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On Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 9:54 AM, Mark Knecht <markknecht@×××××.com> wrote: |
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> I've wanted to ask this for a while. I've never seen vmware running. |
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> I'm curious about running a few Windows apps on my AMD64 machine, if |
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> possible. Does stuff like sound work? I don't need any special |
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> hardware. (I think) Just disk, graphics and network. |
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> |
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> How well does this work? vmware seems to have a good reputation. What |
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> are the Open Source alternatives? |
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> |
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> If someone has a good pointer to something that walks a newbie through |
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> setting this up and running Win XP then that would be cool. I have XP |
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> licenses if necessary. |
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|
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It's easy. If your CPU supports virtualization, make sure it is |
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enabled in your BIOS settings and the virtual machine will run at |
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nearly full speed (given sufficient RAM). Just emerge the version of |
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your choice (I suggest using the vmware overlay fort this). I think |
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vmware-server vmware-server-console are still free. If you don't use |
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bleeding-edge kernels, it's even easier. VMWare is one of those |
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closed-source programs with kernel modules that gets broken every time |
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there's a new kernel released. |
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|
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Yes, I think sound and everything works in the free vmware-server |
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except for hotplugging USB devices. In vmware-workstation (commercial |
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product), plugging in USB devices work (so you can run itunes in |
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vmware and sync your ipod to it, for example). There is VERY minimal |
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directx/3D support but it's so bad it might as well not even exist. So |
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it'll be a 2D-only windows box (no fancy gaming will happen). |
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|
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For alternatives there is VirtualBox, QEMU and a few kernel-based for |
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making a virtualization server. I've not used those so I can't say |
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anything about them. |
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