Virtualbox - How to Test and Boot an ISO Image without Burning
If you've been following this blog site everyday, you should know what is ISO image bynow. An ISO image is an archive file of an optical disc using a conventional ISO(International Organization for Standardization) format that is supported by manysoftware vendors.ISO image files typically have a file extension of .ISO. Just yesterday I've mentionedabout Trinity Rescue Kit which comes in ISO image and you'll have to burn it on a CD.There are times when I would like to test an ISO image first before burning it to a CD.One of the reason is so that I can take screenshots and attach it with article. If you boot upa computer with a CD, there is no way you can take a clear screenshot on the screen other than using a digital camera. Recently I've been trying to merge a few ISO images into oneto create a multi-boot CD. With the ability to test the ISO image first, I don't need towaste CD-Rs. Even if I can use CD-RW, it is still convenient because I don't need towaste my time in burning the disc and booting up my computer with the CD-RW.The image above shows that Kaspersky Rescue CD is booted up in a virtual machinewithout burning to CD. Here's how I test the ISO image without burning to a disc usingVirtualBox.VirtualBox is an x86 virtualization software package originally created by Germansoftware company Innotek and now being developed by Sun Microsystems as part of itsSun xVM virtualization platform. It is installed on an existing host operating system;within this application, additional operating systems, each known as a Guest OS, can beloaded and run, each with its own virtual environment. For example, Linux can be guesthosted on a single virtual machine running Microsoft Windows XP as the Host OS; or,XP and Windows Vista can run as guest OSes on a machine running OpenSolaris.Actually most of virtual machine software is able to load ISO images but somehow I prefer VirtualBox because it is easy to use. I'll show you the steps on how I load the ISOimage into VirtualBox.1. Download and install VirtualBox.2. Run VirtualBox from Start > Programs > Sun xVM VirtualBox > VirtualBox.3. Click New button and a new virtual machine wizard window will appear. Click Next.4. Enter any Name and select an OS Type. It doesn't matter what you enter in here because it is for your own reference. (For example, I use the name Load ISO Images andOS Type as Other/Unknown)
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