Password-protect VB?

[McSeem]

Hi.

Are there any ideas or work-in-progress on how to password-protect VirtualBox installation and vdi-files?

I have some commercial work where VB will be installed on site. So I don't want customers to change VB settings freely.

More, I don't want anyone to install VB on next computer and map my *.vdi file as slave so he can read info from this file.

Thoughts?

[xobv]

Yeah, I'm having the same problem, it's really a HUGE benefit, if there's an optional password for creating virtualboxes or changing its settings. I'm using Ubuntu KK and my clients have a guest OS Winxp.

Pls. how do you protect Virtualbox? It's a sitting duck out there!

[xobv]

http://forums.virtualbox.org/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=31207 - take a look at this, it's creating shortcuts so users don't have access to the VBox GUI.

[Technologov]

McSeem: For commericla work, it is best to contact Oracle, buy licenses, and get your problems solved by Oracle.

[abcuser]

What about:
1. protect OS superuser password (you are the only one that knows this password)
2. start VM guest in headless mode with OS start-up procedures

[sej7278]

if your home directory is secured with 700 permissions and you don't give your password out, and lock your screen, how would anybody be able to change your settings?

if your client has the root password (or can boot from cd/usb, or remove the hard disk) there's no way to stop them doing whatever they please unless you encrypt the host disk and add a bios password. can't see the client being happy about being locked out of their own hardware though.

[xobv]

My problem now is if Users of the same Ubuntu Host Machine, they are ordinary users, type

VirtualBox

in the command line.

They can tinker with the settings of the Virtualbox.

How do you really protect your VirtualBox GUI?

[xobv]

Hi I thought of a quick and dirty fix.

If you're using Ubuntu Lucid Lynx

Backup first your VirtualBox command, it's found in /usr/bin/

sudo cp /usr/bin/VirtualBox /home/username

Then remove it entirely:

sudo rm /usr/bin/VirtualBox

There!

PS I hope someday they will make a feature to password protect the VirtualBox GUI! It makes sense.

[abcuser]

xobv,
no need for coping and removing VirtualBox from original place. Just use Linux security model to do the jog:
chown - to change VirtualBox file owner
chmod - and remove permissions for other users
Regards

[Vboxrocks]

Another way you could do this (and it's not very elegant) is to use truecrypt and encrypt the whole of the OS

This would pretty much password protect your whole virtualbox OS but if you made a 40gb disk then it would take all the 40gb up (as it encrypts the whole drive) so there would be no point in having it as a 'disk grow to fit' mode

But still a decent workaround.

I hope it's of some use.

Thanks

[Technologov]

Yes, I agree.

And even added a feature-request 7663

[dmcgraw]

Why would you want to go to all this trouble when Linux file permissions provide a simple solution?

Another way you could do this (and it's not very elegant) is to use truecrypt and encrypt the whole of the OS

This would pretty much password protect your whole virtualbox OS but if you made a 40gb disk then it would take all the 40gb up (as it encrypts the whole drive) so there would be no point in having it as a 'disk grow to fit' mode

But still a decent workaround.

I hope it's of some use.

Thanks

[Technologov]

dmc: This solution protects from stolen data too, so it has more usage scenarios.

This is why I opened a feature request on it. Integrating TrueCrypt-like functionality is key.

[xobv]

Hi abcuser

xobv,
no need for coping and removing VirtualBox from original place. Just use Linux security model to do the jog:
chown - to change VirtualBox file owner
chmod - and remove permissions for other users
Regards

Yes, I've also tried this, the problem with this approach is, somehow, chmod 700 VirtualBox, or chown sudoer:sudoer VirtualBox, has a GLOBAL effect. That is, doing this also affects VBoxManage, VBoxHeadless, VBoxSDL, or what have you, so you can't simply change its permissions or owner.

Try it for yourself.

In my case, I autostart Virtual Machines by running a script on the ordinary user of the computer via VBoxManage startvm MSXP, on boot up. Changing permissions or owners, like you said, won't launch the Virtual Machine at boot time - because of "permission" problems, that's what I think, yes, I've tried it.

If you think I'm wrong and has a way to do it, can you show it to me? But so far, I've tried what you said to none effect. Thanks.