will still look familiar.

When you're done, Win10 will be up and running and ready for you to test. If you selected a mouse as your pointing device, you will be taken directly to the Win10 Desktop, shown in Figure 16.

Note: Windows 10 Technical Preview has already had several updates. One of your first tasks is to run Windows Update. (Right-click the Start button with the Windows flag and select Control Panel from the pop-up menu, click System and Security/Windows Update, and then click the link Check for Updates(Search for updates)).

A few more preparations so that everything loads smoothly

At this point, your virtual machine is still configured to boot from the installation ISO file. If you leave everything as is, then every time you start your VPC you will receive a request “Press any key to boot from the CD/DVD”.

To avoid this you should disconnect ISO file from virtual DVD drive. Only a few simple steps are required.

Close Win10 as usual - that is, right-click on the Start button in Win10 and select Shut down or sign out(Shut down or log out), then Shut down(Shutdown). When Win10 closes, you will be returned to the VirtualBox manager. (Note: Most virtual PC settings cannot be changed while the virtual machine session is running.)

With the Win10 VM selected, click the "Configure" icon and go to the "Media" section (you went there before, see Figure 11.) On the right side of the "Media" window, click the disk icon next to the item Secondary master IDE .

From the options drop-down list, select Disc removed from drive, as shown in Figure 17.

Click OK to close the settings window. Ready!

Try Windows 10 Technical Preview

If you know Windows 8, then, mainly, in Win10 Technical Preview you will feel like a fish in water. The overall concept is basically the same, but with many of the expected improvements added. If you've never used Windows 8, you may find working on the new OS a little difficult.

The following information about the Windows 10 Technical Preview on our site should help guide you:

- Microsoft introduced the new Windows 10 OS. Official Microsoft press release.

User manual in Russian.

- Antiviruses for Windows 10 Technical Preview. Information about official support for the new platform from antivirus vendors, user experience in installing antivirus solutions.

Among the top three leaders in the software market for virtualization of operating systems – VMware, VirtualBox and Hyper-V – the latter hypervisor occupies a special place. This special place is due to the fact that Hyper-V is a standard component of Windows server systems and some versions of Windows for desktop PCs. While inferior to VMware Workstation and VirtualBox in functionality, cross-platform, and partly in ease of use, Hyper-V, however, is not without its advantages. And the main thing is higher performance of guest operating systems.

Below we will talk about activating Hyper-V in Windows 10 and creating a virtual machine using this hypervisor.

1. Hyper-V - standard hypervisor from Microsoft

The Windows 10 system inherited the standard Hyper-V component from versions of Windows 8 and 8.1, and in them the hypervisor migrated from Windows Server. Both Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 include optional Hyper-V in the Pro and Enterprise editions. The hypervisor can only work on 64-bit systems.

For a long time, Hyper-V did not support any guest operating systems other than Windows. However, relatively recently, Microsoft took care of hypervisor support for Linux guest OS. And today, using Hyper-V, you can test some Linux distributions, in particular the popular Ubuntu.

2. Requirements for running Hyper-V

The minimum amount of RAM on a physical computer to run Hyper-V is 4 GB.

The computer processor must support SLAT technology (Intel EPT or AMD RVI). Almost all modern processors meet this requirement.

Another requirement for the processor, also provided for by many modern models, is support for hardware virtualization technology and, accordingly, its active state in the BIOS. In the BIOS of motherboards for Intel processors, this technology (depending on the version) can be called differently - Intel-VT, Intel Virtualization Technology, Intel VT-x, Vanderpool or Virtualization Extensions. AMD's hardware virtualization technology is called AMD-V or SVM (Secure Virtual Machines). For example, in AMI BIOS version 17.9, the AMD processor hardware virtualization function can be found under the path Cell Menu – CPU Feature – SVM Support.

AMD processors usually have hardware virtualization enabled by default. Whether a specific processor model supports hardware virtualization can be found out on the websites of Intel and AMD.

3. Activation and launch of Hyper-V

Hyper-V is optional with Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise. Initially, the standard hypervisor is disabled. It is turned on in the “Programs and Features” section of the control panel. The fastest way to get there is an internal search.

Run “Turn system components on or off.”

In the small window that appears, check all the sub-items of the Hyper-V item. Click "Ok".

The system will apply the changes for a couple of seconds and ask to reboot. After the reboot, look for the shortcut to launch the Hyper-V Manager. You can immediately pin the Hyper-V Manager shortcut to the Windows 10 Start screen by finding it in the Start menu Administrative Tools.

The Hyper-V Manager shortcut can also be accessed using an in-system search.

Launch Hyper-V Manager.

4. Setting up network access

In Hyper-V Manager, the network is configured in a separate step, and first you need to create a virtual switch - the parameter that provides access to the network. Click on the name of the physical computer, and on the right side of the window select “Virtual Switch Manager...”.

