Oracle VirtualBox 6.0.x incompatible with Windows Server 2016?

[LPChip]

The situation is as follows.

I got myself a new pc, installed Windows 10 v1809 Pro on it, fresh install. I installed VirtualBox 6.0.4 on it, and created a Windows 7 x64 guest on it, and it is running great.

A month or so later, I prepared for the migration of my server. My server runs Windows Server 2016 with Hyper-V and I want to turn that into a Linux with Oracle VirtualBox.

So I decided I was going to create a completely new setup. I'd install it on my main computer and keep it running for the time being until I could reinstall my server.

My PC has the following specs:

AMD Ryzen 5 2600X
16 GB RAM DDR4-3200
other good specs that don't really matter.

I created 2 additional guests and the Windows 7 one is not running.

I installed Windows Server 2016 x64 Standard in 2 different guests to prepare for creating my new setup. One features the domain controller where the other features the remote desktop session host.

Here's the thing. When the VM runs, it runs fine. Speeds are good etc... But if I reboot, I have a 50% chance of it not surviving the reboot.

In the beginning every single reboot would crash the server and turn it into a Guru Meditation. I had to kill the process in order to start the VM again. I worked on the server again, installed windows updates, rebooted, saw the bios startup screen of Oracle, spinning dots with windows logo, and bam, guru meditation.

I updated Oracle VM to 6.0.6 and that changed things. I could now reboot the system and not get a guru meditation anymore, but about 40% of the times, it does reboot, and I get the spinning dots, then there is a black screen and the server never recovers. I can wait for 6 hours and the black screen remains. Rebooting the guest and it starts normally.

The many problems with these 2 installs corrupted my RDS up to the point where it can out of the blue decide that it no longer understands my administrative privileges, and any attempt to get an UAC will fail with some error. A reboot fixes it but it is only a temporary fix. I cannot login with an administrative user either. So I am in the process of installing a new Windows Server 2016 for my RDS. I was doing some maintenance on my DC, needed a reboot and bam, guru meditation. I haven't had a guru meditation in 6.0.6 at this point, this was the first.

So that makes me wonder, how stable is 6.0.x with Windows Server 2016?

Am I better of Downgrading back to 5.2? I've used to run 5 in the past with a Windows 10 host + Windows Server 2008R2 and windows 10 combi and never had problems.

Also, the reboots are very slow. It can be stuck in the black screen for minutes before it continues. On the new RDS install, it was quick though. Takes 5 to 10 seconds. So it may be that 6.0.4 just broke my installs and that my DC is still suffering the concequences of it. So far the RDS one seems to be okay.

[socratis]

I wouldn't be able to a conclusion, before I have some solid evidence, like a log...

We need to see a complete VBox.log, from a complete VM run, where the problem occurs:

• Start the VM from cold-boot (not from a paused or saved state) / Observe problem / Shutdown the VM (force close it if you have to).
• With the VM completely shut down (not paused or saved), right-click on the VM in the VirtualBox Manager and select "Show Log".
• Save only the first "VBox.log", ZIP it and attach it to your response. See the "Upload attachment" tab below the reply form.

[LPChip]

I can't do that anymore I'm afraid... I've come to the conclusion myself that 6.0.4 must be screwing something up so I deleted those VM's and created new ones in 6.0.6. If the problem occurs in this vm as well, I'll create the logs as mentioned above.

[LPChip]

Okay, so new fresh install.

I did the following:

- After being in windows, I saved the state and closed, then started it again headless, because that is the state the machine is going to be in most of the time.

At this point it is a fresh install with nothing changed.

I made the following changes.

I renamed the pc and gave it a fixed ip address and I installed windows updates.

I rebooted the machine for the updates (there's no DC role installed or anything), and it gave me a Guru Meditation. :/

[socratis]

I saved the state and closed, then started it again headless

Bad move, really bad move! Why would you do that? A saved state expects the hardware to be *exactly* the same as it was when the state was saved. And restoring it in headless mode, certainly isn't the same "hardware".

