Lab 1-3 Installing Windows Virtual PC 2007

Objectives:

P  Install Virtual PC on a Windows XP System

P  Note: You may also use Virtual Box, which tends to run a little better. Instructions are very similar.

 

The purpose of Virtual PC is to allow businesses or individuals to run different operating systems together. The benefit of Virtual PC over a multi-boot system is that you can switch among the operating systems without having to reboot the machine! Very cool!

 

In order to install Virtual PC your computer must meet the following requirements. Make a note of how your computer relates to each requirement.

 

Requirement

My computer in comparison

400 Mhz Processor with L2 Cache (1 GHz is recommended)

 

CD ROM or DVD Drive

 

Super VGA or higher video

 

Keyboard and mouse

 

You can install on any of the following operating systems. The system you install on is called the Host System.

  • Microsoft Vista Business
  • Microsoft Vista Enterprise
  • Microsoft Vista Ultimate
  • Microsoft Windows XP Professional
  • Microsoft XP Tablet PC Edition

 

 

 

The other operating systems you’re going to install are called Guest Operating Systems. The following table has the requirements for each of these systems:

Guest Operating System

Minimum Memory

Minimum Hard-Disk Space

Windows 98

64 MB

500 MB

Windows ME

96 MB

2 GB

Windows 2000 Professional

96 MB

2 GB

Windows XP Home

128 MB

2 GB

Windows XP Professional

128 MB

2 GB

Windows Vista Business

512 MB

15 GB

Windows Vista Enterprise

512 MB

15 GB

Windows Vista Ultimate

512 MB

15 GB

OS/2

64 MB

500 MB

 

These are minimums. If you were using the system for production, you’d need a lot more. Add at least 1000 MB to each partition so you can install programs!

 

Task

Shot
  1. Get a copy of Virtual PC 2007 from \\csn\public\software and install it on your LAB computer. Alternatively you can download it from Microsoft’s website. It is FREE so you can use this at home with no fear of Bill showing up at your door with his entourage.
  2. Run the installer.
  3. Accept the terms of the license agreement. Be sure to commit every word to heart. Consider having it tattooed on your chest.
  4. Enter your customer information and let it work for anyone who logs into the computer.
  5. Click install.
  6. Watch it install. Stare intently at the screen. Do not take your eyes off the screen.
  7. Click finish.
  8. Pat yourself on the back. You have now installed Virtual PC 2007!

  1. Create a new virtual machine.
  2. Start Microsoft Virtual PC
  3. The New Virtual Machine wizard should appear. If it doesn’t, Click the new button. Click next.
  4. Select Create a Virtual Machine and click next.
  5. The first Virtual Machine we’ll create is for DOS.
  6. Where it says name and location, go to the second partition you created (should be D: or E). If it hasn’t formatted, format a quick format FAT32.
  7. Create a folder named DOS and save the VMC (virtual machine file) into that folder. Example: D:\DOS\DOS.vmc.)
  8. Note: When you create a virtual hard drive in virtual PC, it will not initially take up all of the hard drive space that you have. However, as you add more things to the virtual drive, it will expand so you can’t just go nutso with the drive space and the RAM.

  1. In the Operating System window select your guest operating system. Since we’re doing DOS, select “Other”.
  2. It’s going to try to guess how much RAM and drive space you’re going to need. Just tell it you want less by clicking adjusting the RAM and dragging the bar to 64 MB
  3. In the virtual hard disk window, click to select a New Virtual Hard Disk. Pur the Virtual Hard disk on your ORIGINAL drive (C:\) in a folder named DOS. Name is DOS Hard Disk.vhd (vhd stands for virtual hard drive) Example: C:\DOS\Dos hard disk.vhd)
  4. Click Next and you’re done. Note that the drive is NOT a fixed size at this point. It should be about 16 MB and it will grow as needed.
  5. Click done! Your new Virtual Machine is ready to boot! It’s like having a “pretend computer” within your computer. You can now install an operating system!
  6. Have me check this off!