Microsoft launched the Consumer Preview of its upcoming new operating system Windows 8 yesterday. Since the consumer preview is freely available to everyone, you can download the Windows 8 Consumer Preview ISO (.iso) file from the official Windows website. While you can install Windows 8 on any other operating system you’re currently using, I don’t think it’s a good idea. Since the build is still in consumer preview, I want us to test it out in the virtual playground first (unless you’re a geek who knows what you’re doing).
To try out Windows 8 on a virtual desktop, make sure your computer is equipped with a good hardware configuration as running two operating systems side-by-side can take up quite a bit of the space you have on your system. Those with less than 2 GB of RAM should probably temporarily not install Windows 8 inside Windows 7.
In this post, we will show you how to use VirtualBox, the free virtualization tool, to install the Windows 8 consumer preview inside Windows 7.
We will start with configuring Virtual Box settings and then install Windows 8 in a virtual environment. So let’s get started!!
Quick Tip: We previously covered how you can use VirtualBox to install Windows 7 inside Mac OS X. If you own a Mac, bookmark that article.
Configure VirtualBox
Step 1: Download and install VirtualBox on your system. The program is free to use and the installation is as simple as any other windows based application.
Step 2: After successful installation, run VirtualBox on your computer. This is how the app’s home screen will look. click New to start creating virtualbox.
Step 3: After starting the wizard, you will be prompted to enter an alias name for your new OS and select OS Type. When you’re installing a build of Windows 8, that’s what you need to select.
Step 4: Now select the amount of RAM you want to allocate to the new virtualbox and proceed to create a new boot disk. As suggested, create a new 20 GB boot disk (you can change it depending on your needs and available hard disk space) and continue.
Step 5: Now create dynamically allocated VDI (VirtualBox Disk Image) and continue.
Step 6: Finish the wizard to configure your virtualbox. Once the virtualbox has been created, you will see it in the list of all available virtualboxes on your system. Right click on the box we just created and click Setting.
Step 7: Navigate to the Archives section in the settings window and select the Windows 8 consumer preview ISO file that you downloaded on your system, as your virtualbox CD/DVD drive.
That’s all, we’re good to go. Click the Start button to power on your virtualbox. It’s time to install Windows 8 now.
Install Windows 8 inside Windows 7
If everything goes as it should, you should see the Windows 8 setup screen right away. Now you can install Windows 8 as usual install it on any system. Here’s how it happens.
Step 1: Choose your default language, currency and keyboard format and click the . button Install now.
Step 2: Enter your Windows 8 product key to continue. If you are installing Windows 8 Consumer Preview, DNJXJ-7XBW8-2378T-X22TX-BKG7J is the default key.
Step 3: Now choose custom installation in the next step and use the only hard disk shown in the list.
That’s it, Windows will begin the installation. The installation process can take some time, so if you want a coffee or a snack, I think this would be the right time to do it because after you install Windows 8, I don’t think you’ll be away from your desk for a long time. ????
From now on, you can launch Windows 8 virtual box to launch Windows 8 anytime you want. You can also create a desktop shortcut to launch virtualbox right from your desktop without launching VirtualBox’s main application. To create a desktop shortcut, right click on the corresponding virtual box in the list view and select Create a desktop shortcut.
Here are some screenshots of Windows 8 Consumer Preview running on VirtualBox alongside Windows 7 Home Premium.
You can also check out our video guide below on how you can install Windows 8 Dev Preview on your computer as the installation process is more or less the same.
I have tried to be very comprehensive in the tutorial but if you face any problems you can contact me via the comments section.
Categories: How to
Source: thpttranhungdao.edu.vn/en/
