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How To Shrink Your Virtualbox VM And Free Up Space For Your Hard Disk

Damien — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 13:43:49 +0000

While using Virtualbox, one thing that I have found is that the size of the VM (a file with .VDI extension) expands over time. If you have selected the “Dynamically Expanding Storage” option when first creating the VM, you will find that the file size expands whenever you install new applications in the VM. That is perfectly normal. However, when you uninstall or delete applications in the VM, the file size does not shrink or return to its previous size. That is to say, if you are constantly installing and uninstalling applications in your VM, the VDI file could be taking up more space than it is actually using.

If you have a great deal of hard disk space to spare, you can simply ignore this. However, if you find yourself always running short of hard disk space, you might want to consider shrinking the VM and free up unused disk space.

This tutorial will go through the steps to shrink your Virtualbox VM.

It doesn’t matter if you are using Windows/Linux host. The instructions for a Windows and Linux guest are slightly different though. (I have not tried this on a Mac host yet. Theoretically it should work, but do it at your own risk.)

For Windows guest

If you are using Windows guest, do the following:

Uninstall all unnecessary applications
Perform a hard disk defragmentation. If you are using WinXP, you You can access the inbuilt disk fragmenter from Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Disk Defragmenter.

Download sdelete and extract it to your desktop.

Open a command prompt and cd to the sdelete directory. Type in the following command:

sdelete -c c:/

This will add zeroes to all the free space in your C: drive.

Once it is done, shutdown the VM.

For Linux guest

If you are using Linux guest (this tutorial assumes you are using Ubuntu and is running on ext2/ext3 filesytem. It does not work on ext4), here is what you need to do:

Remove any unused applications.
Clean up your Linux VM

Install zerofree

sudo apt-get zerofree

Restart and boot your Linux VM into Recovery mode. (This is generally the second option in the Grub boot up screen.)

In the root shell prompt, type

df

This will display all the available filesystem in your OS. Record down the filesystem where the main directory lies. (it should be in /dev/sdaX or /dev/hdaX format)

Mount the filesystem in read-only mode with the following command:

mount -n -o remount,ro -t ext3 /dev/sda1 /

replacing the /dev/sda1 with the filesytem info that you have recorded just now.

Next, type the following command to zero out all the free space.

zerofree /dev/sda1

Once again, replace the /dev/sda1 with your own filesystem info.

Once you are done, shutdown the Linux VM:

shutdown -h now

Shrinking the VM

Now that we are done with clearing up the VM and zero out all the free space, it’s time to shrink the file size using the VboxManage command.

If you are still using the older Virtualbox 2.0.x version, you can easily shrink the hard disk with the following command:

VboxManage modifyvdi /path/to/your/VM.vdi compact

If you have upgraded your Virtualbox to the 2.1.x version, you will find that the above command will no longer work. There is a bug in the software that disable the use of the modifyhd command. An alternative solution is to use the clonehd command to creat a smaller clone copy of the original VM.

In your terminal (or command prompt), type the following:

VboxManage clonehd name-of-original-vm.vdi name-of-clone-vm.vdi

This will create a clone of the original VM with the name that you have specified in the command above.

Result

After shrinking my VM, I manage to shave 45% off the size of the oirginal VM and free up a whopping 4.5GB of hard disk space to store my other stuff.

The original VDI: 10GB

The cloned VDI: 5.5GB

Importing the clone VM into Virtualbox

The whole process is not finished yet. You still need to import the clone VM into Virtualbox and remove/delete the original VM from your system.

In your Virtualbox console, click on the New button.

Follow the instructions to create a new VM. When it reaches the screen to ask you to choose the hard disk, select Existing.

In the Virtual media manager window, click Add to add the newly cloned VM.

Highlight the newly added VM and click Select.

Back to the Hard disk selection window, you should see your new VM in the dropdown selection. Click on Next to finish up the import.

Once everything is in place, run the newly added VM to make sure that it is working fine.

On the main Virtualbox screen, highlight the original VM and go to Machine -> Delete. This will remove the entry from the console.

Go to File -> Virtual Media Manager. Highlight the original VM and click the Remove button. When prompt if you want to keep the file, select Delete. This will delete the vdi file from your system.

