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This is for Windows 10

I'm pretty new to VirtualBox, but I got the idea that maybe I could :

  1. Install programs, change the drive layout, etc. in VirtualBox
  2. Make a system image (universal?)
  3. And use that image to overwrite my current setup, restore if I have problems, or transfer the build to a new PC.

Is that possible? - and how do I make it happen?

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The simple answer to your question is, yes. What you suggest doing is done all the time, but typically on a larger scale and utilizing some different technologies to make life easier.

Each version of Windows gets even more flexible and easier to do this with. Windows 10 is extremely easy to image and deploy because of its vast array of drivers and automatic download of drivers it needs.

Although there is a large amount of customization and automation you can do using the Windows 10 ADK, Microsoft Deployment Toolkit, and Windows Deployment Services, the most simple method for your needs should be this:

  1. Install the OS on a VM.
  2. Create your user account, install all the updates, install all the software, and customize everything as you see fit.
  3. Take a snapshot of the VM. So you can rollback.
  4. Sysprep the machine using the /generalize option.
  5. Clone the entire VM disk to different hardware and boot it.
  6. Install any missing drivers you need.

For future maintenance of the VM, first rollback to the snapshot you made. Then you can install updates and do any other maintenance. Then do steps 3 through 6 again.

If you want to get fancy you can research the three different technologies I mentioned above. But, primarily you’ll want the Windows 10 ADK. With tools it provides you’ll be able to capture and deploy images, customize your deployment with unattend files, inject drivers and updates to an offline Windows image, create a WinPE environment, etc.

The possibilities are endless. It’s really quite amazing some of the technology Microsoft builds in to Windows that most people don’t even know exists.

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Your desired approach is not impossible, but extremely difficult: on installation, Windows makes itself comfortable for the chipset and capabilities of your motherboard and other non-Plug and Play hardware, the details of which remain undocumented.

If you make drastic changes to this hardware, especially by moving from virtual hardware to physical hardware, it is very likely that Windows will not have the right drivers available or registry settings set correctly to start the system cleanly.

However, you can still use tools designed for making images for quick installs, as this is done routinely in enterprises. See Windows Imaging and Configuration Designer, Microsoft's provisioning tool for Windows 10.

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  • I'll try that out. - seems like it may be just what I'm looking for.
    – Stack Johan
    Jun 25, 2018 at 3:12
  • This is really inaccurate. Not only does the link provided have absolutely nothing to do with imaging of an OS, you’re suggesting that there is some difficulty to doing what the OP suggested. In fact, creating images on a VM and deploying them to hundreds or thousands of different types of hardware and physical machines is done all the time. It only gets easier with each version of Windows. This answer is only accurate in as much as it suggests there might be a problem if imaging and deployment is not done properly.
    – Appleoddity
    Jun 25, 2018 at 4:45
  • @Appleoddity Yes, but not using VirtualBox alone. This is not the right tool for a deployment job. Otherwise this question should be marked as a duplicate (Currently on my phone, so I can't find it at the moment.)
    – oldmud0
    Jun 25, 2018 at 4:54

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