run windows in linux

[firedudechad]

what program do you suggest for running windows xp in linux and how do i install it??

[bigpaws]

There are many vmware, parallels and QEMU. You will need a higher end machine and
lots of RAM at least 1 gig.

Here is some information on QEMU:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QEMU

HTH

Bigpaws

[MikeCindi]

My first choice would be VMware (http://www.vmware.com/products/free_virtualization.html) but would require a lot of resources for WinXP. Another option is Win4Lin (http://www.win4lin.com/) which is not free. I have not tried Win4Lin but a comparison (a bit dated though) to VMware is available here: http://www.computerworld.com/softwaretopics/os/story/0,10801,69849,00.html.
HTH,
Mike

[wcs]

You can also find virtualbox in the VL repositories.
The setting up seems extremely easy, but I haven't tried it yet with Windows XP..

[tomh38]

I've been using VirtualBox w/Win XP on VL for a while now.  I don't fire it up that often, since I usually don't need Windows except when someone calls me with a Windows-specific question.  Having said that, Windows on VirtualBox runs pretty well; I imagine it's faster or slower depending on your processor and how much RAM and video RAM you allocate to it (you can only allocate 32 mb of video RAM).  If you want to share folders between Windows and Linux, access USB devices and (I think) have full screen mode you'll need the full version(which has the guest additions), which is "free as in beer" but not Open Source, and which can be found here:  http://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads.  This version is free for personal use.

[wcs]

I've been trying Windows XP under virtual box for the past few days.
It works amazingly. Though as mentioned, having shared folders and usb support requires the version that includes closed-source code.
Except for some problems with the shared folders (sometimes they stop working), it's working great. And it's fast... a lot faster than I thought it would be (I allocated 512Mb for windows, though it also works very well with 256). Plus, the configuration is very easy.

By installing the Guest Additions ISO that comes with the package (open-source edition or not), you also get great integration with your desktop, because the mouse pointer is the same (plus better video support).

When on top of that, you take into account the fact that they opened most of their code, I can only praise this great piece of software.

I really only need windows for a single program, but virtual box saves me from having to dual-boot (plus always forgetting that I should have copied some files, then going back to linux, copying them, and back into windows... you feel yourself growing old while waiting for this process to end).

Wonder how the new VL SOHO performs in Virtual Box. Think I'll give it a try.

[MikeCindi]

Anyone compared Virtual Box to VMware for running Windows under VL?