The virtual switch creation wizard will launch, where the first thing you need to do is select the network type. There are three of them:

  • External – This type uses the network card or Wi-Fi adapter of the physical computer and connects the virtual machine to the same network as the physical computer. Accordingly, this is a type of network that allows a virtual machine to access the Internet;
  • Internal - this type provides a network between the physical computer and Hyper-V virtual machines, but does not provide their access to the Internet;
  • Private - this type allows you to create a network between Hyper-V virtual machines, but there will be no physical computer on this network, nor will there be Internet access.

In our case, virtual machine access to the Internet is necessary, so we will choose the first type - an external network. Click “Create a virtual switch.”

In the properties window of the virtual switch, we give it a name; it can be any name, for example, “Network card 1”. If necessary, you can add a note to the virtual switch. If a physical computer has both a network card and a Wi-Fi adapter on board, the specific device through which the virtual machine will connect to the network can be selected from the drop-down list in the “Connection type” column. After making the settings, click “Apply” at the bottom of the window.

5. Create a virtual machine

Now you can proceed directly to creating a virtual machine. On the left side of the Hyper-V window, the selection should still be on the name of the physical computer. In the top right corner, click “Create”, then click “Virtual Machine”.

In the welcome window of the launched wizard, click “Next”.

Give the virtual machine a name; You can also change its location on the disk of a physical computer by specifying the desired disk partition and the desired folder using the browse button. Click “Next”.

One of the relatively new features of Hyper-V is the choice of virtual machine generation. In our case, generation 2 was selected.

What does it mean? Generation 1 are virtual machines that support 32- and 64-bit Windows systems. Generation 1 is compatible with previous versions of Hyper-V.

Generation 2 – new format virtual machines with built-in UEFI-based software. Such virtual machines support a number of new features and can provide a small performance increase. On generation 2 virtual machines, only 64-bit versions of Windows 8.1 and 10, as well as server versions of Windows Server 2012, Server 2012 R2 and Server 2016 are installed as guest operating systems.

The UEFI platform imposes another requirement for using Generation 2 virtual machines - UEFI boot media. This point needs to be clarified by downloading an ISO image with a Windows distribution from third-party sources on the Internet. But it’s still better to download Windows distributions from official Microsoft sources. Thus, the Media Creation Tool utility, which downloads Windows 8.1 and distribution kits from the Microsoft website, creates a bootable ISO image that supports the UEFI environment.

If you install Windows 10 as a guest OS, this is the recommended method for obtaining an ISO image of the system. Windows 10 includes a lazy-input installation process. In our case, Windows 8.1 will be installed as a guest OS, and its official distribution, obtained using the Media Creation Tool utility, requires entering a product key during the installation process. The TechNet Trial Center website can help you support the UEFI environment and take advantage of the free opportunity to test Windows 8.1. On this site you can download the English edition of 64-bit Windows 8.1 Enterprise and test the system for free for 3 months. The problem with the lack of support for the Russian language after installing the system can be solved separately by installing a language pack and setting Russian as the main language of the system.

We return to the virtual machine creation wizard. In the memory allocation window, leave the preset parameters if the physical computer has no more than 4 GB of RAM. If it is more than 4 GB, you can increase the amount allocated when starting the virtual machine. For guest Windows XP, the RAM indicator can, on the contrary, be reduced to 512 MB. Click “Next”.

In the network settings window, select the previously created virtual switch from the drop-down list. Click “Next”.

In the virtual hard disk connection window, give the virtual machine a name, indicate the location on the physical computer’s disk, and indicate the size. These are the options for creating a new hard drive. The second point of this wizard step is used when the computer already has a virtual hard disk, in particular, with a guest OS installed. If you select a Generation 2 virtual machine, the virtual hard disk file must be in VHDX (not VHD) format, and the guest OS must support the UEFI boot environment. Click “Next”.

If in the previous step of the wizard you selected the option to create a new virtual hard disk, the next step will be to specify the path to the Windows distribution. Generation 2 virtual machines no longer allow booting from a physical CD/DVD drive. The only sources for downloading the guest OS distribution can be the network and ISO image. In our case, this is an ISO image. Click “Next”.

The final stage of the wizard is to click “Finish”.

6. Connecting a virtual machine

Having created the virtual machine, return to the Hyper-V Manager window. Now you need to connect it. To do this, there is the “Connect” command, among other commands in the context menu called on the virtual machine. The “Connect” command is also present on the right side of the Hyper-V Manager window. To connect, you can also double-click with the left mouse button on the preview window of the selected virtual machine.

In the connection window that opens, click the green start button.

The normal Windows 8.1 installation process will follow, just as it would on a physical computer.

As soon as the installation files begin copying, you can close the virtual machine connection window and do other things.

Closing the connection window will free up some resources of the physical computer to perform other tasks, while the virtual machine will continue to work in the background. Its performance will be displayed in Hyper-V Manager.

You can connect to the virtual machine as needed to perform actions in it.

That's it - Windows 8.1 is installed. You can turn off, pause, save a virtual machine, or reset its state using commands in the Hyper-V manager and buttons on the top panel of the connection window.

7. Boot priority

In order to avoid wasting time on the boot window from a CD/DVD when starting a virtual machine in the future, you need to open the settings window when it is turned off and remove the path to the ISO file with the distribution. This is done in the DVD drive tab of the virtual machine hardware settings.