That’s it.

How To Shrink Your Virtualbox VM And Free Up Space For Your Hard Disk originally published on Make Tech Easier (RSS)

How to Create a Ubuntu Virtual Machine With QEMU Manager

fasil — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 13:39:18 +0000

QEMU is a CPU and process emulator which allows you to create virtual machines that can run on any platform. QEMU manager uses this emulator to virtualize Linux on windows systems. In this post we show you how to create an Ubuntu virtual machine on Windows using QEMU manager.

Summary of steps involved and software needed:

1. Download QEMU manager and Install on windows platform

2. Create Linux Virtual Machine and Install Ubuntu on virtual hard disk

3. Run the Virtual hard disk from windows platform.

4. QEMU manager and Ubuntu ISO image are needed as software requirements.

Steps to Install QEMU manager and Create Virtual Machine

1. Download QEMU manager and install on Windows platform. Screen shot of QEMU manager with virtual machines are shown below.

Click to enlarge

2. Create a new Ubuntu Virtual machine by clicking Options -> Create New Virtual Machine or by clicking the ‘+’ sign.

3. After creating the virtual machine, configure the virtual machine by setting the memory size required and choose the location of the ISO image which is to be installed into the virtual machine. Set the boot option as shown below

4. Once boot parameters are configured properly, click the ‘Run‘ virtual machine icon to launch the virtual machine.

5. QEMU will run the emulator and boot Ubuntu from the ISO image. Follow the onscreen instructions to install Ubuntu

6. Proceed with the standard Ubuntu installation procedure by choosing the keyboard map, region settings as per your preference.

7. Select Guided partition option and click Forward to proceed further

8. Enter your login option and proceed to install Ubuntu to the virtual hard disk.

9. Once the installation is completed, you will be able to run the virtual machine from the virtual hardisk. Make sure you select the correct boot parameters .

Note : The keyboard shortcut to switch focus and return back to Windows is CTRL +ALT .

Some of the advantages of using QEMU:

1. Easy to use and run with minimal system memory, say 512MB RAM.

2. There are option that allows you to create VMware virtual disk.

3. Plenty of options provided for optimal virtualization.

As for the disadvantage, there is no option for you to save the state of the Virtual machine or to pause the virtual machine and shut the system.

Have you tried QEMU before? How do you find it?

How to Create a Ubuntu Virtual Machine With QEMU Manager originally published on Make Tech Easier (RSS)

How To Share Files In VirtualBox With Vista Guest And Ubuntu Host

Damien — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 08:32:20 +0000

For some of you who have setup Windows Vista as the guest VM in your Ubuntu Virtualbox, you might have some difficulties in getting the Vista guest to access the shared folder in your Ubuntu host. If you are having this problem, here is the way to mount the shared folder on your Vista guest.

First of all, make sure you have already installed both VirtualBox and Windows Vista guest. If you have not, here is the complete installation guide.

Secondly, make sure you have updated your VirtualBox to the latest version (2.0.4). There are some issues in the earlier version which will cause the mounting to fail.

In your Ubuntu machine, open up Virtualbox (Applications -> System Tools -> virtualBox).

Highlight the Vista VM entry (make sure that it is in Powered off state) and click on the Settings icon at the top.

On the left, click on the Network. On the right, make sure that the Enable Network Adaptor and Cable Connected are checked.

On the left, click on the Shared Folders. Then, click on the icon on the far right.

Select the folder that you want to use as a share point. Give it a name.

Click OK to close the Settings window.

Boot up your Vista VM.

Install the guest addition. (Skip this step if you have already done so)

Restart the Vista VM.

Open your Windows Explorer, click on the Map Network Drive

In the Folder input text, enter

\\vboxsvr\sharename

where sharename is the name of the share folder that you add just now. Make sure that the Reconnect at logon is checked. Click Finish

You should now see the shared folder mounted as a network drive.

That’s it.

