Move "XP Mode" from Windows Virtual PC to VirtualBox?

Question

I installed "XP Mode" in Windows 7 (which uses Windows Virtual PC to host XP). I have now discovered that VirtualBox, which I have installed on the same Windows 7 machine, refuses to run at the same time as Windows Virtual PC (it gives me an error about not running multiple visualization programs).

Is there any way I can convert the "XP Mode" image so that it will run inside VirtualBox instead of Windows Virtual PC? That way I will be able to run XP as well as other VM's at the same time.

Solution 1

Following up @Molly7244's post, VMLite plugin for virtualbox.

http://www.sevenforums.com/virtualization/56399-vmlite-xp-mode-plugin-virtualbox-released.html

The official VMLite XP Mode Plugin for Sun VirtualBox, which enables VirtualBox to run XP Mode, has been released. Free download is available from our download area.

http://www.vmlite.com/index.php/download (the 2nd binary VMLiteWorkstationPluginSetup.exe) (registration required)

Who needs the plugin?

(1) Current VirtualBox users that want to run XP Mode. The plugin is fully compatible with VirtualBox 3.1.2, so your existing VirtualBox and virtual Machines won't be touched in any way. The plugin simply installs to a separate folder, and enables VirtualBox to run XP Mode.

(2) Current VMLite users that want to support USB devices, such as USB printers, USB webcams, etc. You will need to uninstall your current VMLite Workstation first.

How to install?

It requires Sun VirtualBox 3.1.2. you need to Install VirtualBox first, then install the plugin.

You will be able to run XP Mode with VirtualBox, or with the newly installed VMLite Workstation.

1) Current VirtualBox Users without any VMLite installed

you can download the plugin, and install VMLite, then follow the wizard to create the first XP Mode vm.

2) Current VMLite users without any VirtualBox installed

Follow the following steps exactly:

(1) Uninstall your current VMLite Workstation better to reboot the host machine after VMLite Workstation is uninstalled

(2) Very important - otherwise your previous VMs won't be available rename this folder, c:\users\%your-user-id%\VMLites to c:\users\%your-user-id%.VirtualBox (yes, there is a dot in front of VirtualBox)

(3) Download and install Sun VirtualBox 3.1.2 www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads

(4) Download and Install our VMLite Plugin for VirtualBox the 2nd binary from our download page (VMLiteWorkstationPluginSetup.exe) www.vmlite.com/index.php/download

Solution 2

Reposting from here: http://www.vmlite.com/index.php?option=com_kunena&Itemid=158&func=view&catid=9&id=6706&limit=6&limitstart=12#8420

Re:VMLite XP Mode Plugin for VirtualBox and Virtutal Box 4.0 2 Years, 8 Months ago Karma: 50 If you only wanted to run XP Mode within VirtualBox as activated, you can use this attached bios file.

Unzip the file to someehere, e.g., c:\vmlite-bios\pcbios.bin

then you need to run this command to use it to replace VirtualBox bios for a specified vm.

VBoxManage.exe setextradata your-vm-name "VBoxInternal/Devices/pcbios/0/Config/BiosRom" "c:\vmlite-bios\pcbios.bin"

You should be able to do this on Linux/Mac too, to run XP mode activated.

File Attachment: File Name: pcbios.zip File Size: 27178

File link: http://www.vmlite.com/images/fbfiles/files/pcbios.zip

Comments

[Admin]

why not run the other VMs under VirtualPC instead?

[Admin]

macrium.com/help/v5/How_to/ImgToVHD/… You can create a VM in Vbox using the VHD files.

[Admin]

But then I need to buy a licensed XP right? (XP Mode is free with Windows 7 Ultimate)

[Admin]

@JoelFan: you'd need a license anyway; Microsoft doesn't license your XP-mode image for use under another virtualizer.

[Admin]

@JoelFan - If the license is your concern, you can always grab a free (but time-limited) Internet Explorer Application Compatibility VPC Image, they do work with VBox. microsoft.com/downloads/…

[Admin]

So if it works in VMLite, will it also work in regular VBox?

[Admin]

@JoelFan - It will boot but fail the activation in VirtualBox. There might be workarounds but that might not be legal, so i'd rather not discuss it here.

[rakslice]

Is there an update of this plugin for VirtualBox 4.x?

[gronostaj]

Please explain what this post means. Reposting without any comment is frowned upon, especially that you didn't even care to format it properly.

[JDuarteDJ]

This should really be the selected answer much better/simpler! Also as Anonymous I added some formatting!

[JDuarteDJ]

I find some people would prefer @barmaglot17 's answer, I do it's simpler and faster.

[rakslice]

Is there an updated version of this BIOS that works with VirtualBox 5.1?

[xdhmoore]

I added some more explanation I found to the answer above, but I still couldn't get it to work with VB 5.1. The VM wouldn't start up after I changed the bios. I'm guessing this is because the bios file is incompatible with VB 5.1 in some way. I don't know anything about creating/editing BIOS ROMs, but since VMLite was able to create one that worked, it seems likely it could be updated to work with VB 5.1 with the right know-how.

[endolith]

Virtual machine no longer boots :(

[endolith]

To remove this, just do VBoxManage.exe setextradata your-vm-name "VBoxInternal/Devices/pcbios/0/Config/BiosRom"