run Windows XP with raw partition access: black screen

[jorn]

• I started with exiisting Windows XP SP3 and Debian lenny installations on several partitions.
• I booted Windows natively and created a second hardware profile, without making any changes other than copying.
• I created fake disk image using

  Code: Select all

  /sbin/install-mbr --force winxp.mbr 
  VBoxManage internalcommands createrawvmdk \
     -filename /home/vb/.VirtualBox/winxpraw.vmdk \
     -rawdisk /dev/sda -partitions 1,5 \
     -relative -register -mbr winxp.mbr
  

Now when I start this machine in VirtualBox:

• I am asked to decide for a hardware profile (I select the virtual one)
• There is a kind of black/white progress bar running at the bottom of the black screen
• the screen remains black, showing an underline cursor top left and no other trace of action

Any hints what I can do further? Are there any logfiles?

Edit: I am using the 3.0.4 download from

deb http://download.virtualbox.org/virtualbox/debian lenny non-free

.

Edit2: I tried following the DMI-bios settings outlined in http://forums.virtualbox.org/viewtopic.php?t=9697

[jorn]

Any hint how I can figure out what is going wrong with this Windows installation is appreciated.

[vbox4me2]

Boot into safemode and have a look in the device manager.

[jorn]

Thanks. I tried to boot into safe mode. There appears for a fraction of a second a flushing list of figures or pathes or something like that (it is too fast to recognize), then the screen again turns black and the simulated machine appears stalled.

To keep things simple, I disabled all kind of hardware support in the VirtualBox control center. Only an IDE controller is enabled (it does not seem to make a difference if I choose PIIX3, PIIX4, or ICH6).

My computer is Dell Latitude D530.

[mechrekt]

Is "Enable IO apic" enabled?

[jorn]

Is "Enable IO apic" enabled?

This was disabled (as suggested by one of the texts I read).

I now enabled this switch. This gives me some progress: I now see a nice black screen with colourful Windows logo, then the usual blue Windows XP screen with dark blue stripes at top and bottom, where normally a thin orange-coloured bar is moving left to right and indicating further boot progress, until finally the login options are displayed.

There is initially a substantial amount of hard drive activity, but this orange bar is not moving, there is no login nor logout option shown, and the screen is stalled. CPU load of VirtualBox approaches 100%.

[jorn]

Fwiw, I installed new version 3742.0.virtualbox-3.0_3.0.6-52128_Debian_lenny_i386.deb and tried to let the virtual machine go for a longer time (15 minutes). The virtual machine shows some disk activity during the first five minutes (which appears to be longer than with the 3.0.4 version) but then, as before, shows no more trace of being active. (The good news is that CPU load is no longer at 100%.)

Anything I could try further? If you need more information about my setting please let me know how to gather it.

[jorn]

I forgot to mention that VirtualBox shows an error message to the shell:

Qt WARNING: Qt: Session management error: Could not open network socket.

[RickJones]

I don't think what you're trying is possible. I tried it and could not get it to work.

You are trying to migrate an existing native Windows installation into VirtualBox, hoping it will run in either by switching hardware profile, right? The problem is the "hardware" is too different. Windows hardware profiles don't allow for that degree of change, they're only designed to cater for different sets of peripherals, like a laptop either free-standing or in a docking station.

You should be able to re-install Windows by booting the VM from the Windows CD and running a repair-install. This re-detects the hardware and completely re-installs the system, but without destroying apps and data. It's the same as if you replace the motherboard in a PC with a different one (different chipsets etc). Windows has to re-install for the new base hardware.

However, because Windows will see it as a major hardware change it will almost certainly require re-activation. And you can't switch back to native without going through the whole process again. And MS won't allow you to re-activate indefinitely.

If it's a one-time migration then it should work. I would take an image copy of your hard drive first though

Rick

[jorn]

I don't think what you're trying is possible.

The docs tell that raw disk support is possible. Being a little naive this is the first feature I'd expect from a emulator: let a plain native OS installed on a partition run as if it ran natively.

If I understand correctly, running the Windows repair disk might fix the problems with the virtual box, but at the same time it would probably destroy my chance to boot directly from the Windows partition without VirtualBox? This is not a real option for me.

[vbox4me2]

Being a little naive this is the first feature I'd expect from a emulator: let a plain native OS installed on a partition run as if it ran natively.

You are confusing two different items, raw is an access feature, emulated hardware is another thing. a VM does not care where its partition comes from as long as it can access it, the OS inside a VM does care about the hardware it needs to do its things with, windows is alot more sensative to such hardware changes which often leads into a black screen or other BSOD's. these issues have nothing to do with raw access.

[jorn]

You are confusing two different items, raw is an access feature, emulated hardware is another thing. a VM does not care where its partition comes from as long as it can access it, the OS inside a VM does care about the hardware it needs to do its things with, windows is alot more sensative to such hardware changes which often leads into a black screen or other BSOD's. these issues have nothing to do with raw access.

Ok, this makes sense. Maybe you could continue to clarify my situation.

What I want to achieve is: Have a Windows XP installation on a partition, and be able to (1) both boot directly that Windows and (2) boot that same Windows inside a VirtualBox running under Linux. (Ideally I could manage to use my existing Windows installation, but if it changes things I can also reinstall that Windows.) Obviously I cannot use the *very* same installation but need some kind of exclusively dedicated parts of limited size like hardware profiles or file system subtrees which are automatically switched during boot sequence.

What I want to avoid is the need for effectively two parallel Windows installations (one on a partition for direct boot and another in a Linux file for booting from VirtualBox). The reason for that is that my maintenance effort (Windows software update and configuration) would be doubled then, and since some online-activated software would count this as two different licenses, I'd have to pay double fees.

I believe that I have read reports from users that they have been successfully doing this. Is virtualbox.org intending to support this kind of application in general? Can I try any further steps on my machine to make it work here? Do I need other products than virtualbox.org? Are there any other suggested approaches, like having two independent Windows installations with only very tiny kernel like content and all user files and program insteallations on a third partition which is shared between the true and the faked Windows?

[vbox4me2]

In theory this can be done with ease, the problem is windows activation, each time the hardware changes(too much) you will have to reactivate the license, it would be easier to run windows as a VM on each platform.

[jorn]

it would be easier to run windows as a VM on each platform.

The reason why I want to retain the chance to run a native (non-virtual) Windows is that I might one day have to use a strange hardware or have special software requirements which would likely fail in a virtual environment.

For now I have to reinstall Windows anyway, since also my native partition boot does no longer work (it does no longer boot beyond the same pre-login screen as described above).