My VirtualBox Windows 10 VM is running VERY slowly

[scambuster]

My VirtualBox Windows 10 VM is running VERY slowly. It is almost not even usable it's so slow.

My host is a Dell XPS 15 laptop, with an Intel i7-6700HQ CPU running at 2.60 GHz. It is a x64 bit OS and a x64 bit based processor. It has 16 GB of RAM and plenty of SSD hard drive space. My host is running Windows 10.

Without my VM running, my host normally runs using about 5 - 6 GB of the RAM and about 10% - 15% of the CPU.

However, when I run my VM, my host shows it using about 10 - 15 GB of the RAM and about 30% - 50% of the CPU (depending on the VM setting of 4 - 8 GB of RAM and 2 - 4 processors). The VM can show it using like 100% of the VM's CPU just to do something like open up Internet Explorer.

[socratis]

We need to see a complete VBox.log, from a complete VM run, where the problem occurs:

• Start the VM from cold-boot (not from a paused or saved state) / Observe or recreate the problem / Shutdown the VM (force close it if you have to).
• With the VM completely shut down (not paused or saved), right-click on the VM in the VirtualBox Manager and select "Show Log".
• Save only the first "VBox.log", ZIP it and attach it to your response. See the "Upload attachment" tab below the reply form.

[scambuster]

Thanks socratis for the quick response. Hopefully attached is the log file that you wanted (I had to zip it because it was just slightly too large to attach on it's own). Ooops, LOL, the instructions say to zip it.

[socratis]

00:00:02.834476   3DEnabled        <integer> = 0x0000000000000000 (0)
00:00:04.140713 GUI: 2D video acceleration is disabled

Go to the VM Settings » Display » Screen. Enable 2D and 3D acceleration.

00:00:04.134082 GUI: UIMachineViewScale::resendSizeHint: Restoring guest size-hint for screen 0 to 1600x1200

You could try to lower the VM window's size to something like 1024x768 or 1280x1024...

That's all I could find that need to be addressed. What kind of "slow down" are you referring to?

[scambuster]

Thanks socratis. Those video changes may have helped a little bit, but not enough to be a game changer. The problem is hard to describe, but for instance, the mouse cursor is lagged on the VM. This means that I have to move the mouse VERY slowly if I want to know where the cursor actually is in real time on the VM. Opening programs on the VM (for instance MS Word or Internet Explorer) causes the CPU utilization on the VM to jump up to 100%, making the mouse on the VM totally unusable while a program is opening on the VM. I don't think that's JUST a host CPU problem, because while that's happening on the VM CPU, the host CPU is only around 50% (which is admittedly high, but it's not 100%).

[mpack]

I see no evidence that the Guest Additions are installed, which means that neither 2D nor 3D acceleration is available, nor mouse cursor integration, shared folders et al.

[scambuster]

mpack: That is correct, the Guest Additions are not installed. As I recall, I didn't install the Guest Additions because when the Guest Additions were installed there was a little VBbox icon in the right-hand corner of the VM taskbar that I couldn't get rid of, and it made it easier for tech support scammers to identify my computer as a VM. Do you think that not having Guest Additions installed is what's making my VM appear to run so slowly (mouse lagged, CPU maxing out when opening simple programs, etcetera)? If I install the Guest Additions, do you know of any way to remove the VBbox icon in the right-hand corner of the task bar on the VM?

[mpack]

No, the mouse is lagging because you are running code in the guest that uses lots of CPU and/or I/O. I have no way to know what code you are running. If it happens to involve, say, software rendering of 3D or video then a failure to install the drivers intended to speed those things up certainly will not help.

Btw, if guest code wants to detect a VM, it will detect a VM whether or not the GAs are installed. The VM hardware is still present even if don't install drivers for it.

[scambuster]

mpack: That's the thing, I am not running any code (that I knowingly installed) in the guest VM. It's just a generic Windows 10 x64 guest VM. The only additional program of any consequence that I have installed on the guest VM is MS Word. As an example, just launching the guest VM, and then opening up Internet Explorer on the guest VM (nothing else), causes the guest CPU to spike to 100% and that makes the mouse completely unusable while Internet Explorer opens.

[socratis]

I see no evidence that the Guest Additions are installed

Wait... who, huh, what? How in the seven kingdoms did I miss that part?
I think that drinking coffee alone won't cut it from now on, I'm gonna need intravenous caffeine injections!

it made it easier for tech support scammers to identify my computer as a VM

Oooh... you're one of the scammer-hunters!

Well, the only quick solution/verification would be to install the GAs, watch whether the performance is acceptable or not, and then uninstall them if you're in "hunting" mode.

Another solution would be to "kill" the "VirtualBox Guest Additions Tray Application" (VBoxTray.exe) from the Task Manager. I think you're going to lose some things, but not the 2D/3D acceleration. Not sure what's "lost", haven't bothered enough to try it...

[scambuster]

Thanks all.

So the problem was indeed the lack of installed Guest Additions. After installing the Guest Additions everything started moving about 10 times faster. The VM's CPU still pegs out at 100% when launching Internet Explorer, but that doesn't seem to affect the ability to use the mouse anymore, or to do other things while Internet Explorer is opening. I was able to get rid of the VBbox icon in the system tray by launching the VM and opening the Task Manager on the VM -> Startup Tab -> Right Click on the “VirtualBox Guest Additions Tray Application” and then disabling it.

[socratis]

Task Manager on the VM -> Startup Tab -> Right Click on the “VirtualBox Guest Additions Tray Application” and then disabling it

Yeah, that beats my idea of straight out killing it!

I tested that, just out of curiosity, and I found that with the VBoxTray not running, you lose: Copy/Paste, Drag'n'Drop, Resizing from the host, Full Screen. Shared Folders doesn't get affected.

I don't really know what happens with 2D/3D acceleration, but I run "dxdiag" with and without the VBoxTray running and they were identical (the key parts at least).

[JohnBob1674]

I'm using Virtualbox 6.0
I have win7 pro 32 bit installed and registered.
I have the guest additions installed and works fine.

Buuuttt, I'm using this VM for scambaiting, and in the system tray ( beside the clock on the statusbar (see image)) VB has placed a guest additions icon in my system tray for some reason ??

I need to remove this without disabling guest additions ??, any idea on how to do that ??

While scambaiting, if the scammer should see this icon, they could realize im using a VM and abort the call.

If i cant remove it ( not hide it ! ) i'll have no option but to use vmware which doesn't place an icon there !.

I like VB and have 7 OS's installed and all work fine, but this icon issue kills the process for the intended use !.

[socratis]

@JohnBob1674
I moved your post from the thread "Discuss: HOWTO: Windows 7: In both VM and native". This one seems more relevant, just read the couple last posts above yours.

VB has placed a guest additions icon in my system tray for some reason ??

Yeah, for a very good reason; Guest Additions.

I need to remove this without disabling guest additions ??

No dice. You're going to lose a great portion of what the GAs are used for, see the post just above yours for details.

[JohnBob1674]

Killing the trayicon process, i'll try that.

I also i think came up with a better idea, i think i can swap the tray icon for something else... i'm pretty sure if windows wont let me i have a resource editor designed to do icon swapping amount other things.. that should solve this issue.. i hope...