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Sun VirtualBox Installation Tutorial Installing Linux Mint 5 LTS Guest OS

By Dennis Berry Welcome to the world of virtualization and Linux. This tutorial is intended to help users who are new to the world of virtualization and Linux Operating Systems to install and configure the Sun VirtualBox application and then install Linux Mint 5 as a guest operating system using the VirtualBox application’s Graphical User Interface (GUI). System Requirements for this Tutorial: (Other systems are similar)

Windows XP or Vista operating system using NTFS File System (FAT file system limits contiguous file size to about 4 Gigabytes; see Hard Drive Space Requirements)

1.5 Gigabytes of RAM (recommended minimum system memory)

At least 20 Gigabytes of free Hard Drive Space (Minimum 8 Gigabytes required for virtual hard drive)

To get started, you will need to download the installation files for

VirtualBox (Windows users select x86/amd64):

HTUhttp://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/DownloadsUTH

Next, download the installation files for Linux Mint 5.0 LTS (Long Term

Support) from: HTUhttp://www.linuxmint.com/UTH

The direct link to the Linux Mint 5 LTS image file as of this writing is:

HTUhttp://ftp.heanet.ie/pub/linuxmint.com/stable/5/LinuxMint-5-r1.iso UTH

Once you have downloaded the files, you can begin the installation

process by creating a restore point in system restore. This is advisable in case the installation causes errors. I have been using VirtualBox for over a year as of this writing and have not had any system instability issues because of it.

The first step is to launch the installation file by clicking (or double-

clicking) on the executable file. Click the “Next” button object.

Accept the license agreement and select “Next”:

Accept the default install settings by selecting “Next”:

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Choose your shortcut preferences and select “Next”:

The VirtualBox installer will warn you that it must reset your network

connections during installation. Select “Yes”:

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Accept the install settings by selecting “Install”:

During the installation process you may see notification boxes like this example:

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Select the “Continue Anyway” button object to continue the installation

process. Once the installation has completed, you should see the following window. The option to start VirtualBox should be check by default. With the “Start Sun VirtualBox after installation” option checked, select “Finish”:

Fill in the registration information and select “Register”:

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If the VirtualBox GUI does not load, go to the Start menu> All

Programs> Sun VirtualBox> VirtualBox to launch the application.

This is the VirtualBox Graphical User Interface (GUI). To begin, we will

configure a guest operating system. The operating system you have installed the VirtualBox application on is considered the host operating system. For this tutorial, we will be installing Linux Mint 5.0 LTS (Long Term Support) as the guest operating system. At the upper left hand corner select the “New” button object. This will launch the “New Virtual Machine Wizard!”

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Select the “Next” button object. The first step in the process is to name

the guest operating system and identify the operating system type.

As seen in the screenshot, I usually name the guest operating system

LM5. Use the drop-down arrow on the right of “Operating System:” to select “Linux” and identify the “Version:” as “Ubuntu” (Linux Mint is a Ubuntu derivative). Once these settings are correct, select the “Next” button object.

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The next step is to choose how much of your system memory to allocate to the virtual machine guest operating system. I do not recommend using VirtualBox on a Windows host unless the host has at least 1.5 gigabytes of RAM. Although the base memory allocation defaults to 384 MB as shown in the screenshot, I recommend allocating 512 megabytes of system RAM to the guest. I find it easiest to select the box on the right of the slider bar with my mouse cursor and use my number keys to enter “512” in the MB box.

Once the Base Memory Size is set to “512” MB, select the “Next” button

object. The next step is to create a Virtual Hard Disk. The screenshot shows the

default VirtualBox Settings as of this writing. Leave the settings at their default settings and select the “Next” button object.

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The Create New Virtual Disk Wizard window will open. Select the “Next”

button object.

The default setting for Hard Disk Storage Type is “Dynamically

expanding storage”. I recommend accepting the default setting. Otherwise, you can choose a fixed amount of disk space to allocate to the guest operating system. When I choose this option, I generally allocate 16-20 gigs of fixed disk space. To accept the default settings, select the “Next” button object.

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Next, the Virtual Disk Name and Location window will load. The name should default to “LM5” and the disk size should default to “8.00 GB” as shown in the screenshot.

To accept the defaults, select the “Next” button object.

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A summary window will load. Select the “Finish” button object to complete the Virtual Disk configuration.

A progress bar will display as the virtual hard drive is being created.

When this process completes, you should be returned to the VirtualBox

GUI.

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Please note that the “LM5” virtual machine is listed in available machines

and the “Settings” and “Start” button objects are available. At this point, move your mouse pointer over the “Settings” button object in the upper left corner and select the “Settings” button object. This should open the “Settings” window.

