[Solved] VM fails to start due to drive conflicts

Discussions about using Windows guests in VirtualBox.
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Colins2
Posts: 3
Joined: 3. May 2022, 08:23

[Solved] VM fails to start due to drive conflicts

Post by Colins2 »

I have several VMs saved which I can access from either my Windows boot or a Linux boot.
I have no issue with any of them apart from a WindowsXP VM. That probably isn't relevant with this error.

It's been a while since I have used VirtualBox from any boot but they all work apart from WindowsXP. I've changed some drives around and had to re-register the VMs in the VB Manager.
I will try to upload a screenshot.
What I'd like to know is if it is possible to fix this error? The VM does not appear in the VB Manager so I can't see any way to access it to delete the offending drive(s).
I have looked through the VB manage documents but couldn't find a command that will do this but I am not familiar with the tool.
I have searched this forum but it is difficult to know what phrase to search for. I failed to find any reference to this error.
A Google search did come up with a few hits on this error message but none relevant to my situation.

If it cannot be fixed then I will just delete the VM and create a new one but I'd like to 'rescue' this one if possible.

Probably not relevant but here are my specs: HP Z420 E1660v2 3.70GHz x 6 Nvidia GTx 1650 32GB ram Win10, Fedora 35, Mint 20.1 VirtualBox 6.1 on all systems.

Thanks
Colin
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VBoxerror.png
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BillG
Volunteer
Posts: 5102
Joined: 19. Sep 2009, 04:44
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Windows 10,7 and earlier
Location: Sydney, Australia

Re: VM fails to start due to drive conflicts

Post by BillG »

From the VM VirtualBox Manager window select File then Virtual Media Manager, select Optical Disks and remove VBoxGuestAdditions.iso .

When you start your vm it is trying to register a file which already is registered.
MediaManager.png
MediaManager.png (20.93 KiB) Viewed 1584 times
Bill
mpack
Site Moderator
Posts: 39156
Joined: 4. Sep 2008, 17:09
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Mostly XP

Re: VM fails to start due to drive conflicts

Post by mpack »

The problem is caused because for some reason in the past you downloaded another copy of an ISO that is bundled with VirtualBox. Some VMs have the bundled ISO still mounted, and the new VM tries to reference the downloaded copy. VirtualBox does not allow two copies of the same virtual drive file to be registered.
Colins2
Posts: 3
Joined: 3. May 2022, 08:23

Re: VM fails to start due to drive conflicts

Post by Colins2 »

mpack wrote:The problem is caused because for some reason in the past you downloaded another copy of an ISO that is bundled with VirtualBox. Some VMs have the bundled ISO still mounted, and the new VM tries to reference the downloaded copy. VirtualBox does not allow two copies of the same virtual drive file to be registered.
mpack, yes, I realized that it was something I'd done in the past but I couldn't find how to get it sorted out.
Solved now, thanks to Bill's suggestion.
Colins2
Posts: 3
Joined: 3. May 2022, 08:23

Re: VM fails to start due to drive conflicts

Post by Colins2 »

BillG wrote:From the VM VirtualBox Manager window select File then Virtual Media Manager, select Optical Disks and remove VBoxGuestAdditions.iso .

When you start your vm it is trying to register a file which already is registered.
MediaManager.png
Thanks, that worked. I had quite a few unattached ISOs as well.
Everything is working now.
Colin
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