virtualbox.org

Hello all, I have a new server with four total ethernet ports, and I decided to do a full install of windows and use virtualbox for my vm's, since it will be easier to use than hypervisor.

Now, my main server will be running things which need a set IP address, and in the past passing internet through (from one physical machine to another) gives the machine a brand new IP, which is annoying, and interrupts things.

I'm wondering if there is a way to directly pass through the ethernet connection so that the virtual machine gets it's own IP address, like any other physical machine, without affecting the hardware it's running on. It's been a while since I used virtualbox, so forgive me if it's something pretty easy to do.

Using Virtualbox's Bridged networking you only need one Ethernet port on your host to have guests appear as other PCs on the host's network, with dhcp or static IP addresses set in the host's network range. Static IPs get set within the guest OS.

You can set aside other host Ethernet ports for guest usage by unchecking all the bindings in the Ethernet port's properties that aren't Virtualbox related. With only Virtualbox bindings enabled, the host will not use the port, but guests bridged to that port can use it. If these Virtualbox-only ports are connected to the host's network through a physical switch the guests will also appear as other PCs on the network, as with the setup in the above paragraph.