57 thoughts on “Booting An SSD”

1. The drive needs to be bootable copying the iso doesn’t cut as there is a special boot header that needs to be added as part of the drive. This is not the case with a DVD.

   Unfortunately the easiest way to do is to use Microsoft’s download tool which runs on windows.

   https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/15088/windows-10-create-installation-media

   However doing a search using the following terms
   windows download tool linux

   I find sites like this
   https://itsfoss.com/bootable-windows-usb-linux/

2. Not sure what you are using as a VM management tool, but generally, when I am installing a new virtual instance I set the ISO as a secondary drive or CDROM and tell the VM this is what it should boot from.Then you install the OS normally to whatever virtual drive you have created inside the VM when you boot it the first time. Remove the configuration pointing to the ISO when you are finished.

   1. I’m using Oracle Virtual Box. I tried booting from the ISO on my hard drive, but it didn’t do anything. I figured that it will run faster off an SSD than from a virtual drive on the hard drive.

      1. Rand this is a complex subject. Perhaps beyond the pale for WordPress comments. I’m a little confused by your last comment. Are you trying to set up a dual-boot system or run Windows under Virtual Box? Because to do the latter you’ll need to make sure the SSD is seen by Virtual Box, which means you’ll have to create a .vhd partition on that SSD and make sure it is formatted as NTFS and if I recall correctly a ‘system disk’. Virtual Box last I used it (admittedly the other way round, running Linux as a VM under Windows) I was able to do this using my hard drive. I’ve had no performance issues under Linux doing it this way. I used a hard virtual disk with fixed allocation rather than a logical one, because I too was concerned with performance issues.

3. 1) Create a filesystem on the SSD and mount it.
   2) Create a “machine folder” for your virtualbox files under the SSD mount point. e.g. /ssd/virtual-win10
   3) Follow the directions in https://www.virtualbox.org/manual/ch01.html#gui-createvm , pointing the machine folder to the location you set up in step 2.
   4) Point your new VM’s virtual DVD to the .iso file on your hard drive or SSD. Note, this is a multi-GB file with the extension .iso, not the mounted contents of the image. There are instructions in https://www.virtualbox.org/manual/ch01.html#intro-starting-vm-first-time
   5) Power up the VM

   1. What Charles says…

4. Hey Rand, if I have computer problems, or want to set up a VM, I go to bleepingcomputer.com.
   They have a forum, where you can post messages. Just register, and then create a post in the forum. Tell them what type of computer you have. I used it to have viruses, and malware removed. Go there, and try it out.
   It is free to use.

5. To the last update, I think you’re on track; just need the virtualization instructions enabled in the BIOS. I think I remember having to do this when setting up VMs in Ubuntu with my Ryzen 5 2600.

   If I remember right, the VM setup “wizard” ought to run through setting up the storage for you, but if not, then you’ll need the storage set up in VirtualBox, configured for Windows, and then mount the ISO as a virtual CD/DVD (whatever) and run the install from there to install on the new virtual drive.

   I’m not at my home system with all the VMs on it (and I’m too lazy to have my VPN set up so I can remote in), so all this info is a little fuzzy, but hopefully a little helpful.

6. If I recall correctly you still need to use Virtual Box to create a virtual hard disk image on your SSD. Go back through the Virtual Box Instructions on how to do that. Since the host is Linux I assume you have already formatted the SSD and have it mounted under Linux. Since you are dedicating the SSD for Windows you’ll want to make the virtual disk image essentially the size of the disk. Since this will be a large file you should use dynamic allocation otherwise it will take forever to make the image. You’ll also have to tell VBox how much of your system RAM to devote to your Windows VM. This is a fixed allocation and will reduce the amount of memory for your host’s native OS to whatever is left so choose only as much as you think you’ll need to support your largest Windows app. VirtualBox should give you options of which Windows OS you want to install plus the options to install Windows from an ISO. That is the time to point it to the ISO you have. It’s there in the VirtualBox documentation if you dig.

   1. That might be part of the problem: the virtual drive is 50G, and the SSD is 250G. Maybe I should try using a smaller SSD, since I don’t plan to keep data on it?

      In terms of memory, I have 32G, and I allocated eight of it to the machine.

      1. You should be able to make the virtual drive as big as your SSD. Just don’t allocate it statically. Static allocation will perform better after boot but a disk image file that big will take forever for VBox to create. Over time dynamic allocation will catch up to your usage and performance will improve to the point where it won’t make a difference and you won’t have wasted all that time getting the virtual drive image created on the disk. 50GB should be no problem at all. You tell VBox how you want that image file “formatted” as your virtual disk. I’d recommend NTFS if allowed or FAT32 otherwise. Not sure FAT32 still works for Win10. Does for Win 7.

