virtualbox.org

I'm running the latest version of VirtualBox (4.3.10 r93012) on my MacBook (10.9.2)

I'm just wondering if it's possible to upgrade an existing operating system in a virtual machine by using an install disc or .iso, instead of creating a new virtual machine and doing a clean install. I.E. I have a WinXP 32 bit vers. guest. I want to use my Win7 64 bit disc or .iso to upgrade it. Is it possible?

Or, what if I tried to upgrade WinXP 32 bit vers. to Win7 32 bit, then to Win7 64 bit. Is this possible?

Finally, what if I created a Win7 32 bit guest, could it be upgraded to Win7 64 bit using my disc or .iso to upgrade it?

I've searched everywhere for an answer, however I can't find anything besides a Microsoft page about installing and reinstalling windows in general.

It seems doable, but I am not quite sure how to set it up on VirtualBox.

Please help if you can!!

-vbsandiego

Upgrading xp 32-bit to Win 7 32-bit would be easily doable, but upgrading to 64-bit is going to be a nightmare, even if it is possible due to previous drivers and settings.

A clean install would be the proper way to go. You should be able to do an in-place upgrade *if* you have the original install disk for XP. During the original install of Windows it should ask you to provide the XP CD to verify the upgrade. ( admittedly I can not promise this will work due to MS changing thing )

You do need to consider that you will need to have hardware virtualization and that it be enabled in BIOS for 64-bit guests.

Ok. Thank you. I understand.

What is the best way to use GParted to resize my virtual HDD now? I believe I'm to that phase of the process. I read your post and it's great, but I really need some instruction on how to use GParted specifically for what we're trying to accomplish.

Gparted is fairly easy to understand once you are into the program. Mount the Gparted ISO to the Virtual CD in the settings of the guest storage section and boot the guest. Then use the partition manager and you will see the unused portion of the drive where you can adjust the primary partition to include the new space.

As always if this guest is important you should always back it up first in case of error.

Ok. I did not need to use GParted. It seems like the command line did the job.

Here is my overall command:

no-name:~ username$ VBoxManage modifyhd VirtualBox\ VMs/Windows\ XP/Windows\ XP.vhd --resize 25600

Result of the command:

0%...10%...20%...30%...40%...50%...60%...70%...80%...90%...100%

Once I reopened VirtualBox Manager it showed the OS now having 25.00 GB, before it only had 10.00 GB. Which makes sense because I used the command --resize 25600

Yeah but look at the size inside the guest. All VirtualBox did was make the drive size bigger. It has no way to extend the partition. That is what Gparted does.

How do I do that then? How do I extend it using GParted? I'm not super familiar with GParted. When I open it, all I see is 25.00 GB of unallocated space. What options do I select? Etc?

Strange. I guess it may be because you are using VHD instead of VDI, although I that seems odd that the drive would show 100% unallocated. We only use VDI here for the most part so you will need to wait for someone that uses VHD or convert the guest to VDI.

Interesting.. I can convert to .vdi? Is that difficult? Are there benefits?

If so, how do I do that?

But it may be easier to use Dons CloneVDI Tool
The only thing is you would need to install Wine on the host since it is a Windows program

Ok.

What are the benefits to converting to .vdi?

Anything concerning graphics? Direct X issues? etc?

I thought I would add there is no way to directly upgrade XP to 7 without losing all the programs and data that are installed in XP. In order to preserve all the programs and data you would first have to update XP to Vista, then upgrade Vista to 7. There is also no real need to switch to Windows 7 64bit unless you wanted to use more than 4GB of ram in the guest which certainly isn't necessary for most people.

If you have programs on XP you really want to use just keep your XP guest and do a clean install of Windows 7 as a new guest.

good luck.

loukingjr wrote:I thought I would add there is no way to directly upgrade XP to 7 without losing all the programs and data that are installed in XP. In order to preserve all the programs and data you would first have to update XP to Vista, then upgrade Vista to 7. There is also no real need to switch to Windows 7 64bit unless you wanted to use more than 4GB of ram in the guest which certainly isn't necessary for most people.

If you have programs on XP you really want to use just keep your XP guest and do a clean install of Windows 7 as a new guest.

good luck.

I see.

Is there a way to convert what kind of controller I have? Much like converting a .vhd to a .vdi?

not sure what you mean by "convert" but you can move a .vdi to a different controller. I don't remember if XP supports SATA but Windows 7 and up do.

loukingjr wrote:not sure what you mean by "convert" but you can move a .vdi to a different controller. I don't remember if XP supports SATA but Windows 7 and up do.

Ah. I want my controller to be SATA versus IDE. I have managed to get Win7 Pro 64 bit. I'll post details later.

Can I change my controller to SATA versus IDE?