Step-By-Step: Installing Windows 10 on Oracle VirtualBox
If Microsoft Hyper-V and VMware Workstation 11 are not your first choice to test Windows 10 in a virtualized state, then steps on installing Windows 10 Technical Preview on VirtualBox might be of interest. Oracle’s general-purpose virtual management offering on x86 hardware is also free and can also be of use to test Windows 10 without disturbing your existing environment. The steps in this post will detail the process.
Step 1: Download the Windows 10 Technical Preview ISO
- Visit the Windows Insiders webpage
- Register to be a Windows Insider
- Download the 32 bit version of the Windows 10 Technical Preview ISO file
Step 2: Creating the Virtual Machine optimal for Windows 10 testing
- In the VirtualBox VM Manager, click New
- Provide a name for your new virtual machine and select Windows 10 (32 bit) in the Version dropdown menu
- Select the desired memory size for the new VM
NOTE: 2GB of RAM minimum is recommended but is not mandatory
- Select Create to initialize creation of the recommended 32GB virtual hard drive
- For Hard Drive type, select the default VDI image unless there might be a requirement to use another Virtualization Manager (possibly Hyper-V) in the near future and click Next
- Select Dynamically allocated and click Next
- Click Create to begin the virtual machine creation process
Step 3: Installing Windows 10 Technical Preview on Oracle VirtualBox
- In the Oracle VM VirtualBox Manager, highlight the newly created VM and click on Settings
- In the VM settings window, click Storage
- Select Empty found under Controller: IDE in Storage Tree
- Select the CD icon found beside CD/DVD Drive: IDE Secondary
- Select Choose a virtual CD/DVD disk file…
- Browse to the downloaded Windows 10 ISO, highlight it and select Open
- Click Ok to close the Storage Settings window
- With the newly created virtual machine highlighted, click Start
- The installation of Windows 10 on the newly created virtual machine begins
