the goal is auto hot key

[sbrady19]

I installed Virtualbox on my MacBook Pro.
I just want to be able to install Auto Hot Key (FREE) so I can code for work.
I am a hardcore Mac user.
I guess I need to buy and download WINDOWS 10 and install that OS, then install auto hot key.
Am I missing anything. Should this all go smoothly.
I am most concerned about the install WINDOWS.
I will only use Virtualbox so I can write scripts using Auto Hot Key.
I see some other Mac users have troubles, to be expected.

Can I uninstall easily and go with Fusion if VB doesnt work out.

[socratis]

It's easy:

1. You get a Win10 ISO from Microsoft^[1].
2. You create a Win10 VM, install using the downloaded ISO.
3. You test AutoHotKey.
4. Profit?

^[1]: You could also download a pre-made Win10 VM from Microsoft, saves you the installation time, and I believe it has a longer time-to-die contract, but you can't activate it, it will simply die. You can activate one with the ISO method, that's why I suggested that one.

There are two kinds of VMs, if you choose to go down that road:

• The Development VMs: 15.9 GB, build 201712 (as of this writing).
• The Internet Explorer compatibility VMs: 4.3 GB, build 17.17134 (as of this writing).

[sbrady19]

thats what I thought. So do I "MAKE" a WINDOWS 10 VM machine in VirtutalBox?

[socratis]

Yes. That would be step #2. I thought it was as clear as it could be...
How else were you planning on running a Windows program on OSX? Wine?

[sbrady19]

how painful is it to remove WINDOWS and Virtualbox if I need to.

[socratis]

You sound like a fairly new user to VirtualBox. Since you are expected to know some basic terms before we engage in a meaningful discussion, I would suggest to start by reading three small chapters from the User Manual:

• 1.2. Some terminology,
• 1.7. Creating your first virtual machine and
• 1.8. Running your virtual machine.

Or even better, read the whole chapter 1. First steps.

[sbrady19]

thanks socratis I will read the whole chapter. I am a MAC user big time and just learned of Virtualbox last week. I almost bought Fusion.

[socratis]

It's OK, we all were once a week-old users. All of us, even the developers...

Start by reading the first steps, and experiment. I would suggest if you want to try a concept, to try it on a Clone (read about cloning, really useful for testing concepts).

Also, remember that if you go to VirtualBox Manager » Help » Contents, you'll get a searchable PDF. Use the power of search!

[rpmurray]

how painful is it to remove WINDOWS and Virtualbox if I need to.

To answer these two questions:
1) When you install Windows as a guest in VirtualBox it essentially creates a folder with a few setting files and one big file, the VDI that will contain Windows, which behaves sort of like a Mac disk image (DMG).
What this means is that if you want to remove the Windows installation you just toss that folder in the trash and empty it.
2) There is a handy VirtualBox_Uninstall.tool script in the same DMG that contains the VirtualBox installation pkg. Just run that and it will remove VirtualBox and all it's associated files, except your Windows guest.

It would be a good thing to read the manual about how to install the VirtualBox Extension Pack and the VirtualBox Guest Additions once you've created your Windows guest. These are two different things and serve two different purposes. Details are in the manual.

Be aware that deleting the folder containing your Windows guest does not delete VirtualBox, that's what the Uninstall tool is for.
Also be aware that deleting VirtualBox does not delete your Windows guest, so you can update VirtualBox without having to worry about anything happening to your guest.
Be triply aware that you should make frequent backups of the Windows guest folder (while the Windows guest is shut down). One of the most frequent requests on these forums is how to recover a guest that has be deleted, mangled, corrupted, or otherwise made inoperable. A backup will save you much aggravation should that happen to you.