         1. 8GB RAM should be fine assuming you’re not doing video editing or CAD/CAM.

            1. I’m not doing anything with it other than browsing, and perhaps some other applications that will only run in Windows (like a trading platform). But is it using the SSD, or is it using a portion of my hard drive? Also, how do I get a full-size screen? It seems to be limited in how large the virtual screen will be.

            2. It’s using the SSD. There may be some meta data used by VBox to configure itself on your hard drive but remember that is Linux format (probably ext4) and is unknown and unknowable to Windows. Your Windows OS / apps and app data will all be on the SSD as a virtual drive, the drive appears to Linux as that .vdi file you’ve made on your mounted ext4 SSD. A file system within a file system. The virtue of virtual. The unknowable part is what makes VMs such a powerful remedy to Windows virii. You can always back up your virtual file system via the Linux side and boot it whenever. There’s nothing ransomware can do about that because it can’t infect what it can’t see.

7. Oh screen size. That’s controllable via buttons in the VM toolbar along the bottom. Or you can use a hot key. The hot key for toggling full screen is to press the Right Ctrl Key and the letter ‘f’ simultaneously.

8. Is Windows 10 that bad?
   I use the PC as a work tool, not a hobby device to tinker with.

   1. Are you saying this isn’t a great advertisement?

9. It kind of sounds like the VM has been given too many CPUs or too much RAM, such that it’s starving the host OS.

   1. It’s a six-core CPU. The host still has four, and 24G of RAM.

10. Pity us AutoCADders, o ye users what dinna hae ta run th’ flagship o’ th’ Autodesk lairds’ landhold!

    1. Arrr. Dot NC file ho!! Ye .GSM file lubbers!

       1. Arrr mate. And may ye ne’er come across th’ wretched traitorous euro pitch standard. Nay! Nor ‘ere ye come across the reverse threaded euro pitch Rodgers’ headed screw up ye jackhoke!*

          *Yo Ho! Mill your own plate! The AutoCAD Pirates are we!!!

11. Rand said; “OK, I’ve been running Windows without incident for a while now. Apparently it works fine, as long as you don’t try to, you know, actually launch a program in it.”

    Sounds like it’s working like any other Win10, then. 🙂

    I hope you get this sorted out. I run Win2000 in a virtual machine under Win7 (for older software that won’t run on Win7), and it works fine. Install was a breeze, too – once I figured out how to let the VM see the CD drive. Windows 10 – no thanks, I’ve read way too much about that monstrosity.

    Sooner or later, I know I won’t be able to use Win7 anymore, due to hardware failure or browser issues. I won’t go Win10 (Even with enterprise mode, it appears you can’t turn off all the auto-updates, ads, spying, etc) so, I’ve been thinking Linux, but seeing all the hassles Rand (who is far better than me regarding computers) has, it scares me. So, I have no clue what I’d do if my present PC has to be replaced.

    1. “Sounds like it’s working like any other Win10”

       Ahh, the endless Win 10 haters. I have a Win10 box with 32GB of RAM and a terabyte of SSD. I can run a copy of SQL Server with a full-blown ERP, Visual Studio running, a Minecraft instance with 8GB of RAM, and an MMO all running at once, with nary a problem.

       1. There’s an actual reason why Win10 has haters. It’s because it has real problems of a decidedly non-trivial nature.

          So, how exactly do you handle the privacy issues, and prevent the auto updates that cause so many people so many headaches? I’m not quite stupid enough to be okay with Microsoft using my PC to steal my data from me (and no, I don’t usually use google, or have a smartphone, or a connected car, same reasons) and from what I can see, even the Enterprise Edition has massive issues on this. I also have to deal with some pretty severe non-disclosure agreements from clients, which stipulate that some of their info not be exposed to being purloined.

          I’ve looked into this, and I may be wrong, but, as near as I can tell you still have telemetry even in the enterprise edition, and you can only postpone, not stop, updates – and can’t even fully choose what, exactly, gets updated. That’s not a headache I’m willing to put up with. I’ve also heard (but not verified) that it has ads in it. If I’m wrong and there is a way to make Win10 acceptable, I’d love to know – I’d give it a try.

