Index: /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_BasicConcepts.xml =================================================================== --- /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_BasicConcepts.xml (revision 35173) +++ /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_BasicConcepts.xml (revision 35174) @@ -353,5 +353,5 @@ installed in the VM. This is the same setting that was specified in the "New Virtual Machine" wizard, as described in . + linkend="gui-createvm" />. Whereas the default settings of a newly created VM depend on @@ -750,7 +750,24 @@ Storage settings - In the VM Settings window, the "Storage" section allows you to - connect virtual hard disk, CD/DVD and floppy images and drives to your - virtual machine: + The "Storage" category in the VM settings allows you to connect + virtual hard disk, CD/DVD and floppy images and drives to your virtual + machine. + + In a real PC, so-called "storage controllers" connect physical disk + drives to the rest of the computer. Similarly, VirtualBox presents virtual + storage controllers to a virtual machine. Under each controller, the + virtual devices (hard disks, CD/DVD or floppy drives) attached to the + controller are shown. + This section can only give you a quick introduction to the + VirtualBox storage settings. Since VirtualBox gives you an enormous + wealth of options in this area, we have dedicated an entire chapter of + this User Manual to explaining all the details: please see . + + + If you have used the "Create VM" wizard to create a machine, you + will normally see something like the following: + + - In a real PC, so-called "storage controllers" connect physical disk - drives to the rest of the computer. Similarly, VirtualBox presents virtual - storage controllers to a virtual machine. Under each controller, the - virtual devices (hard disks, CD/DVD or floppy drives) are shown that are - attached to the controller. - - If you have used the "Create VM" wizard to create a machine, you - will normally see the following devices: - - You will see an IDE controller, under which there are two - devices: - - one virtual hard disk connected to the IDE slot called - "primary master"; this is represented by the disk images that - you created with the machine; - - - - one virtual CD/DVD drive connected to the "secondary - master". - - - - - - In addition, there is a floppy controller to which a virtual - floppy drive is attached. + Depending on the guest operating system type that you selected when + you created the VM, the typical layout of storage devices in a new VM is + as follows: + + You will see an IDE + controller, to which a virtual CD/DVD drive has been + attached (to the "secondary master" port of the IDE + controller). + + + + You will also see a SATA + controller, which is a more modern type of storage + controller for higher hard disk data throughput, to which the + virtual hard disks are attached. Initially you will normally have + one such virtual disk, but as you can see in the above screenshot, + you can have more than one, each represented by a disk image file + (VDI files, in this case). + + If you created your VM with an older version of VirtualBox, the + default storage layout may differ. You might then only have an IDE + controller to which both the CD/DVD drive and the hard disks have been + attached. This might also apply if you selected an older operating system + type when you created the VM. Since older operating systems do not support + SATA without additional drivers, VirtualBox will make sure that no such + devices are present initially. Please see for additional information. + + VirtualBox also provides a floppy + controller, which is special: you cannot add devices other than + floppy drives to it. Virtual floppy drives, like virtual CD/DVD drives, + can be connected to either a host floppy drive (if you have one) or a disk + image, which in this case must be in RAW format. You can modify these media attachments freely. For example, if you wish to copy some files from another virtual disk that you created, you - can connect that disk as a second hard disk. You could also add a second - virtual CD/DVD drive, or change where these items are attached. - - In addition to the IDE controller, VirtualBox can also present a - SATA controller and a SCSI controller to the guest, which gives you 30 or - 16 additional slots to attach devices to, respectively. This, however, may - require that you run a modern guest operating system. See for details. - - To add another virtual hard disk or CD/DVD - drive, select the storage controller to which it should be - added (IDE, SATA or SCSI) and then click on the "add disk" button below - the tree. You can then either select "Add CD/DVD device" or "Add Hard - Disk". Alternatively, right-click on the storage controller and select a - menu item there. - - On the right part of the window, you can then select to which slot - of the controller the virtual disk should be connected to and which image - file to use. - - For virtual hard disks, a drop-down list appears on the right, - listing all the hard disk images that VirtualBox currently knows - about. - - The folder icon next to the drop-down allow you to select a - different disk image using a standard file dialog. - - The second icon next to the drop-down allows you to create a - new disk image; this will bring up the "Create new disk" wizard, - which was described in . - - - - For virtual CD/DVD drives, there are two kinds of options in - the drop-down list. + can connect that disk