virtualbox.org

Hi,

I am aware of the fact that someone asked nearly the same question years ago, but the answers were quite unsatisfying to me.

I have long time tried to get some Linux distribution (and BSD) to work, but there have been many problems. Long time means, five years or so. I tried with each and every distribution I could lay my hands on.

E.g. Slackware didn't boot, no matter what kernel I chose, OpenSUSE does boot, but certain systemd startup processes terminate with errors and block others, NetBSD does not boot, DragonFly dies of corrupted file system on the second boot, and so on. Not every experience is quite current, some are older, maybe I'm slightly out of date with it.

I guess I couldn't do anything wrong, since I didn't get much past the booting process, and since the rest of the computer works properly. I tried on different hardware with always the same frustrating results. I tried i586 and x86_64 guests.

Question: Is there a distribution known to work perfectly? I need such a thing for cross platform development and testing.

Thanks in advance.

Regards
Frantisek

Slackware and openSUSE are not BSD distros and both work "perfectly" in VirtualBox and have guest addition support. As far as BSD distros such as freeBSD, PC-BSD or DragonFly etc., They will install in VirtualBox although they have no official guest addition support.

edit: PC-BSD 10 comes with its own version of the VirtualBox guests additions.
more info: http://wiki.pcbsd.org/index.php/Using_VirtualBox/10.0

As far as the term perfectly, no OS runs perfectly, even installed on hardware.

loukingjr wrote:Slackware and openSUSE are not BSD distros and both work "perfectly" in VirtualBox and have guest addition support. As far as BSD distros such as freeBSD, PC-BSD or DragonFly etc., They will install in VirtualBox although they have no official guest addition support.

I am not that much interested in extra functionality such as "guest additions" if the basic functionality doesn't work. Getting device timeouts or hanging handshakes is not exactly what I'd call "perfectly". Even if you get a working desktop environment, and with Slackware I don't, because the kernel crashes, you won't use such a thing for testing and developing. It's fragile - if It's completely up, it has been pure luck of the moment.

Not sure what to tell you. I ran a few Salix guests which are Slackware-based for a couple years, just with different DEs, and never had a problem with them. Doesn't mean you didn't.

loukingjr wrote:Not sure what to tell you. I ran a few Salix guests which are Slackware-based for a couple years, just with different DEs, and never had a problem with them. Doesn't mean you didn't.

Something is different with me. I am real fan of AMD. I have 5 different machines, but all with AMD CPUs, even the laptops. May I ask what CPU you have?

I have not many ideas what else might be the reason of my troubles, but I can assure you, I've tried not only a single time.

In my signature but all Intels.

Sigh. And now? I can't believe that never ever anyone tested AMD host function.

I attach failure screens made today with NetBSD 6.1.4 (i386) and Slackware 14.1 (32bit) huge.s, during installation CD bootup, made with a 64bit Windows 7 host. With 32bit Windows XP or 64bit Linux host and 64bit guests wouldn't be much difference, anyway.

I could do some debugging, of course, but I doubt my information could be in any way reliable. I feel there is something in total disorder if the majority of OSes fail.

PS. Windows XP 32bit works flawlessly as VirtualBox guest. For whatever reason.

Post the guests log file ( as an attachment ) for each of the two that you show above.

Perryg wrote:Post the guests log file ( as an attachment ) for each of the two that you show above.

Ok, they are attached.

(I have changed the kernel choice for NetBSD to "no ACPI, no SMP" which led to a kernel crash, too. To me the result looks nearly identical, but I can also post the related screenshot, if needed.)

You said AMD but it appears you actually have an Intel processor, and a rather out dated one at that.

http://ark.intel.com/products/59836/Int ... e-2_20-GHz

I can pretty much tell you what you issue is if this is the same processor that you have used in the past. Several years ago VirtualBox stopped it efforts in software virtualization. Only hosts that support VT-x/AMD-v work reliably.

Perryg wrote:

Code: Select all

00:00:04.388939 Full Name:                                Intel(R) Pentium(R) CPU B960 @ 2.20GHz

You said AMD but it appears you actually have an Intel processor, and a rather out dated one at that.

http://ark.intel.com/products/59836/Int ... e-2_20-GHz

I can pretty much tell you what you issue is if this is the same processor that you have used in the past. Several years ago VirtualBox stopped it efforts in software virtualization. Only hosts that support VT-x/AMD-v work reliably.

I am here on a device provided by someone else, sorry for the misinformation. With AMD-V (which also allows for the use of 64bit guests) the result looks exactly the same (to me, for I am not quite interested in filigrane details if the kernel doesn't come up properly). Normally, I use Linux x86_64 as host, and it does not matter if the VBox is self-compiled or binary downloaded. I simply get the same results everytime, whereever I try.

As I said, OpenSUSE works, but makes trouble during ordinary use, starting with timeouts on virtual devices. I have tried CentOS for a simulation I needed on my job, and that distribution actually might be the one with the fewest hassles so far.

I might post crash logs from a machine with AMD-V later (in about a few days or so). But I guess I am fundamentally wrong posting it here, right?

You do as you like. I can only read what I see put before me and give advise accordingly.