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Select the “System” link in the left pane to confirm the memory “Base Memory:” setting and view the “Boot Order:” If the “Base Memory:” is set to “512” MB as shown in the screenshot, proceed to the next step.

Select the “Display” link in the left pane. Click in the Video Memory box

and set it to “64” MB as shown. Once again, I find it easiest to click in the box to the right of the slider and then use my number keys to enter the setting. Also, on most hardware configurations, it is OK to place a check in the “Enable 3D Acceleration” checkbox as shown in the screenshot.

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Next, in the left hand pane, select the “CD/DVD-ROM” object. The

window should change to display the CD/DVD ROM setting window.

Use your mouse pointer to place a check mark in the “Mount CD/DVD

Drive” check box and then select the radio button next to “ISO Image File”. Select the browse folder button object at the right of the blank text field to

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open the “Virtual Media Manager”. Select the “Add” button object and browse to the location of the Linux Mint 5.0 LTS ISO file, then select it. Once this is completed, activate the “Select” button object.

Once this is complete, select the “OK” button object.

This will close the Setting window and return you to the VirtualBox GUI.

Some of your settings may be different than the screenshot. This is because I

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chose custom settings during my install process. Select the “Start” button object in the upper left corner of the VirtualBox GUI. A splash screen will display momentarily and the virtual machine will initialize.

The default boot order for VirtualBox is Floppy, CD/DVD-ROM, Hard

Disk. By pointing the mount point of the CD/DVD Drive to the Linux Mint 5 LTS ISO Image File, the virtual machine will boot up to the “live cd” of Linux Mint 5. The virtual machine will load and you will probably see the following display. This informs the user that the keyboard is now captured by the virtual machine and can be released by pushing the right Ctrl button to the far right of the space bar on the keyboard. You can disable this reminder from displaying every time you launch the virtual machine by using your mouse to place a check in the “Do not show…” box. Select the “OK” button object when ready.

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Next, one of the following notification boxes will display.

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Please read through these information boxes. The video bit depth

message can be disregarded. It is safe to place a check in the “Do not display…” check box and then select the “OK” button object. The mouse information box details the capture of the mouse function by the guest operation system and informs the user of the procedure of releasing the mouse function which is the same as the keyboard release, pressing the right Ctrl button to the far right of the space bar on the keyboard. This information box can also be disabled. To continue, select the “Capture” button object.

During the loading process, you will probably see a GNOME error box.

This error is common during a virtualization install and is safe to ignore. Select the “Close” button object.

When the Linux Mint live cd has completed loading, you will see the Linux

Mint 5 desktop in the virtual machine window. Along the left edge of the desktop window you will notice an icon titled “Install”. Move your mouse cursor over the Install icon and double-click. This will start the install process of the Linux Mint operating system to the virtual disk.

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Once the install files have been copied, the Install Welcome screen will

display.

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To select the English default setting, select the “Forward” button object. Otherwise, select the language of your choice before selecting the “Forward” button object.

The next step is to select the location time zone. I recommend using the

drop down arrow to the right of the Selected City box to select a city that is in your time zone. For Central US Time Zone, I use Chicago as the City setting.

Once your city is set, select the “Forward” button object. The next step is to select the Keyboard layout for your install. To select

the default USA setting, select the “Forward” button object.

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The next step is to prepare the disk space for the operating system

installation. I recommend accepting the default settings.

To use the default settings, select the “Forward” button object. Linux Mint requires a username and password to sign on to the operating

system. Use the keyboard to enter a username and password for your Linux Mint installation. All other text fields can remain at default.

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Congratulations, you are at the install configuration summary page. Select

the “Install” button object to confirm the installation settings.

An install progress bar will display as the install progresses.

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Once the installation is complete, you will be prompted to “Restart”.

Select the “Restart” button object. During the restart process, you will be prompted to remove the CD from the CD Drive. Ignore this and press the Enter button on your keyboard to complete the restart process.

Once the virtual machine has shut down and you see the start up splash

display again, white text will begin to display within the virtual machine window as the application prepares to start. Move your mouse to the upper right corner of the window and select the red “X” to close the window. It may be necessary to press the right-hand Ctrl button on your keyboard to release the mouse from the virtual machine in order to do this. The “Close Virtual Machine” box will display. Select the “Power off the machine” radio button and select “OK”. This step is necessary because the virtual machine is still being instructed to start from the “live cd” iso image.

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This should return you to the VirtualBox GUI window. If not, go to the

Start menu> All Programs> Sun VirtualBox> VirtualBox to launch the application. Once again, select the “Settings” button object in the upper left corner of the VirtualBox GUI to open the settings window. Select the “CD/DVD-ROM” link in the left pane to display the CD/DVD settings window. Select the radio button next to the “Host CD/DVD Drive” selection as shown and select “OK” to close the window and return to the VirtualBox main window.