as a second hard disk, as in the above screenshot. + You could also add a second virtual CD/DVD drive, or change where these + items are attached. The following options are available: + + To add another virtual hard disk, or a + CD/DVD or floppy drive, select the storage controller to + which it should be added (IDE, SATA, SCSI, SAS, floppy controller) + and then click on the "add disk" button below the tree. You can then + either select "Add CD/DVD device" or "Add Hard Disk". (If you + clicked on a floppy controller, you can add a floppy drive instead.) + Alternatively, right-click on the storage controller and select a + menu item there. + + On the right part of the window, you can then set the + following: - If you select "Empty", then VirtualBox will present a - virtual CD/DVD drive to the guest which has no media - inserted. + You can then select to which device slot of the controller the + virtual disk should be connected to. IDE controllers have four + slots which have traditionally been called "primary master", + "primary slave", "secondary master" and "secondary slave". By + contrast, SATA and SCSI controllers offer you up to 30 slots + to which virtual devices can be attached. - If you select "Host drive" from the list, then the - physical device of the host computer is connected to the VM, - so that the guest operating system can read from and write to - your physical device. This is, for instance, useful if you - want to install Windows from a real installation CD. In this - case, select your host drive from the drop-down list - presented. - - If you want to write (burn) CDs or DVDs using the host - drive, you need to enable the "Passthrough" option; see . + You can select which image + file to use. + + For virtual hard disks, a button with a drop-down + list appears on the right, offering you to either select + a virtual hard disk + file using a standard file dialog or to + create a new hard disk + (image file), which will bring up the "Create new disk" + wizard, which was described in . + + For details on the image file types that are + supported, please see . + + + + For virtual CD/DVD drives, the image files will + typically be in the standard ISO format instead. Most + commonly, you will select this option when installing an + operating system from an ISO file that you have obtained + from the Internet. For example, most Linux distributions + are available in this way. + + For virtual CD/DVD drives, the following + additional options are available: + + + + If you select "Host + drive" from the list, then the physical + device of the host computer is connected to the VM, + so that the guest operating system can read from and + write to your physical device. This is, for + instance, useful if you want to install Windows from + a real installation CD. In this case, select your + host drive from the drop-down list presented. + + If you want to write (burn) CDs or DVDs using + the host drive, you need to also enable the + "Passthrough" + option; see . + + + + If you select "Remove + disk from virtual drive", VirtualBox will + present an empty CD/DVD drive to the guest into + which no media has been inserted. + + + + - - - The other items in the list, like virtual hard disk - images, will be image files on your host. The file format here - is the ISO format. Most commonly, you will select this option - when installing an operating system from an ISO file that you - have obtained from the Internet. For example, most Linux - distributions are available in this way. - - - - - The identification string of the drive provided to the guest - (which, in the guest, would be displayed by configuration tools - such as the Windows Device Manager) is always "VBOX CD-ROM", - irrespective of the current configuration of the virtual drive. - This is to prevent hardware detection from being triggered in the - guest operating system every time the configuration is - changed. - + + + + + To remove an attachment, + select it and click on the "remove" icon at the bottom (or + right-click on it and select the menu item). - - Note that the floppy controller is special: you cannot add devices - other than floppy drives to it. Virtual floppy drives, like virtual CD/DVD - drives, can be connected to either a host floppy drive (if you have one) - or a disk image, which in this case must be in RAW format. - - To remove a virtual disk or drive, - select it and click on the "remove" icon at the bottom (or right-click on - it and select the menu item). Removable media (CD/DVDs and floppies) can be changed while the @@ -882,8 +909,4 @@ time, you can also access these settings from the "Devices" menu of your virtual machine window. - - We have dedicated an entire chapter of this User Manual to virtual - storage: please see for every single detail - about storage configuration. @@ -922,14 +945,16 @@ outside world using the host's networking and the outside world can connect to services on the guest which you choose to make visible outside - of the virtual machine. In most cases, this default setup will work fine - for you. - - However, VirtualBox is extremely flexible in how it can virtualize - networking. It supports up to eight virtual network cards per virtual - machine, the first four of which can be configured in detail in the - graphical user interface. All eight network cards can be configured on the - command line with VBoxManage. Because of this, we have dedicated an entire - chapter of this manual to discussing networking configuration; please see - . + of the virtual machine. + + This