LinuxQuestions.org
Welcome to the most active Linux Forum on the web.
Go Back   LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Networking
User Name
Password
Linux - Networking This forum is for any issue related to networks or networking.
Routing, network cards, OSI, etc. Anything is fair game.

Notices


Reply
  Search this Thread
Old 12-04-2013, 06:51 PM   #1
boyd98
Member
 
Registered: Oct 2003
Posts: 156

Rep: Reputation: 15
Setting up a Virtual Box environment


Anyone have any experience or good links they've used to setup a vitrual box environment

need to configure
Windows 7
RHEL App Node
RHEL DB Node
DNS Server (thinking RHEL)

all the vms need to be able to talk to one another. Not sure how complex this is -
 
Old 12-04-2013, 10:23 PM   #2
frankbell
LQ Guru
 
Registered: Jan 2006
Location: Virginia, USA
Distribution: Slackware, Ubuntu MATE, Mageia, and whatever VMs I happen to be playing with
Posts: 19,661
Blog Entries: 28

Rep: Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246
To get the VMs to talk to each other, give them bridged adapters, rather than using the NAT adapter that VB defaults to. By using bridged adapters, they can be assigned or receive DHCP addresses within your network.

Look under Settings-->Network for each virtual machine, then click "Advanced" to choose the specific device. If several network "Adapter Types" are listed under "Advanced," you may have to test them one by one to find the one that works.

Other points: Set the RAM for each VM yourself. VB defaults to lower RAM settings than I like, especially if you are planning to use a GUI. Also, unless you have a compelling reason not to, use the dynamic virtual hardrive--that means that, even if you specify an eight GB HDD, VB will only use the amount of disk space actually required, dynamically resizing the HDD footprint as needed.

If you are setting these up on Linux, depending on your distro, you may need to download and install the kernel headers and possibly sources (it's been a while) in order to use "Guest Additions"; "Guest Additions" are not required, but they make life easier. Not all distros include kernel headers in a default install.

It's probably worth your while to download the VB User's Manual. VirtualBox also has a set of how-to articles on its wiki.

This looks like a pretty good tutorial: http://www.makeuseof.com/pages/how-to-use-virtualbox

After you set up your first VM, you will find that VirtualBox is pretty easy to use.

Good luck.

Last edited by frankbell; 12-04-2013 at 10:25 PM.
 
1 members found this post helpful.
Old 12-04-2013, 10:31 PM   #3
suicidaleggroll
LQ Guru
 
Registered: Nov 2010
Location: Colorado
Distribution: OpenSUSE, CentOS
Posts: 5,573

Rep: Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142Reputation: 2142
Quote:
Originally Posted by frankbell View Post
use the dynamic virtual hardrive--that means that, even if you specify an eight GB HDD, VB will only use the amount of disk space actually required, dynamically resizing the HDD footprint as needed.
Just remember that VB will ONLY expand the virtual hard drive, it will not shrink it. So if you load the VM up with 10 GB of installation or data files, the virtual drive will expand by 10 GB to hold them, but it will never shrink back to its previous size, even if you delete the files.

I'm just throwing that out there so you stay aware of what you load onto the VM's drive. It's often a good idea to set up a shared folder with the host OS and access any big files you need directly from there, rather than copying them into the VM, to keep the virtual drive from permanently growing when you don't actually need that extra space on a long-term basis.

Last edited by suicidaleggroll; 12-04-2013 at 10:32 PM.
 
1 members found this post helpful.
Old 12-04-2013, 11:03 PM   #4
frankbell
LQ Guru
 
Registered: Jan 2006
Location: Virginia, USA
Distribution: Slackware, Ubuntu MATE, Mageia, and whatever VMs I happen to be playing with
Posts: 19,661
Blog Entries: 28

Rep: Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246Reputation: 6246
Quote:
Just remember that VB will ONLY expand the virtual hard drive, it will not shrink it. So if you load the VM up with 10 GB of installation or data files, the virtual drive will expand by 10 GB to hold them, but it will never shrink back to its previous size, even if you delete the files.
Thanks. I've never shrunk a virtual HDD, so I've never noticed this.

If I recall correctly, Guest Additions are needed to set up a shared directory between the host and guest.
 
Old 12-05-2013, 06:51 PM   #5
memilanuk
Member
 
Registered: Sep 2010
Location: Washington state, USA
Distribution: Ubuntu among others
Posts: 75

Rep: Reputation: 5
You can also set up an internal network where the VMs are all talking to each other - and not on the external physical network. If you have concerns about 'exposing' a development server that may be a viable solution. The only real catch is that you may need an additional VM running as a gateway/firewall/dhcp server with one 'interface' in the internal network and one either bridged or NAT'd to the outside world - this would allow your 'isolated' VMs to interact with one another, and still be able to connect to the Interweb for things like software updates, etc.
 
  


Reply


Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off



Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
[SOLVED] Setting dhcp in virtual box for 32 subnets. Sodb Linux - Networking 2 03-12-2012 08:10 AM
Setting up a programmer's development environment on an offline Linux box baudrunner LinuxQuestions.org Member Success Stories 0 02-08-2011 11:17 AM
need help setting up a bridge connection on Virtual Box (Ubuntu) 3vra Linux - Networking 1 07-23-2009 12:48 PM
LXer: Setting Up a SME Server Test Environment with Virtual Box on Vista LXer Syndicated Linux News 0 02-03-2009 10:00 AM
Setting up Shared Folders in Virtual Box? Ordinary12 Ubuntu 1 10-04-2007 08:07 PM

LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Networking

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:10 PM.

Main Menu
Advertisement
My LQ
Write for LQ
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute content, let us know.
Main Menu
Syndicate
RSS1  Latest Threads
RSS1  LQ News
Twitter: @linuxquestions
Open Source Consulting | Domain Registration