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Once you have returned to the VirtualBox GUI window, select the “Start” button object in the upper left corner to start the virtual machine.

The Linux Mint 5 boot screen will display and time out.

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Once the loading process has completed, you will be prompted to enter

the username and password you chose during the installation process.

Once you have successfully logged-in to your session, you will be

prompted to complete your installation preferences. Select the “Forward” button object.

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Next, you will be prompted to choose to activate the “Root Password”. I

recommend leaving this option unchecked and selecting the “Forward” button object.

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Next, you will be prompted to activate the “Fortunes in terminal” feature.

I personally do not activate this feature. Once you have selected your preference select the “Forward” button object.

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Once these settings are completed, a summary box will display. Select

the “Apply” button object.

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Select the “Close” button object to complete the preferences settings

process.

At this point the Linux Mint 5 desktop will be displayed.

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Next, we are going to install the “Guest Additions” to add additional

functionality to your virtual machine installation. Press the right hand “Ctrl” button on your keyboard to release the keyboard and mouse from the virtual machine. Move the mouse cursor to the upper left menu in the virtual machine window and select the “Devices” menu option. The drop-down menu populates. Move your cursor over the last option in the list “Install Guest Additions” and select it.

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The guest additions file will be mounted and displayed on your Linux

desktop and a box will open with the option to run the software. Select the “Run” button object to install the software.

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At this point, you will be prompted for you administrator password. Enter

the password you chose when you selected your username and password during the installation process and select the “OK” button object.

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A text box will open on the Linux Mint 5 Desktop that will display the

installation progress. If any errors appear during the installation process, they can be safely ignored. Once the installation is complete, you will be prompted to press the Enter key on your keyboard to complete the installation.

Next, right-click on the Guest Additions mount point icon on the Linux

Mint 5 desktop and select the “Eject” option.

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You should now be at the Linux Mint 5 desktop. Move your mouse to the

lower left hand corner or the desktop and left-click on “Elyssa” to launch the Linux Mint 5 start menu. Select the “Quit” link to open the Quit options box.

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Next, select the “Shut Down” option.

Linux Mint 5 will initiate the shutdown sequence and the Linux Mint 5

window will close. At this point, we are going to repeat the steps to point the Linux Mint 5

guest operating system to the hardware CD/DVD drive. You should return to the VirtualBox GUI window. If not, go to the Start menu> All Programs> Sun VirtualBox> VirtualBox to launch the application. Once again, select the “Settings” button object in the upper left corner of the VirtualBox GUI to open

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the settings window. Select the “CD/DVD-ROM” link in the left pane to display the CD/DVD settings window. Select the radio button next to the “Host CD/DVD Drive” selection as shown and select “OK” to close the window and return to the VirtualBox main window.

Next, let’s create a shared folder in the host file system. Open Windows

Explorer to you’re My Documents folder and left-click in the right window pane. Select New > Folder and name it “LM5”.

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This screenshot shows the shared folder I created during my installation.

Once the shared folder has been created, load or select the VirtualBox

GUI and select the “Settings” button object in the upper left hand corner. In the left pane of the Settings window, select the “Shared Folders” link. The “Shared Folders” window will display.

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Left click the green folder with the green plus sign along the right upper

edge of the Shared Folders window. This will open the Add Share window. Click the drop-down arrow to the right of the “Folder Path:” box and then select “Other”.

Use the Browse For Folder box to navigate to the location where you

created the LM5 shared folder, select it, and then select the “OK” button object.

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The Add Share box will display your settings as shown in the screenshot.

Be sure to leave the “Read-only” checkbox unchecked. Once this is complete, select “OK” in the Add Share box and in the Settings window.

Once you have returned to the VirtualBox GUI window, select the “Start”

button object in the upper left corner to start the virtual machine.

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During the start sequence, you will see this notification box indicating

that “mouse pointer integration” is supported and turned on. This is a feature of adding the Guest Additions to the virtual machine. Read the notification; place a check in the “Do not show...” checkbox if you do not wish to see the notification again, and select the “OK” button object.

Once the virtual machine has loaded and you have signed in using your username and password, left-click on “Elyssa” to launch the Linux Mint 5 start menu. Select the “Terminal” command.