An alternative option is to raise the hard drive in boot priority above the DVD drive (but not above the “bootmgfw.efi” file). This is done in the “Firmware” tab of the hardware settings.

In both cases, the changes made are saved with the “Apply” button at the bottom.

8. Bypass Hyper-V connection window restrictions

The Hyper-V hypervisor focuses on the performance of virtual machines, not functionality. Unlike its competitors - VMware and VirtualBox - Hyper-V virtual machines do not work with connected flash drives, do not play sound, and interaction with a physical computer is carried out only by pasting text copied into the main OS inside the guest OS. This is the price of performance of Hyper-V virtual machines. But this is if you work with the usual Hyper-V connection window.

Full integration of a physical computer and a virtual machine can be achieved using the standard remote desktop connection utility.

This utility allows you to flexibly configure connection parameters, in particular, to make available within the virtual machine not only USB drives connected to the physical computer, but also individual hard drive partitions.

Connecting to a virtual machine in this way will provide audio playback and two-way file transfer in the guest OS.

Have a great day!

A virtualization server is a physical computer that has the necessary resources to run virtual machines. Using Hyper-V Manager, you can create, configure, and manage virtual machines on a virtualization server.

Using virtual machines you can perform various tasks. Each virtual machine runs in an isolated execution environment, allowing you to run different operating systems and applications on your computer.

This article will tell you how to enable Hyper-V virtualization in Windows 10. First of all, we will look at how to check the Hyper-V system requirements, and only then enable Hyper-V and configure the virtual machine.

So, if we talk about the system requirements for the operating system on which the hypervisor called Hyper-V will be deployed, then the Windows 10 Enterprise, Professional and Education editions are suitable. You must have a 64-bit version of the Windows 10 operating system, since 32-bit versions do not have the ability to use Hyper-V.

In addition, you will need a 64-bit processor that supports virtualization technologies, such as VM Monitor Mode Extension and support for Second Level Address Translation. It is recommended to use at least 4 GB of RAM, but if you run it on a smaller amount, then the virtual machine will not get anything.

It will also be necessary to enable these same virtualization technologies, as well as enable Hardware Enforced Data Execution Prevention (DEP). Without this technology, you will not be able to run virtual machines. There are a number of features associated with a specific BIOS or UEFI model. Some technologies may compete with virtualization and therefore prevent you from running virtual machines.

The Windows 10 operating system has a tool for checking hardware compatibility with Hyper-V installations, which is useful for beginners. Using the systeminfo.exe utility, we will see the parameters for the requirements for Hyper-V.

At the bottom of the window, find the Hyper-V requirements item and check whether installing a virtual machine on your computer is supported. If you find the following value parameters, then you will not have any problems installing Hyper-V on this machine:

  • Virtual Machine Monitoring Mode Extensions: Yes
  • Virtualization enabled in firmware: Yes
  • Second level address translation: Yes
  • Data execution prevention available: Yes

How to enable Hyper-V on Windows 10

Control Panel


The installation of the components will proceed quite quickly and the system will request a system reboot. During the reboot process, the user will also see updates working.

Windows PowerShell

Installing and configuring Hyper-V

The wizard will help you create a virtual machine. Virtual machines can be used instead of physical computers for a variety of purposes. You can configure the virtual machine using a wizard or using Hyper-V Manager.

Before creating a virtual machine in Hyper-V, you need to download an operating system image. It can be done easily.

  1. Open the Hyper-V Manager, which appeared in the system after enabling the Hyper-V hypervisor component.
  2. Right-click on your device in Hyper-V Manager and select the item in the context menu New > Virtual Machine…
  3. In the virtual machine creation wizard window that opens, click the button Next to create a virtual machine with specific configuration settings.
  4. Set the name and location for this virtual machine and click Next(the values ​​of the current window can be left as default if you have enough memory on the system disk).
  5. Depending on the bitness of the operating system that we will install on the virtual machine, we select the generation (the generation of the virtual machine you have chosen cannot be changed after creation).
  6. Next, indicate how much RAM you need to allocate for this virtual machine (when deciding on the amount of memory allocated to the virtual machine, you should take into account the purposes for which it will be used).
  7. Select a virtual switch from the available connections or leave the virtual machine's network adapter unconnected.
  8. Now let's create a virtual hard disk by specifying its name, location and size (we recommend freeing up memory on your hard disk in advance).
  9. Next, in the installation options, select Install an operating system from a boot image file and specify the desired operating system image.
  10. The last step in creating a virtual machine will be to check all the above parameters in the tab Summary and pressing a button Ready.
  11. Now in the Hyper-V manager you just need to launch the created virtual machine by selecting Start in the context menu and connect to it by selecting Connect.

After connecting to the new virtual machine, a new window will open with the image that was selected earlier. Then it is enough to manage and follow the steps of installing the operating system.


Conclusion

You can enable Hyper-V virtualization on Windows 10 using the Create a Virtual Machine Wizard in Hyper-V Manager. But before turning it on, make sure that your computer meets the Hyper-V system requirements. Only then is it recommended to enable, install and configure the virtual machine in Hyper-V.