Well, VirtualBox doesn’t need any introduction, it is one of the oldest virtualization solutions in the open-source category for easily creating virtual machines using a graphical interface. Being a cross-platform Type-2 Virtualization software, we can easily install VirtualBox on Ubuntu 24.04 Noble LTS desktop or server, and even on Windows, macOS, and other Linux systems.
What is VirtualBox?
VirtualBox, developed by Oracle Software, is an open-source application that runs at the software level on any supported operating system for creating Guest virtual machines. It allows a single host to run multiple VMs in an isolated environment. Therefore, VirtualBox is a good way to test new applications or services without affecting the host system.
Why Use VirtualBox?
There are several reasons why a major chunk of regular users and developers use VirtuaBox to run virtual machines, here are some:
- First of all, it is cross-platform software that can run on Linux, Windows and macOS
- It offers a user-friendly interface using which even a novice can easily create virtual machines.
- VirtualBox allows users to take a snapshot of the VM’s state, which means at any point in time the users can revert to the state when the Snapshot was created.
- Supports a wide range of virtual hardware and configurations.
- It can be used to create VMs using the command line.
- Last but not least, it is open source and therefore available for both personal and commercial usage free of cost.
Step to install VirtualBox on Ubuntu 24.04 Linux
1. Start Command Prompt
We can install the packages for installing VirtualBox using the command terminal, therefore open it, the default keyboard shortcut for that is Ctrl+Alt+T.
2. Update the package list
In your command terminal, run the system update command to install the latest security updates and versions for existing packages.
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade3. Installing the VirtualBox app on Ubuntu 24.04
We don’t need to add any third-party repository because we already have a stable and latest version of VirtualBox through the official Ubuntu 24.04 Noble repository. Run the given command and you are done.
sudo apt virtualbox
4. Install the VirtualBox Extension Pack
Although it is not necessary to install the Extension pack, it is recommended to do so because it provides additional features and functionalities such as USB 2.0/3.0 support, VirtualBox RDP, and disk encryption.
sudo apt install virtualbox-ext-pack5. Add the current user to vboxusers group
If you have any plans to use a USB device in your Guest virtual machines that you will create on VirtualBox then we need to add our user to the vboxusers group:
sudo usermod -aG vboxusers $(whoami)6. Restart Ubuntu 24.04
After completing the all above steps, we need to restart our Ubuntu system, so that the changes we have done by adding our current user to “vboxusers” group are applied properly.
sudo reboot7. Run VirtualBox
Finally, go to the Application area and search for “VirtualBox“, as its icon appears click to run the same and now you can start creating virtual machines.
8. Create a Virtual Machine
Follow the below quick steps to create a virtual machine on Oracle VirtualBox.
- Click on “New” to create a new virtual machine.
- Follow the wizard to configure your new VM:
- Name and Operating System: Choose a name, select the ISO Image you want to use, and then select the type and version of the operating system, in cases VirtualBox hasn’t detected it automatically.
- Allocate memory (RAM) for the VM and create a new virtual hard disk or use an existing one.
- Start the VM: Once the VM is created, select it and click “Start” to install the operating system.
Uninstallation
If anyhow you don’t require the VirtualBox software on Ubuntu 24.04 then to remove type the given command in your terminal:
sudo apt remove virtuaboxOther Articles:
