Re: New to virtual machines, how do I shut down properly?

This is for discussing general topics about how to use VirtualBox.
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pete663514
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Joined: 19. Aug 2016, 02:22

Re: New to virtual machines, how do I shut down properly?

Post by pete663514 »

Guest = The OS with the VB environment?
Host = The original OS?

So I installed Windows 10 in VB, with Ubuntu 18.04 host, and for the first time when I closed VB (can't remember the procedure), and then I restarted VB, I had to reinstall Windows again.

Not wanting to do this install again, what's the proper way of shutting down VB?

Thanks from a noob!
BillG
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Joined: 19. Sep 2009, 04:44
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Re: New to virtual machines, how do I shut down properly?

Post by BillG »

That does not make any sense. No matter how you shutdown the host or the guest, the guest OS will not disappear if it has been installed properly. Check the Settings of the vm. Is the installation medium (DVD or ISO) still attached to the optical drive? If it is, the vm will boot from that and try to install the OS again (just as it would on a physical machine with the DVD still in the drive), so remove it.

The host machine is the physical machine and the host OS is the OS installed on that physical machine. A guest is a vm you have created and the guest OS is the OS you install in that vm. I assume that you have installed VirtualBox in Ubuntu 18.04 host, then created a vm and installed Windows 10 in this guest. Is that correct?

There are several shutdown options available. From within the vm you can use the normal shutdown procedure for the installed OS. From the guest window the guest can be saved (similar to hibernate in Windows), shutdown or powered off (similar to pulling the plug on a physical machine).

Is in not recommended to shutdown the host while a guest is running but it will not cause any harm in most cases.
Bill
ChipMcK
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Re: New to virtual machines, how do I shut down properly?

Post by ChipMcK »

pete663514 wrote:. . . I had to reinstall Windows again. . . .
try ejecting the installation media before shutting down
pete663514
Posts: 6
Joined: 19. Aug 2016, 02:22

Re: New to virtual machines, how do I shut down properly?

Post by pete663514 »

BillG wrote:That does not make any sense. No matter how you shutdown the host or the guest, the guest OS will not disappear if it has been installed properly. Check the Settings of the vm. Is the installation medium (DVD or ISO) still attached to the optical drive? If it is, the vm will boot from that and try to install the OS again (just as it would on a physical machine with the DVD still in the drive), so remove it.

The host machine is the physical machine and the host OS is the OS installed on that physical machine. A guest is a vm you have created and the guest OS is the OS you install in that vm. I assume that you have installed VirtualBox in Ubuntu 18.04 host, then created a vm and installed Windows 10 in this guest. Is that correct?

There are several shutdown options available. From within the vm you can use the normal shutdown procedure for the installed OS. From the guest window the guest can be saved (similar to hibernate in Windows), shutdown or powered off (similar to pulling the plug on a physical machine).

Is in not recommended to shutdown the host while a guest is running but it will not cause any harm in most cases.
I think I did reinstall again, sorry my bad. It was the first time running VB. Thank you.
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