Host server inside virtual machine

Question

Here is what I have:

• Ubuntu 10.10 (host) with Apache
• Windows XP SP3 (virtual machine)

I want, from the VM, acess the host apache to test some local sites in Internet Explorer.

What should I do?

Answer 1

Set up Host Only networking between the Host and the VM (how you do this depends on which VM system you use.) The VM system should provide a built-in DHCP server to allocate an IP address to the guest operating system. You should then be able to browse to the IP address of the host's end of the virtual network link.

For accessing hosts with apache's VirtualHost directive you will either need some form of DNS server which will provide the guest OS with the correct IP address, or add the site names to the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts file - then you can surf by using the domain name.