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My goal is to install Windows 7 on a virtual machine running on Ubuntu. The Lenovo machine came with Windows 7 installed, but did not come with a boot disk.

What are my options? Should I ask Lenovo for a disk? Will I need to purchase Windows just for the virtual machine?

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Install the trial. That is the only legal way to run Windows within a virtual machine without purchasing it. You would need to reinstall the operating system every 180 days. – Ramhound Jun 2 '11 at 12:56
@Ramhound - 180 days is for the server editions. Only Win 7 Enterprise is available in the Win 7 client editions as a 90 day trial. You cannot re-install after the 90 day trial; that is also a violation of the terms of use. You also must meet eligibility requirements as explained technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/ee388361 – P.Brian.Mackey Jun 2 '11 at 13:05
Dual Boot is an option if you want to run native linux, or wubi if you'd like Ubuntu is the easiest way ;) – robx Jun 2 '11 at 20:32
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OEM licenses (the ones that come with factory built machines) only allow you to perform a clean installation on the original machine. The license does not allow for virtualization. So, you cannot re-use the one that came with the machine for this purpose without breaking the contract you electronically signed with Microsoft.

You can download a trial version if you meet the eligibility requirements laid out here. In all likelihood, if you do not have an MSDN account you need to buy Windows 7 from a retail store to remain legal.

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This was found an illegal contractual binding in Germany in 2000, see reference I ZR 244/97. – user112553 Jun 2 '11 at 16:02
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You can virtualize your existing Windows 7 installation, either using the method ntw1103 mentions or using VMWare's Converter, which will turn it into a VMDK file.

This is perfectly legal if you have Win7 Pro. Microsoft's license does not allow virtualization (last time I looked) of less-expensive licenses of their operating systems. (This is as of XP and Vista, I haven't read the Win7 licenses in detail.)

It's a wild thought and probably won't work for you, but you might consider trying ReactOS, which is a Windows-impersonating OS, an operating system using no Microsoft code but attempting to duplicate all its APIs and run all Windows programs. It's currently in alpha but it looks interesting, and I believe you can download a VM containing ReactOS directly.

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Hmm . . . I don't need this VM for serious work, maybe I'll try it out. – Eric Wilson Jun 2 '11 at 16:25
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If your computer has windows 7 installed still, you can create a virtual hard disc copy of your machines hard drive. you can download Disk2vhd which will allow you to do this here: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/ee656415.aspx By doing this, you can get the windows7 install for your laptop turned into a virtual machine, and I believe this is legal?

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