Windows 8 with VMware and VirtualBox
Visiting Friends
How does the latest Windows work in a virtual machine? We tried out Windows 8 as a guest system in vMware Workstation and virtualBox on Linux.
Life without Windows is often quite difficult. One of the biggest problems is that the Linux environment offers no viable alternative for certain Windows programs. In some cases, you can still run the Windows application in Linux using the Wine Windows compatibility API; however, Wine does not work for all applications and situations. A second alternative is a dual-boot system, which requires you to reboot the computer each time you need a Windows program. However, despite these alternatives, users are increasingly turning to virtualization as the most efficient means for accessing Windows applications from Linux.
Virtual machine technology is so mature that, in normal use, it is difficult to tell the difference between Windows on a virtual machine and on a physical system. Unless you are running games, which really do perform better on a native installation, virtualization is a viable option for a wide range of desktop applications. We decided to try out the latest Windows 8 release on a pair of the leading desktop virtualization tools for Linux environments: VMware Workstation 9 and VirtualBox 4.2.2.
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you've found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
2024 Open Source Professionals Job Survey Now Open
Share your expectations regarding open source jobs.
-
Arch Linux 2023.12.01 Released with a Much-Improved Installer
If you've ever wanted to install Arch Linux, now is your time. With the latest release, the archinstall script vastly simplifies the process.
-
Zorin OS 17 Beta Available for Testing
The upcoming version of Zorin OS includes plenty of improvements to take your PC to a whole new level of user-friendliness.
-
Red Hat Migrates RHEL from Xorg to Wayland
If you've been wondering when Xorg will finally be a thing of the past, wonder no more, as Red Hat has made it clear.
-
PipeWire 1.0 Officially Released
PipeWire was created to take the place of the oft-troubled PulseAudio and has finally reached the 1.0 status as a major update with plenty of improvements and the usual bug fixes.
-
Rocky Linux 9.3 Available for Download
The latest version of the RHEL alternative is now available and brings back cloud and container images for ppc64le along with plenty of new features and fixes.
-
Ubuntu Budgie Shifts How to Tackle Wayland
Ubuntu Budgie has yet to make the switch to Wayland but with a change in approaches, they're finally on track to making it happen.
-
TUXEDO's New Ultraportable Linux Workstation Released
The TUXEDO Pulse 14 blends portability with power, thanks to the AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU.
-
AlmaLinux Will No Longer Be "Just Another RHEL Clone"
With the release of AlmaLinux 9.3, the distribution will be built entirely from upstream sources.
-
elementary OS 8 Has a Big Surprise in Store
When elementary OS 8 finally arrives, it will not only be based on Ubuntu 24.04 but it will also default to Wayland for better performance and security.