Just for example 3D acceleration is not supported in the headless mode. And given that the last three lines of the log are:

02:08:24.827273 VMMDev: Guest Log: VBoxMP::vboxWddmPickResources: found the VBE card
02:08:24.827349 VMMDev: Guest Log: VBoxMP::DxgkDdiStartDevice: Handling complex topologies enabled
02:08:24.827409 Changing the VM state from 'RUNNING' to 'GURU_MEDITATION'

That's VBoxMP, the VirtualBox XPDM MiniPort driver, and WDDM, the Windows Display Driver Model driver freaking out on you.

If you want to start a VM headless, then start a VM headless, don't resume a normal-started VM in a headless mode.

[LPChip]

I see...

and 3D not being supported in headless, I can turn that off, I don't need it.

If I have messed this up, do I have to reinstall windows or can I just shutdown and then start in headless mode? And what about if I enabled 3D before and turning that off?

[socratis]

and 3D not being supported in headless, I can turn that off, I don't need it.

Definitely, that's a must actually. I don't agree with the way that VirtualBox handles the current situation, i.e. if headless and 3D enabled => Guru Meditation. Not good.

I believe that you should shut down the VM and start the VM headless, not from a saved or paused state. Clean boot, but in headless mode. See if that works. If it doesn't... you know the drill.

[LPChip]

Good.

If I start Headless, can I then still use the show button to access the VM, or should I not do that?

[socratis]

Absolutely! This "Show" is 100% supported, it wouldn't be there if it wasn't...

[LPChip]

Well, the start headless is enabled too if I started normally and then saved its state...

[LPChip]

I think my DC install is corrupted...

After a normal shutdown, I went headless and accessed the VM using show. Installed the domain controller role, restarted the server, and now its displaying "Getting Windows Ready" for several hours now, the same black screen hold, except with something else.

I have 3 cores assigned where 1 core is maxing out and the other 2 are idle.

Trashing that VM, new install it is... Sigh!

[socratis]

RDPing to a "system" can have its own share of troubles, a whole new world (of bugs) to explore. That's why I usually RDP into something that I actually see as well, I don't go straight to headless. First I launch the VM normally, and RDPing to it, and then after I've made sure that everything is peachy, I start it headless. Sometimes I don't even start it headless, I just minimize it...

But something doesn't sound right with your VM, you're right a fresh start seems like a good remedy at this point...

[LPChip]

I have not RDP't into the machine at all... all was done normal start, gone from there to headless and then continuously headless with the normal window from the host.

RDP is something I do way later in the stage. I did not even get that far.

I am currently in the reinstall process. The server is installed, first config round was done, a reboot was done and now its doing updates. Usually at this point things go normal until the upcoming reboot.

The only difference is that this time I did not go into normal startup and transition it into headless. I went headless directly from the first moment I turned it on and opened the console window to work in it.

Fingers crossed...

[LPChip]

Okay, I really don't know what's going on anymore... Clean install as described above, I shut down normally, I do windows updates, I reboot the server, it shuts the server down, a few different shutdown messages show up and then it goes to the: Getting Windows Ready, Don't turn off your computer. Its an hour later now, still no spinning dots.

I'm going to uninstall Oracle VirtualBox 6 now and install 5.2. Lets see if that solves this dramatic issue.

Edit: I'm now in 5.2 and created a new VM... I don't know if its me, but the performance seems better too now... I have hope that this will have a happy end now... I'll post an update if I all goes well, or if not... But if not, then that update will likely come sooner...

[LPChip]

Small update, I have rebooten several times now, performed several windows updates and other reboots under Oracle Virtualbox 5.2 and all is working as expected.

The only thing I know for a fact that is different between the two versions is that under VirtualBox 6.0.6, I used the VBoxSVGA driver, where I now use VBoxVGA driver (given the SVGA one is not in this version).

I noticed this because my windows 7 would not work anymore when I uninstalled VirtualBox 6.0.6 and installed 5.2, but editing the file and changing that succesfully made me use the Windows 7 install. Of course, I went to the settings before starting it up, made a change and saved it, but the VM itself is working, although a bit wonky now... I probably have to reboot into safe mode to reinstall the guest addons given the support for DirectX. But that is of a later concern.

The DC is working as I expected it to work at the beginning of the endevour, just not in virtualbox 6.0.6