I’ve been using VirtualBox lately for doing some lightweight virtualization to test various deployments. Most recently, I was using it to test USMT hardlink migration in going from WinXP to Win7. So after a quick setup of a WinXP test VM and installing the VM additions, I found that the network drivers were not present in WinPE. So I added the network drivers into WinPE (in SCCM) and updated the SCCM distribution points. The NIC still didn’t work in the VM. So I used a different NIC that worked WinPE and Win7, but it didn’t work with WinXP even though the VM additions were installed (I don’t understand why the drivers are not included!).
Anyhow, if you need to use VirtualBox for the same kind of testing, I recommend configuring your VM as follows:
- Create your WinXP VM
- Configure the VM to use Bridged network and emulate the Intel MT Desktop device
- Configure the VM to auto mount a shared drive on the host computer (for quick access to files)
- Download the NIC drivers from Intel online to that shared folder
- Install the NIC drivers on the WinXP VM.
Now you have a VM that works with WinXP, Win7, and WinPE!
#1 by Karl on May 11, 2012 - 2:25 pm
Hi Nicolas, interesting post as I never used Virtualbox for SCCM testing.
I am a vmware user but for image creation for SCCM I use hyperv machines as they are less trickier than VMware. Are you also using Virtualbox to make/capture your gold images?
#2 by Nicolas Moseley on May 11, 2012 - 2:51 pm
VirtualBox can certainly be used for capturing images!
#3 by Karl on May 11, 2012 - 2:56 pm
I forgot to say that when I captured images with Vmware I sometimes had problems with drivers and AHCI too. With hyperv I never had such problems. What about virtualbox? Driver related then?
#4 by Nicolas Moseley on May 11, 2012 - 3:02 pm
That’s the cool thing about VirtualBox, it can do a VMDK (VMWare disk) or a VHD (MS virtual hard drive) or a couple of others. VHD disks don’t need those special drivers :-)
#5 by Karl on May 11, 2012 - 3:05 pm
Ok, well maybe I’ll just install virtualbox on my workstation otherwise I need to setup a new server to host hyperv :(
Thanks for the tip!