Problems booting a disk2VHD file

[wseaton]

I have a client with a critical 2003 server running on a white box (AMD 64 / Nvidia Chipset / IDE / 127gig drive) PC that is dying. Due to legal fights with the original software vendor re-installing their database app and licenses aren't going to happen soon, and it's critical they keep the box operational in the short term. Not like I've been through this a hundred times before...

My solution was to P2V the machine with disk2VHD and run it inside VirtualBox on new hardware...anywhere.

Disk2VHD had no problems copying the existing machine - I copied the VHD to a decent machine running Virtualbox box, created a new guest, mounted the VHD...and nothing happens. Just a black screen in the new guest with no activity or nothing.

Done a bazillion P2V's in VMware, many with Server 2003 running on all kinds of hardware bases and they all transfered without a hitch. I have no idea where to start troubleshooting this one and if it's a disk2VHD issue or VirtualBox. Ideas appreciated.

[mpack]

Please don't talk about how great VMWare is compared to VirtualBox, it pisses people off, which is not a great way to get help. If you really prefer VMWare then go to their forums - no need to keep us informed!

You need to create a VM that matches the original machine. Talk more about how you did that. A common mistake with xp/2k3 is to leave IO-APIC turned off in the VM recipe (there is no "correct" setting: it must match what the P2V'd XP image expects).

p.s. I don't really know why you did the VM thing at all. Myself I'd just have used Acronis to do a P2P to a non-failing new machine.

[wseaton]

lease don't talk about how great VMWare is compared to VirtualBox, it pisses people off,

One of the first things I did after your reply mpack was send a copy of it to our Oracle rep on the development side of the house and I already got a apology back. This is the second or third question I've asked over the last couple years about VirtualBox and to be honest all responses have been rather rude and frankly not very technical.

First, I never compared VirtualBox to Vmware other than the P2V context and to also illustrate I had experience doing a lot of P2V migrations. If there was any comparison drawn it would be to Disk2VHD, which *is not* an Oracle product and comes from the Microsoft side of the world. As I said, I've done a *lot* of P2V in the data center scope (hundreds) and followed the same 'recipe' as I did with VMware migrations and simply looking for what's different.

Second, I work with VMware, Hyper-V, a bit of Xen Server here and there, an increasing amount of VDI and Virtual Box all from a enterprise perspective, and have been one of the stronger Oracle supporters (until now) in regards to desktop virtualization. Bad enough listening to VMware and Hyper-V biased engineers wasting my time in meetings arguing about product features not in the scope of the project, but I've yet to go into a data center running Virtual Box as their primary virtualization architecture. Not because Virtual Box is an inferior product, but because it's not Virtual Box's gig inside the data center, so I don't quit get what your problem is. I can tell you one big reason engineers use those products is they get professional support and not rude replies advocating 'use Acronis', etc., but I don't get the impression you've ever sat at a console with a few hundred hosts to support.

Next, I did everything you mentioned in your reply already with no solution.

I don't really know why you did the VM thing at all. Myself I'd just have used Acronis to do a P2P to a non-failing new machine.

If you honestly don't get why I'd prefer *NOT* to P2V a machine running $75,000 worth of software running on some white box, NVidia based MB to a controlled Virtual Environment -vs- shop on Ebay and clone the thing to another identical, 8yr old consumer class MB you really don't understand the broad scope of why people use virtualization in a professional context.

Otherwise, thank you for the utterly worthless reply and representing Virtual Box.

[mpack]

Time to lock this thread then. Come back when you can sustain a civil manner.