It used to be that I download .vhd
images from Microsoft, and then use it for 2, 3 months before it expires: http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=11575 But it is quite troublesome because I always have to download the image and install it, and it expires after a couple of months.
But then recently, I just found out, why not create a brand new Virtual Machine with empty virtual hard drive, then install my Windows XP SP1 on it using the retail version of XP CD, and then upgrade to the latest fixes and SP3, etc, and then also activate the XP using the serial number, and then, shut down the machine, and burn this .vhd
image to a DVD-R and now I will have a virtual machine or I can start a brand new machine any time, and as many time as I want to. Would this work?
(also, I can occassionally start with that fresh .vhd
, boot up the machine, and then do any major Windows update, and then burn another .vhd
. I just probably need to do it every half a year to create new .vhd
to keep the XP machine updated with fixes and security patches. The Virtual PC is mainly for fun, for experiment, or for testing IE 7 when doing software development). Does the above sound quite reasonable and/or will there be other ways to do it?
Update: I just recall that sometimes, we upgrade to a newer version of VirtualBox, and Win XP might say "The hardware have changed, and activation is needed once again"... so in those cases, I hope activation works, or else, it is going to be trouble... this is if we need to use VirtualBox and we upgrade it. Otherwise, Virtual PC on Win 7 might be ok as it doesn't seem to be upgraded.