          I also have concerns regarding laptops; I use those for travel. Often (very often!) hotel internet is appalling, so what I absolutely do not want is anything, anything at all, that automatically updates. The last thing I need is to be in a hotel, and try to check my business e-mail, only to have the dang computer try to update something.

          1. Fedora has become pretty good for day-to-day stuff. I travel with it on a netbook. It only updates when I ask it to, and rarely causes problems when it does.

             1. I’m definitely interested in Fedora, then. It’s the learning curve issue that’s worrying me. However, I do have a spare laptop, so, I might as well give it a try. I’ll make an image first though, just in case…

                Thanks!

                Also, thanks for mentioning that it can run on a netbook; I’ve been looking for something smaller than a high-end laptop for air travel, and a netbook would be a huge improvement.

             2. The machine I run it on doesn’t even have an SSD (and only a couple gig of RAM), but what I’ve done is install it on a USB SSD, and boot from that (it couldn’t install Fedora to the small internal flash drive). It’s kind of a pain, in that you have to have the SSD plugged in to it to run it, but other than that, it works fine. I got it exactly because the seat pitch had gotten so reduced, and I didn’t want to spend many hundreds on a high-end small-screen laptop. I think I paid a couple hundred for it. But with Fedora on the SSD, it’s a decent short-term travel machine.

             3. I should add, don’t necessarily pick Fedora on my recommendation. Research it for the most friendly distributions. A lot of people like Mint (and Ubuntu). Biggest difference, (AFAIK) is how software is packaged and updated. I’ve just used Fedora for so long that I’m not interested in switching.

          2. Data harvesting is a problem but not just for Windows. The other day, I watched a movie on Netflix. Then I started getting behind the scenes and cast interviews from that movie pushed to me on YouTube.

             If you have a phone, credit card, bank account, or go shopping in meatspace, all of your interactions are being harvested and paired to your other seemingly unconnected activities. Behavior consisting of trying to hide probably just goes into your profile because there are a lot of similarities between people who act this way.

             1. One shield against the sort of targeting and spying you experienced is falsification. I’ve done this for many years. For example, I do have a google account, though I only use it on one isolated browser, which is set to delete cookies and cache upon close. That account uses a false name, false everything, and I don’t use my real IP to access it. They can’t pair things when there’s no link between them.

                Likewise, supermarket “club” cards are a known spy tool – and sell your data. I have several, all of them with a fake name and address (You don’t need ID to sign up for one, so it’s easy).

                Credit cards are a big problem, one not so easy to work around. I like using cash (I hate debt as much as I do spying) so it’s not so much of an issue for me.

                I also do not give companies my real phone number, period (and, my phone is a prepaid flip phone, no real name attached). I know darn well they sell phone numbers, which causes telemarketing calls (which I despise). Since I learned this lesson over a decade ago, I get perhaps one per week. Likewise, e-mail – I never give it, unless there’s a legit reason, in which case they get a drop account addy. (This is mainly because I despise spam)

                I really don’t mind if they see that I’m trying to evade their spying – I proclaim that as a fact often enough.

                As for reasons, that’s pretty simple – I don’;t like being targeted and spied on (would you be okay with somebody peeking in your windows at night?), so I do what I can to fight it (including hurting the bastards doing it, any way I can). Also, when someone knows so much about you, it makes social-engineering and identity theft attacks very easy. If I need further reasons, I only have to look at fascist Orwellian states like China (social credit system, anyone?) and then at our resident fascists (the left) who laud such things, to see a real danger.

          3. “how exactly do you handle the privacy issues”

             I start by pointing out the moving goalposts. This discussion was about performance, not privacy.

12. I run Win10 in a VirtualBox VM in a relatively old Dell 990 desktop running under Ubuntu 18.04 as a host. I gave the Win machine 2 CPUs (out of a total of 4) and 8Gig of RAM. The key thing to be aware of is that the Win “partition” is in fact just a file in the Linux system. All you need to do is to let Virtualbox to set it up wherever the host can create the file. If you can see the SSD in Linux, put it there if you like.

    The key is to not starve the host or the Win machine of resources. Also, be aware that any new Win10 installation will not be terribly useful until all of the yuuuuugggge number of updates get done.

    My Win10 machines run fine and are useful for those times when I need to use Office (collaboration with others on projects, usually). I also have computers where the host is Win10 and Ubuntu or Mint are the VMs. In my experience, Linux is a much better host than Win10.

    A cool thing is that you can copy the VM “partition” (actually just a file) and put it on another machine, no problemo (as long as you don’t anger the MS gods by having the same “machine” running on multiple hosts at the same time).

