VirtualBox is a powerful, free, open-source Type 2 hypervisor for Linux, Windows, and Mac OS. Unlike a Type 1 hypervisor, VirtualBox uses your system’s kernel to simulate the hardware of its guest machines. This approach makes deploying virtual machines and installing operating systems easier, even for novice users.
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Aside from being a beginner-friendly hypervisor, VirtualBox also excels at providing an intuitive shortcut interface for the entire application. This lets you quickly manage your virtual machines, networks, and even remote cloud profiles for Oracle Cloud straight from the keyboard.
This cheat sheet will highlight the most essential keyboard shortcuts for VirtualBox. Not only that, but it will also show some of the program’s little-known features, such as in-machine screenshots, along with the ability to create state snapshots from the hypervisor itself.
| Linux/Windows | Mac | Function |
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Machine Management | | |
| Ctrl + N | Command + N | Open the Virtual Machine creation prompt. |
| Ctrl + A | Command + A | Add an existing Virtual Machine in VirtualBox’s machine listing. |
| Ctrl + O | Command + O | Clone an existing Virtual Machine in the current listing. |
| Alt + M, then Alt + M | Move the currently selected Virtual Machine to a different directory location. | |
| Alt + M, then Alt + R | Remove the currently selected Virtual Machine from the current listing. | |
| Ctrl + S | Command + S | Open the Settings window for the currently selected Virtual Machine. |
| Ctrl + I | Command + I | Import a Virtual Appliance to the current listing. |
| Ctrl + E | Command + E | Export a Virtual Appliance from the current listing. |
| Virtual Machine Control | ||
| Right Ctrl | Left Command | Capture the host machine’s mouse and keyboard input. |
| Right Ctrl + P | Left Command + P | Suspend the currently running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + R | Left Command + R | Reload the currently running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + H | Left Command + U | Send a “Power Off” signal to the currently running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + S | Left Command + S | Open the Settings window for the currently running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + T | Left Command + T | Capture a snapshot of the state of the running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + Delete | Left Command + Backspace | Send the keystroke: Ctrl + Alt + Delete to the running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + Backspace | Send the keystroke: Ctrl + Alt + Backspace to the running Virtual Machine. | |
| Right Ctrl + Insert | Left Command + Insert | Send a custom keystroke to the running Virtual Machine. |
| Virtual Machine Display | ||
| Right Ctrl + N | Left Command + N | Open the Statistics window for the currently running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + H | Left Command + F | Move the location of the Virtual Disk image to a different local directory. |
| Right Ctrl + C | Left Command + C | Toggle the scaled display mode for the currently running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + L | Left Command + L | Toggle the seamless mode for the currently running Virtual Machine. |
| Right Ctrl + A | Left Command + A | Resize the display window to the current resolution of the Virtual Machine. |
| Window Management | ||
| Ctrl + G | Command + Comma (,) | Open VirtualBox’s Preferences window. |
| F1 | Open the comprehensive Help window for VirtualBox. | |
| Ctrl + Q | Command + Q | Terminate the current VirtualBox session. |
| Command + H | Minimize the current session to the taskbar. | |
| Command + Option + H | Minimize all the other sessions to the taskbar. | |
| Extension Packs Management | ||
| Ctrl + T | Command + T | Open the VM Extensions Pack application panel. |
| Ctrl + Shift + I | Command + Shift + I | Install a new Extension Pack on the current VirtualBox installation. |
| Ctrl + Shift + U | Command + Shift + U | Uninstall an existing Extension Pack on the current VirtualBox installation. |
| Virtual Storage Management | ||
| Ctrl + D | Command + D | Open the Virtual Storage application panel. |
| Alt + H | List all the available Hard Disk images on the current installation. | |
| Alt + O | List all the available Optical Media images on the current installation. | |
| Alt + F | List all the available Floppy Disk images on the current installation. | |
| Ctrl + Shift + F | Command + Shift + F | Reload the list of currently available Virtual Disks. |
| Ctrl + Shift + A | Command + Shift + A | Import an existing Virtual Disk image to the current installation. |
| Ctrl + Shift + C | Command + Shift + C | Clone the currently selected Virtual Disk image. |
| Ctrl + Shift + M | Command + Shift + M | Move the location of the Virtual Disk image to different local directory. |
| Ctrl + Shift + L | Command + Shift + L | Detach the currently selected Virtual Disk from its parent Virtual Machine. |
| Ctrl + Shift + R | Command + Shift + R | Delete the currently selected Virtual Disk from the installation. |
| Ctrl + Shift + P | Command + Shift + P | Display the settings and properties for the currently selected Virtual Disk. |
| Log Management | ||
| Ctrl + L | Command + L | Open the Log Viewer window for the currently selected Virtual Machine. |
| Ctrl + A | Select the contents of the entire Log Viewer window. | |
| Ctrl + C | Copy the currently selected log text to the clipboard. | |
| Ctrl + Shift + F | Command + Shift + F | Open the search prompt for the currently active Log Viewer. |
| Ctrl + Shift + T | Command + Shift + T | Perform a filtered term search for the currently active Log Viewer. |
| Ctrl + Shift + D | Command + Shift + D | List all the available bookmarks for the currently active Log Viewer. |
| Ctrl + Shift + R | Command + Shift + R | Reload the contents of the currently active Log Viewer. |
| Ctrl + Shift + S | Command + Shift + S | Dump the contents of the current Log Viewer to a file. |
| Ctrl + Shift + P | Command + Shift + P | Show the available display settings for the currently active Log Viewer. |
| Virtual Network Management | ||
| Ctrl + H | Open the Virtual Network application panel. | |
| Ctrl + Shift + C | Command + Shift + C | Create a new Virtual Network Controller for your machines. |
| Ctrl + Shift + R | Command + Shift + R | Delete the currently selected Virtual Network Controller. |
| Ctrl + Shift + P | Command + Shift + P | Display all the available settings for the currently selected controller. |
| Ctrl + Shift + P, then Alt + D | Open the DHCP server settings for the current network controller. | |
| Ctrl + Shift + P, then Alt + A | Open the controller-specific settings for virtual network. | |
| Remote Cloud Management | ||
| Ctrl + P | Command + P | Open the Remote Cloud application panel. |
| Ctrl + Shift + T | Command + Shift + T | Open the free trial offer for Oracle Remote Cloud access. |
| Ctrl + Shift + A | Command + Shift + A | Create a new Remote Cloud profile for the current installation. |
| Ctrl + Shift + I | Command + Shift + I | Import an existing Remote Cloud profile for the current installation. |
| Ctrl + Shift + R | Command + Shift + R | Remove an existing Remote Cloud profile for the current installation. |
| Ctrl + Shift + P | Command + Shift + P | Toggle the available settings for the currently selected Remote Cloud profile. |
| Ctrl + Shift + H | Command + Shift + H | Open a browser window showing the documentation for Oracle Remote Cloud. |
Image credit: Unsplash. All alterations and screenshots by Ramces Red.
