Making the free Microsoft Virtual Hard Disk image work with VirtualBox's simulated network card

Question

I have a Macbook Pro at work and installed the current VirtualBox (3.2.4) today.

However, after using the free VHD image of IE 7 on XP SP3 from Microsoft, the Virtual Operating System (XP) just thought there is no network card provided by the PC (the virtual PC simulated by VirtualBox), even if I set up 4 network cards in Settings, as NAT, host only, etc.

So the XP cannot browse any webpage at all.

Tried VM Fusion (trial version) but it wants .vmdk so can't use .vhd

Parallels (trial version) can import a VirtualBox machine but can't set up a virtual machine using a .vhd file. I don't know how to do it.

Is there any integration package for VirtualBox to make it work and how?

Is VirtualBox providing a "too advanced" network card so XP SP3 doesn't have the driver for it?

Answer 1

Did you install the VirtualBox Guest Extensions? That way, it should install the network card you've configured under the VM's settings.

To do that, click on the Devices menu on VirtualBox, and click Install Guest Additions. Apparently, Host + D also works. You may need to create a virtual CD-ROM drive for the VM.

As a matter of interest, I've successfully managed to port a Windows XP Mode* VM from Windows 7 to VirtualBox (under OS X), so I don't think it's the XP VM, per se.

*[I did have to do an in-place upgrade to remedy the licence issue, but that is secondary to the problem described here]

Answer 2

VMWare offers a converter called VMware Converter

Answer 3

For a universal solution you could use disk cloning software within your Virtual PC to dump the disk image in a more universal format. You could then create a new VM in whichever software you prefer and clone the disk image back over from within the new VM.