default setup is good for probably 95% of VirtualBox users. + However, VirtualBox is extremely flexible in how it can virtualize + networking. It supports many virtual network cards per virtual machine, + the first four of which can be configured in detail in the Manager window. + Additional network cards can be configured on the command line with + VBoxManage. + + Because of the vast array of options available, we have dedicated an + entire chapter of this manual to discussing networking configuration; + please see . @@ -944,19 +969,20 @@ Ever since the original IBM PC, personal computers have been equipped with one or two serial ports (also called COM ports by DOS and - Windows). While these are no longer as important as they were until a few - years ago (especially since mice are no longer connected to serial ports - these days), there are still some important uses left for them. For - example, serial ports can be used to set up a primitive network over a - null-modem cable, in case Ethernet is not available. Also, serial ports - are indispensable for system programmers needing to do kernel debugging, - since kernel debugging software usually interacts with developers over a - serial port. In other words, with virtual serial ports, system programmers - can do kernel debugging on a virtual machine instead of needing a real - computer to connect to. + Windows). Most importantly, computer mice used to be connected to serial + ports before USB became commonplace. + + While serial ports are no longer as important as they used to be, + there are still some important uses left for them. For example, serial + ports can be used to set up a primitive network over a null-modem cable, + in case Ethernet is not available. Also, serial ports are indispensable + for system programmers needing to do kernel debugging, since kernel + debugging software usually interacts with developers over a serial port. + With virtual serial ports, system programmers can do kernel debugging on a + virtual machine instead of needing a real computer to connect to. If a virtual serial port is enabled, the guest operating system sees - it a standard 16450-type serial port. Both receiving and transmitting data - is supported. How this virtual serial port is then connected to the host - is configurable, and details depend on your host operating system. + a standard 16450-type device. Both receiving and transmitting data is + supported. How this virtual serial port is then connected to the host is + configurable, and the details depend on your host operating system. You can use either the graphical user interface or the command-line @@ -1005,6 +1031,6 @@ You can elect to have the virtual serial port - "disconnected", which means that the guest will see it as - hardware, but it will behave as if no cable had been connected + "disconnected", which means that the guest will see the + device, but it will behave as if no cable had been connected to it. @@ -1014,5 +1040,5 @@ serial port on your host. (On a Windows host, this will be a name like COM1; on Linux or - OpenSolaris hosts, it will be a device node like + Solaris hosts, it will be a device node like /dev/ttyS0). VirtualBox will then simply redirect all data received from and sent to the Index: /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Glossary.xml =================================================================== --- /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Glossary.xml (revision 35173) +++ /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Glossary.xml (revision 35174) @@ -370,4 +370,21 @@ + T + + + TAR + + + A widely used file format for archiving. Originally, this stood + for "Tape ARchive" and was already supported by very early Unix + versions for backing up data on tape. The file format is still widely + used today, for example, with OVF archives (with an + .ova file extension); see . + + + + + U Index: /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_GuestAdditions.xml =================================================================== --- /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_GuestAdditions.xml (revision 35173) +++ /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_GuestAdditions.xml (revision 35174) @@ -1215,13 +1215,15 @@ guests. In particular: - 3D acceleration with Windows guests requires Windows 2000, - Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7. Both OpenGL and Direct3D 8/9 - (not with Windows 2000) are supported (experimental). + 3D acceleration with Windows guests requires Windows + 2000, Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7. Both OpenGL and + Direct3D 8/9 (not with Windows 2000) are supported + (experimental). OpenGL on Linux requires kernel 2.6.27 and higher as - well as X.org server version 1.5 and higher. Ubuntu 10.10 and - Fedora 14 have been tested and confirmed as working. + well as X.org server version 1.5 and higher. Ubuntu 10.10 + and Fedora 14 have been tested and confirmed as + working. @@ -1344,5 +1346,5 @@ - + To enable seamless mode, after starting the virtual @@ -1503,6 +1505,6 @@ guest directories is available. - To use these features, use the VirtualBox command line, see - . + To use these features, use the VirtualBox command line, see . Index: /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Introduction.xml =================================================================== --- /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Introduction.xml (revision 35173) +++ /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Introduction.xml (revision 35174) @@ -22,11 +22,11 @@ up to datacenter deployments and even Cloud environments. - The following screenshot shows you how VirtualBox, installed on a - Linux machine, is running Windows 7 in a virtual machine window: + The following screenshot shows you how VirtualBox, installed on a Mac + computer, is running Windows 7 in a virtual machine window: + width="14cm" /> @@ -546,5 +546,5 @@ To install an extension, simply double-click on the package file, and the VirtualBox Manager will guide you through the required - steps. + steps. To view the extension packs that are currently installed, @@ -595,9 +595,10 @@ width="10cm" /> - This is the VirtualBox Manager window. On the left, you - can see a pane that will later list all your virtual machines. Since you - have not created any, the list is empty. A row of buttons above it allows - you to create new VMs and work on existing VMs, once you have some. The - pane on the right displays the properties of the virtual machine currently + This window is called the "VirtualBox Manager". On the left, you can see a + pane that will later list all your virtual machines. Since you have not + created any, the list is empty. A row of buttons above it allows you to + create new VMs and work on existing VMs, once you have some. The pane on + the right displays the properties of the virtual machine currently selected, if any. Again, since you don't have any machines yet, the pane displays a welcome message. @@ -711,5 +712,5 @@ - In the wizard, you have the following options: + Here you have the following options: @@ -1132,5 +1133,5 @@ + width="11cm" /> The difference between these three options is crucial. @@ -1252,13 +1253,13 @@ + width="12cm" /> - VirtualBox allows you to take an unlimited number of - snapshots -- the only limitation is the size of your disks. Keep - in mind that each snapshot stores the state of the virtual machine - and thus needs some disk space; see the next section for - details. + VirtualBox imposes no limits on the number of snapshots you + can take. The only practical limitation is disk space on your + host: each snapshot stores the state of the virtual machine and + thus occupies some disk space. (See the next section for details + on what exactly is stored in a snapshot.) @@ -1268,5 +1269,5 @@ snapshots. By restoring a snapshot, you go back (or forward) in time: the current state of the machine is lost, and the machine is - restored to exactly the same state as it was when the snapshot was + restored to the exact state it was in when the snapshot was taken. Both the terminology and the functionality of restoring @@ -1340,4 +1341,8 @@ the hard disk configuration or the VM's system settings, that change is undone when you restore the snapshot.) + + The copy of the settings is stored in the machine + configuration, an XML text file, and thus occupies very little + space. @@ -1362,4 +1367,11 @@ less disk space. For the details, which can be complex, please see .) + + Creating the differencing image as such does not occupy much + space on the host disk initially, since the differencing image + will initially be empty (and grow dynamically later with each + write operation to the disk). The longer you use the machine after + having created the snapshot, however, the more the differencing + image will grow in size. @@ -1370,4 +1382,8 @@ VM window). When you restore such a snapshot, execution resumes at exactly the point when the snapshot was taken. + + The memory state file can be as large as the memory size of + the virtual machine and will therefore occupy quite some disk + space as well. @@ -1459,8 +1475,10 @@ - Alternatively, the above files can be packed together into one - archive file, typically with an - .ova extension; such archive files - use a variant of the TAR archive format. + Alternatively, the above files can be packed together into a + single archive file, typically with an + .ova extension. (Such archive files + use a variant of the TAR archive format and can therefore be + unpacked outside of VirtualBox with any utility that can unpack + standard TAR files.) @@ -1482,5 +1500,5 @@ + width="12cm" /> This presents the virtual machines described in the OVF Index: /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Storage.xml =================================================================== --- /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Storage.xml (revision 35173) +++ /trunk/doc/manual/en_US/user_Storage.xml (revision 35174) @@ -348,5 +348,5 @@ + width="12cm" /> The known media are conveniently grouped in three tabs for @@ -545,5 +545,5 @@ Technically, a "multiattach" image behaves identically to an "immutable" image except the differencing image is not reset every - time the machine starts. + time the machine starts. @@ -616,5 +616,5 @@ + width="12cm" /> @@ -863,5 +863,12 @@ eject which many CD/DVD drives provide, with all associated side effects: the guest OS can issue error messages, just like on real hardware, and - guest applications may misbehave. Use this with caution. + guest applications may misbehave. Use this with caution. + The identification string of the drive provided to the guest + (which, in the guest, would be displayed by configuration tools such + as the Windows Device Manager) is always "VBOX CD-ROM", irrespective + of the current configuration of the virtual drive. This is to prevent + hardware detection from being triggered in the guest operating system + every time the configuration is changed. + The standard CD/DVD emulation allows for reading standard data CD