Virtualbox backup options
 

I'm having issues with a VM, and my vista VM is falling over. A reinstall/upgrade seems the sensible option, but guest additions won't operate, so my usb drives are pretty useless. I do have cd & dvd access. The only thing I need are some electronic project files. The rest I can junk.

My backup options are:
1. Back up the vdi files from vbox, but I am at a loss how to search or restore them. I have the space on usb drives. Is there any way mount these?
2. Try burning a CD/DVD of the project files, and let the rest go. The project is under Quartus-15.1, 15G worth of an Altera FPGA software suite. This may require adding cd burning software, when I can't access the start menu :-/.

Another option is to mount the vdi file directly in your operating system and then save the required files.

I've never done it, but the following is an example of how to do it in Mint: https://mintguide.org/other/532-how-...inux-mint.html

Try searching on the web for the method to do it with your host operating system.

Virtualbox > File menu > Export Appliance.

The OP said that the VM is falling over. I assume he means on the Vista side of things. What good would saving the VM do (honest question)? If it were me, I'd be retrieving all the data files I need from the VM pronto and then recreating a Vista VM from scratch.

Yes Vista is falling and the screen is crazy although I can still use some of it reliably. A reinstall or upgrade of Vista beckons.

I found fuse stuff for slackware, but 5 years old and I wasn't game for the battle with old libs on a new slackware install. Slack is reliable, but package dependencies can be a PITA. File/export appliance is good, if I could export to usb drive, which I can't :-(. It also wants to export the whole drive.
Choosing my battles, I'm trying to dump my valuables on google drive. I've just added 4 gigs of a recovered dvd to the valuables, and it has 15 minutes left uploading (/thinks: Did I throttle virtualbox at 2400 baud?). I will put project files there too. . . e v e n t u a l l y.

After he fixes it vista, he can then stop worrying about how to back it his Virtual Appliances?

Epilogue:
 

Last Laugh on this:

I tried rescuing Vista - a forlorn hope at the best of times. I downloaded a windoze vista video driver to start, but inevitably, it puked:
At this stage it's amusing. By the time you read this, that VM will be deleted and I'll start from there.