I need help with file sharing

Discussions about using Mac OS X guests (on Apple hardware) in VirtualBox.
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geeker
Posts: 3
Joined: 9. Mar 2019, 04:51

I need help with file sharing

Post by geeker »

Host:
iMac 2017 16GB RAM 2.3GHZ INTEL Core i5 1TB Hard drive MacOS 10.14 Mojave
Guest:
2048MB RAM 1 CPU 256 GB vdi OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard.

The guest boots and appears to work normally. My problem is I want a way to share files between the host and the guest. I read somewhere that Guest Additions is not available for OS X, and yet I can insert and mount the Guest Additions CD image. When I double click on the pkg icon I get a warning that it will only work with 10.7 or later. Can someone please help me figure this out? :?:
socratis
Site Moderator
Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: I need help with file sharing

Post by socratis »

geeker wrote:I read somewhere that Guest Additions is not available for OS X
That was before 6.0.0.
geeker wrote:When I double click on the pkg icon I get a warning that it will only work with 10.7 or later
True.
geeker wrote:I want a way to share files between the host and the guest
Do it the way that you would with two OSX computers sitting side-by-side; enable file sharing in the guest (primarily) in the OSX System Preferences » Sharing.

Moving to "OSX Guests" from "OSX Hosts".
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If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
geeker
Posts: 3
Joined: 9. Mar 2019, 04:51

Re: I need help with file sharing

Post by geeker »

I've tried file sharing and it hasn't worked. I even made sure to enable the Guest Account and checked the Allow guests to connect to shared folders box. Is there some setting I need to do with the host?
mpack
Site Moderator
Posts: 39156
Joined: 4. Sep 2008, 17:09
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Mostly XP

Re: I need help with file sharing

Post by mpack »

Please provide a VM log file. With the VM fully shut down, right click it in the GUI. Select "Show Log" and save "VBox.log" (no other file) to a zip file. Attach the zip here.
socratis
Site Moderator
Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: I need help with file sharing

Post by socratis »

If you're looking for the VirtualBox Shared Folders, you should stop looking; they're not there for OSX guest. As I told you this is clearly an OSX-to-OSX sharing. It has worked for ever.

The only trick is to have some sort of connectivity between the two "computers"; either add a HostOnly or a Bridged NIC to your guest besides the default NAT and make sure that "File Sharing" is enabled in both host's and guest's OSX System Preferences.
Do NOT send me Personal Messages (PMs) for troubleshooting, they are simply deleted.
Do NOT reply with the "QUOTE" button, please use the "POST REPLY", at the bottom of the form.
If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
geeker
Posts: 3
Joined: 9. Mar 2019, 04:51

Re: I need help with file sharing

Post by geeker »

I've tried the network sharing (there are detailed instructions on the web), but it hasn't worked for me. I used the back-up method. moving files with a USB flash drive. Just make a USB filter for the flash drive so the guest can mount it. Wallah (to use the hick spelling). Kind of clumsy, but it works. 8)
socratis
Site Moderator
Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: I need help with file sharing

Post by socratis »

geeker wrote:I've tried the network sharing (there are detailed instructions on the web), but it hasn't worked for me
This is not a VirtualBox question, so I'm going to give you some brief instructions, but I don't want it to continue here, there are more dedicated forums for that.
  • For both the host and the guest, go to OSX System Preferences » Sharing » File Sharing = Checked. Select File Sharing » Options » Share files and folders using AFP = Checked.
  • VM Settings » Network » no matter how many NICs you have, you have to dedicate one to the HostOnly option (just to be sure). Make sure there's a NIC with the HostOnly option enabled.
That's it. You should be able to see the OSX VM on your host's Finder and vice-versa.
Do NOT send me Personal Messages (PMs) for troubleshooting, they are simply deleted.
Do NOT reply with the "QUOTE" button, please use the "POST REPLY", at the bottom of the form.
If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
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