Converting/Migrating Win XP sp3 guest from VMWare to VBox

[cparias]

I have been using VMWare workstation 6 for a while under Windows XP Sp3 host.
I have some guests such as win 2003, win "xp sp2" and win "xp sp3".
I decided to move to VBox still under my host win xp sp3 and then to a Mac OS X where I installed VBox 5.0.14.
My Host win xp sp3 VBox is still at 4.x. Itlooks like my Windows XP Sp3 Host will not support a higher version of VBox.

I have been able to move my VMWare guests win 2003, and "win xp sp2" to VBox with no problem, first to my Win XP3 Host VBox 4.x, and then to the Mac OSX Maverick with VBox 5..

But when I try to migrate the Win XP sp3, I get stuck. . Mainly because the mouse and keyboard do not respond in the converted VM in VBox.. please read on.

I have tried multiple approaches with no success:
1 Just create a VBox VM for Windows XP (with a config as close as possible to the VMWare config) and associate the .vmdk file to the VBox VM. It boots, but it does not allow any keyboard or mouse activity at the message that "the machine has changed so much that it requires reactivation". No matter what I do. It simply does not have keyboard or mouse. So I cant even say yes... go thru the re-activation.
I have waited, multiple times, from a few minutes to hours, up to 10-12 hours to see if drivers are being installed, then stopped the process, because it did not seem to installing them.

I have read some articles that suggest to remove the VMWare extensions. I did that, but still the same results. From this point on all attempts are using the VMware guest w/o the VMWare extensions.
I have also tried to boot the new VBox VM in save mode.. It does take the option, but when it gets to the logon screen to enter user name, the keyboard and mouse are absent again. So I cant logon even in save mode (either GUI or command prompt).
2 I have used the VMWare conversion utility to export the VMW guest and import the result into VBox.. still the same result.. No keyboard or mouse.
3 I have used the disk2vhd utility to create a VHD disk... Same result. This utility has an option to "Prepare the disk for virtual machine" this simply seems to create a second boot option where it adds a KERNEL= option and a HAL= option. When I use that second boot option, the new VM (Windows XP) under VBox simply freezes after a few seconds on the Windows logo screen. If I use the normal boot option, it goes thru the boot process and then it presents the reactivation message, but no mouse or keyboard again. I have tried to enable or disable the mouse integrations. I have tried to assign the USB mouse.
In all cases the VBox "Enable I/O APIC" option is ON.. I also tried it OFF, but it would not work.

I think the issue is with VBox that it can't associate the mouse or keyboard.
I am able to clone the same original guest (windows XP SP3) under VMWare, any number of times, and the clones boot all the way and they do not ask for reactivation.

Has anyone been able to successfully migrate a VMware guest Windows XP SP3 to VBox, and what have been the steps to avoid the missing mouse and keyboard?
It may just be that I need to make VBox think that it is a clone of the original VM, but how do I do that?
I do not mind the reactivation, but I'd like to avoid having to re-install all the software I have in it.

Thanks

[mpack]

While you do have to remove the VMWare tools, that may not be the cause of your problem.

Another way to lose keyboard and mouse is to define a USB filter in the VM that matches the keyboard or mouse. Make sure you have no USB filters defined.

I would postpone reactivation for as long as possible. You don't want to activate and then find out there's something wrong with the VM: eventually the activation server will block you, and its cap in hand to Microsoft time.

[cparias]

mpack, Thanks for responding this quick

"While you do have to remove the VMWare tools, that may not be the cause of your problem."
I did remove the VMWare Tools/Extensions as I mentioned in my post and repeated the tests...

"Another way to lose keyboard and mouse is to define a USB filter in the VM that matches the keyboard or mouse. Make sure you have no USB filters defined."
I also started my tests with empty USB filters (I mean no filter rows)... So no filters were used. And no mouse or keyboard activity was accepted by the VBox.
I did try to set some filters to see if the VBox would take them, but it didn't so I removed the filters.. but still same results.. No mouse or keyboard.

"I would postpone reactivation for as long as possible. You don't want to activate and then find out there's something wrong with the VM: eventually the activation
server will block you, and its cap in hand to Microsoft time."
That would be my preference, but we have to make this conversion work and have the VBOx accept mouse and keyboard activity.
Any other suggestions that I have not tried as my post says?
Has anyone reported a successful migration of this windows XP Sp3 OS from VMWare to VBox?

Thanks

[mpack]

I also started my tests with empty USB filters...

If empty filters means the same as blank filters, then that is the worst possible case. A blank filter matches anything. If you don't want to capture a USB device, do not define any USB filters.

[cparias]

mpack... No filters... empty or otherwise were used...
when I stated empty USB filters, I meant the list of filters was empty, so no filters were used.
Any other suggestions that I have not tried as my initial post says?
Has anyone reported a successful migration of this windows XP Sp3 OS from VMWare to VBox?
Thanks

[cparias]

It looks like no one has been able to migrate an XP SP3 VMWare Guest to Virtual Box.

My VMWare is VMW Workstation 6 and runs in an XP SP 3 machine 32 bit, with about 3GB memory.

My VBox is in MacBookPro with OS X Maverick.
I do have a running XP SP2 guest on My Mac's VBox, which I migrated from VMW (Windows). I also have some Windows 2003 and Windows 8.1 under VBox on the Mac.
If anyone has done something different from what I have explained in my earlier post to move a VMW XP SP3 to VBox or even if yours worked doing something I have done, I'd like to hear from you.
Thanks

[mpack]

It looks like no one has been able to migrate an XP SP3 VMWare Guest to Virtual Box.

In fact I believe quite a few people have done this successfully, for example here: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=52705&p=241380#p241380.

You can find more examples using a Google search: https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&as_ ... as_rights=

One of your issues was activation. That's something you can't avoid - the virtual hardware has changed.

[cparias]

It looks like no one has been able to migrate an XP SP3 VMWare Guest to Virtual Box.

In fact I believe quite a few people have done this successfully, for example here: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=52705&p=241380#p241380.

Unfortunately none of these cases have explicitly indicated they were successful with XP SP3... just XP, which could be SP2. This version, I was able to migrate to VBox..

You can find more examples using a Google search: https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&as_ ... as_rights=

None of these results indicate XP Sp3 either..

if your issues was activation. That's something you can't avoid - the virtual hardware has changed.

I never said my issue was reactivation.. In fact I clearly stated that I would go thru the reactivation, but there was no mouse or keyboard to do so. I do not wish to avoid the reactivation.. If the mouse and keyboard ever respond I have all I need to reactivate..

I appreciate you spending some time to respond to my inquiry, but, with all due respect, you keep taking little pieces of my original post to present a suggestion that clearly does not address the issue of the apparent missing mouse and keyboard on the VBox side. If you know something about it, I'd appreciate if you share that knowledge, otherwise,
I would appreciate if you find some post(s) from someone who has explicitly done this migration for XP SP3 so I can interact with them, as I clearly indicated that I was able to do it for XP SP2. XP SP2's did not present the issue of the apparent missing mosue and keyboard on the VBox side. Or, if you know a way to get some feedback from the VBox support team.
Thanks

[mpack]

I didn't previously pick up that you thought that the SP3 modifier was significant. I don't, and I don't know why you do. It isn't a new OS, it's just a roundup of bugfixes and minor new OS new features (extra DRM stuff etc, native support for newer hardware) that was released between SP2 and the EOL of XP. I can't see why any of that would affect the P2V guidance.

[cparias]

Who said this was a P2V effort?