How To Share Files In VirtualBox With Vista Guest And Ubuntu Host originally published on Make Tech Easier (RSS)

5 Reasons Why You Should Use VirtualBox Over VMware Server

Damien — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 04:21:16 +0000

Ever since I started using Ubuntu two years back, I have been an avid user of VMware server. It fascinated me to a great extent that I could actually run an OS inside an OS. Recently, I tried out VirtualBox, another virtualization software like VMware server, and I was greatly impressed by it. Even though I love VMware server, I can’t deny the fact that VirtualBox actually runs faster and smoother, with less crashes. Here is my top 5 reasons why VirtualBox is better than VMware server.

1) File size

How long do you need to download a 20MB file with a broadband connection? A snap of finger! Yes, that is how small VirtualBox is: slighly over 20MB where you can download it in a snap. VMware server? About 102MB, well…not too long either, mayber after you have finished your tea session.

2) Installation

Ubuntu users can simply install VirtualBox from the repository. Simply open the Synaptic Package Manager, check the VirtualBox and click Apply to install. For other Linux disro, there is also debian and rpm package available for download. For VMware server, only if you like to compile and build the source code from command line.

3) Speed Boost

The real advantage of VirtualBox over VMware server lies in its performance. VirtualBox apparently runs faster than VMware server. A timed experiment of an installation of Windows XP as the guest OS took 20 mins in VirtualBox and 35 mins on VMware server. A similar test on the booting time of the guest OS also shows favor to VirtualBox with a timing of 45secs compared to 1min 39 secs on VMware server.

4) Remote File Sharing

When I was using VMware server, I have to install and configure Samba on my Ubuntu host so as to access the files in my guest OS. In VirtualBox, the remote file sharing feature is built right in the package. Setting up remote file sharing is easy and you only need to do it once: point the file path to the directory that you want to share.

5) Integration with Host OS

In VirtualBox, there is this mode call ‘seamless mode‘ where you can integrate the guest OS with the host OS. With this mode on, you can access the applications from the guest OS right from the host’s desktop. There is no need for you to traverse between the guest and the host. VMware server does not have this feature, although you can find the ‘unity‘ mode that does the same thing in VMware Workstation.

My Feel…

I have not tested VirtualBox on a server setting, thus I can’t comment on its performance for corporate use. However, for personal use, I would strongly recommend VirtualBox over VMware server because of its faster speed and user-friendliness.

5 Reasons Why You Should Use VirtualBox Over VMware Server originally published on Make Tech Easier (RSS)

Sharing Files Between Ubuntu Host and Virtual Machines

Damien — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 04:26:22 +0000

After installing Windows Vista on Ubuntu using VMware, one of the problems that you’re likely to face is that your virtual machine has completely no access to your host folder. This means you cannot view/edit your favorite photos (or any other files) in your Vista VM. Come to think of it, what is the use of installing a VM if you can’t access your local hard disk where all your documents are kept?

Luckily, there are several solutions to this.

1) Transfer files using a USB drive.

Open up your VMware Server Console. Make sure that your VM is powered off (not in suspend mode). Click “Edit Virtual Machine Setting”. Under the Hardware tab, click Add -> USB Controller. This will install the USB driver and allow you to connect up to two USB devices to your VM.

Insert in your USB disk and power on your VM. Once the VM has finished loading. On the menu bar, Click VM -> Removable device -> USB Device -> your USB drive name.

Done. You have now access to your USB disk from your VM. A point to note is that you can’t access your USB disk from the host desktop and the VM at the same time. If you are adding USB disk in your VM, the host will automatically dismount your USB disk. Thus, if you want to transfer files between host and VM, you will need to transfer files from host to USB disk, then dismount USB disk from host and add removable device in VM.

2) Setting up networking via Samba

All virtual machines use shared networking to gain network access from the host. Thus, if configured properly, you can create a shared network to share files between the host and the VM. Here is a detailed instruction to configure file sharing via samba.

3) Buying license software
If you rely heavily on your VM for work, then you want want to consider buying a licensed VMware. This paid software enables you to access your virtual machine from the host desktop and you can even drag and drop your files from your VM to anywhere in the host without any further configuration. Parallels (another paid VM solution) also offers this service.

Sharing Files Between Ubuntu Host and Virtual Machines originally published on Make Tech Easier (RSS)