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In the terminal type the text at the prompt as shown in the screenshot:

When you have completed the text entry, press the Enter button on your

keyboard. You will be prompted to enter your password. This is the password you chose when you created your username and password for your installation. Enter the password only and press the Enter button on your keyboard. At the prompt, type the text as shown in the screenshot and once again press the Enter button on your keyboard. You will not be prompted again for your password now that you have entered it in this session of the Terminal:

We are now ready to end this session of Terminal. Left-click the “X” in

the upper right hand corner of the Terminal window. This will close the Terminal window and return you to the Linux Mint desktop. Along the upper left edge of the desktop, double-click on the Computer icon. This will open the

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computer File Browser. In the right hand pane, double-click on the Filesystem icon.

In the File System window right pane, double-click on the “mnt” folder.

In the right pane, double-click on the “share” folder.

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In the right hand pane, move your mouse cursor over the “LM5” folder,

hold down both the right and left mouse buttons, and drag the folder out of the browser window onto the desktop and release the mouse buttons. From the contextual box, choose the “Link Here” option.

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A new icon will appear on your desktop labeled “Link to LM5” with a

Locked icon. This is your desktop link to your shared folder.

Close the File Browser window and left click and drag the link icon under

the Home link icon. This is a snapshot of my Linux Mint 5.0 LTS guest on my Windows XP Pro desktop.

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I have renamed my Home folder by right clicking on the folder icon and

selecting “Rename” from the contextual menu. I erased the username prefix and left the “Home” text of the title. I also went to the start menu, selected the “Internet” link from the middle applications list and left-clicked and held the “Firefox Web Browser” icon and dragged it out of the start menu and onto my desktop to create a shortcut on my desktop. As you can see, I shortened the link name to Firefox by right clicking on the icon and choosing “Rename”.

I suggest, for convenience sake, create an addition link to your shared

folder by double clicking on the “Home” folder icon on the Linux Mint 5 desktop, which will open your Home File Browser. Right click on the “Link to LM5” icon on the desktop and select “Copy” from the contextual menu. Then, in the File Browser window’s right pane, right click and select the “Paste” command from the contextual menu.

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Your Home File Browser should now display a link to your shared folder:

Next, let’s mount the shared folder to allow the exchange of files

between the host and the guest operating systems. Open the start menu and select the “Terminal” command. At the command prompt, type the text as shown in the screenshot and press the Enter button on your keyboard.

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Once again, you will be prompted to enter your password. Type your

password at the prompt and then press enter on your keyboard. Select the “X” in the Terminal window to close the window. Double click on the “Link to LM5” icon and the lock portion of the icon will disappear and be replaced by an arrow. This indicates that the folder is mounted and active. You can now view any files that are in the LM5 folder on your host and add files to the folder that would be accessible from your host.

The last bit of business I will cover in this tutorial has to do with

updating the Linux Mint 5 installation. You may notice a small icon along the bottom right edge of the Linux Mint 5 desktop. This is the update icon and is displayed as one of three different states as far as I know. In the screenshot, it is displaying as a lock that is unlocked. This indicates that there are updates that are available.

As seen in the screenshot, there are currently 104 updates that are

detected and available. Left click on the icon and a password prompt box will open. Type your password and then press the Enter button on your keyboard.

This will open the mintUpdate window:

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Select the “Install Updates” button object to proceed with the update

process. The update process will begin by downloading files to be installed.

Once the files have been downloaded, the update process will begin.

During the update process, you may see a number of “Replace configuration file” notification boxes. Select the “Replace” button object each time this occurs.

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Once the update is complete, select the “Close” button object.

Once the initial update is completed, I recommend you reboot the virtual

machine so that all of the updates can take effect. Once this is completed and you are back at the Linux Mint 5 desktop, left click on the update icon along the lower right edge of the Linux Mint desktop that looks like a lock. Once you have entered your password and the mintUpdate window opens, select the “Preferences” button object.

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When the Preferences window opens, select the “Auto-Refresh” tab. I

usually change the 5 minutes default setting to either 20 minutes or 1 hour. Once you have changed the Auto-Refresh interval, select the “Apply” button object.

Once again, there are additional updates that are available for

installation. Select the “Install Updates” button object to start the update process. During the update process, you may see a window that displays a warning about the packages to be installed. The system default settings will prevent some updates from being installed. I recommend you accept the default settings and select the “Apply” button object without making any changes.

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Once all the updates are applied and the installation is current, the icon

will change to appear locked with a check mark.

The only other mintUpdate icon I have ever seen displayed is a lock that

is broken in half. This is usually an indication that the Linux Mint operating system needs to be restarted to allow previous updates to be applied.

In closing, I invite you to explore the world of virtual machines and I hope you enjoy your Linux Mint experience. If you have any comments, corrections, omissions or questions about this tutorial, please email me at: bootlegmultimedia@yahoo.com

Sincere Regards, Dennis Berry Please visit bootlegmultimedia.com for a sample of Reality Check

Adventure Training.

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