Copying/migrating a VirtualBox image?

[Gilles Gravier]

Hi!

On 09/03/2010 20:29, NoOp wrote:
> On 03/09/2010 10:13 AM, Jim Byrnes wrote:
>   
>> stan wrote:
>>     
>>> I have a production VirtualBox system running on 9.10 with VirtualBox
>>> 2.1.4_OSE, and I want to migrate one of the images from there to a
>>> different 9.10 machine. That machine has VirtualBox 3.0.2.
>>>
>>> I thought i could just tar up the entire contents of .VirtualBox (given
>>> that all the instances in it were shut down) and untar the resultant
>>> tarball on the new machine, being careful to preserver ownerships, and
>>> permissions.
>>>
>>> But, when I do that, and fire up VirtualBox on the new machine, it says it
>>> needs to convert the images. I let it do that, but now the Virtual machines
>>> cannot see their hard drives.
>>>
>>> Any suggestions?
>>>
>>>       
>> Did you try File-->Export Appliance?
>>
>> I successfully moved an XP image from one 9.10 machine to another that 
>> way.  However both were running VirtualBox 3.0.8, I don't know if it 
>> would work in your case using different versions.
>>     
> +1 And it worked for different versions for me w/out issue (older
> version to newer version). Note: both were using the PUEL versions, not
> the OSE versions.
>   

It's even simpler. I just copy the .vdi files back and forth between a
Windows 7 machine and an OpenSolaris machines. I upgrade VBox every new
version that comes out. So sometimes the move takes place between
version updates. Never failed to work.

First time you copy a VDI to a new host, you have to recreate a new
virtual machine to similar specs... and it will work.

The ONLY thing you have to be REALLY careful about is that Windows sucks
in terms of multi-CPU kernel reconfiguration. If you installed Windows
with a VBox virtual machine configured for multi-processors... and you
move the VDI to a virtual machine configured for single-CPU chances are
it will crash on boot because the SMP kernel can't find multiple CPUs...
and vice versa from single to multi.

The rest is simple and straightforward.

Gilles.