macOS host: Windows Guest Critical Error

[Christina231]

Hi, the guest Windows machine was running perfectly while I was using the computer. However, suddenly when I needed to access the VM, its window was gone. I tried to start it again, but now I only encounter a critical error and the guru meditation state. I have attached the log as mentioned in the FAQs, along with the VM settings. Thank you in advance.

[Christina231]

Checked for updates, news updates were available, updated it, started the same VM again and it boots now.

[scottgus1]

I wasn't certain what was wrong with this VM, but It's good it is up and running again.

[Christina231]

Can snapshots save me in those cases?

[mpack]

A backup can save you from almost anything. But snapshots are absolutely not to be confused with backups.

[Christina231]

I'll backup .vdi so, I suspect this will happen again : s. Thanks everyone for the advices and comments.

[scottgus1]

This issue was probably caused by the host OS in some way. Virtualbox 7.0.6 is running under Apple's hypervisor, probably Ventura, and some updates having been run, things were knocked loose.

As a backup, the whole VM folder is better than the .vdi. The vdi is the disk file only. The rest of the files in the folder, especially the .vbox file, are the rest of the "PC". Back up the whole folder to ensure complete VM recovery. (BTW, I would not trust Time Machine et al to do the backup. Manually-run folder copies to other backup media only after the VM is fully shut down are the only reliable backups of the VM.)

[Christina231]

Thank you so much for the help, I'll follow your suggestions!