    Networking, usb, sound all work, but remember that you are working with a limited subset of a real computer’s resources, so if you need to do something that is a resource pig, don’t do it on a VM. You’re better off shutting down the VM and do the heavy lifting on the host’s OS.

    1. This virtual machine is not in any way “starved for resources.” I gave it 8G out of the host’s 32G. I gave it two out of the six CPU cores. I gave it ten percent of the hard drive. It has no cause for complaint.

       1. That is EXACTLY what a privileged white person would say. Have you checked your priors? Have you atoned? Why didn’t you give Windows an equality of CPU cores?

          And why are some people living in grass huts while others are building space ships to fly to Mars?

          Whew! Just blowing off some steam after spending days bathed in debates with liberals and progressives. My take is that a whole lot of Democrats are bailing on the nonsense, as the core of the outrage movement is coming down to committed, non-filtered Marxists and “trans” people who think the world is made up of 95% racist Nazi bigots, even though not one of them could change a tire or diaper a child.

          1. Public sector unions are bailing on the Democrats. For obvious reasons. This is Trump’s election to lose. Biden is literally out of the picture.

       2. In my experience, the biggest issue with VirtualBox is the networking. It defaults to letting the host act as an ethernet switch (NAS setting). I found that to allow for the VM to “see” other computers in my home local network, I had to “bridge” the host ethernet connection to the VM. You can do some simple tests in Win10 to see if things are working. In a command prompt (i.e., terminal) you can use ipconfig to find out your ip address, nslookup is also available, as is ping.

          1. I have no need for this VM to network, other than to have access to the Internet. It is simply to run programs that I can’t in Linux. But if it won’t even run Windows programs, it defeats the entire purpose…

             1. Umm, running Brave is rather demanding of network resources. Since you only have given the Win machine a small part of the computer resources, it won’t be as snappy as the host. Obviously you have internet access as you can download Win programs and get Win updates. One wonders why you can’t run Brave in Fedora? Runs fine in Ubuntu, as do many other browsers. I only use a browser in a Win VM if I need to download a Win program. Even that is not strictly necessary if you set up shared directories so that the Win machine can see Linux downloads.

                One feature that is very helpful in VirtualBox is the 2-way clipboard between VM and host. This allows me to paste stuff from Ubuntu into Win apps, and vice versa.

             2. I do run Brave in Fedora. No need for anything snappy; for that I have the host. Just a trading platform, and a browser to do research. But there are no good trading platforms for Linux. Only Windows and Mac. I only run Brave on Windows so the people who ask me when their buggy in-development web-based trading platform has problems that I report will quit (irrelevantly) asking me about my OS.

             3. The two-way clipboard would be nice. Is there something I have to do to enable that?

             4. For the clipboard, you have to have the guest additions installed, which I think you’ve already done. I enable the clipboard, go to the settings in the VirtualBox program, then in the advanced tab, you can enable bidirectional clipboards.

    2. Yup. You can also just use VirtualBox to take a “snapshot” of your virtual machine. This is effectively a backup if the machine at the time of the snapshot. Gives you a checkpoint you can always go back to in case your VM gets corrupted. You just point VBox to the desired snapshot and ‘start’ it. No ‘restore’ needed. Of course you’ll lose anything you’d done after the snapshot was taken. Just like any other backup.

    3. I installed this to run only things that will only run on Windows (primarily a trading platform), so I don’t think it will require a lot of resources. My heavy lifting is done with the Linux host.

13. Oh, fun. When I reboot it, it decides to do a system update. We’ll see if this fixes anything. But I’m sure glad I don’t rely on this OS for anything important.
    That’s pretty typical for a newly installed OS regardless of type. A Linux VM would have done the same. At least under Linus (Ubuntu) it asks before doing it. I have no idea if Win10 lets you decide that. Win 7 does.

    Surprised you’re having trouble running a web browser. As a fallback see if you can get Internet Exploder to work. Edge is supposed to be the latest and greatest Microsoft Web browser. It gets good reviews. You could also try that. 8GB should be enough memory. Try again after the update. See what Task Manager says. You can always bump it up (memory) if you need to. Win10 is notorious for issues both pre & post update. YMMV. Good luck.

14. OK, things were going fine until I went to full screen. That froze the machine, and my cursor (I could still move it, but it was stuck on the hand symbol). I couldn’t do anything with my open Linux apps, other than (fortunately) my system manager, which I used to kill the machine. Once I did that, it was fine. So I’ll have to try that again and see if it’s the full-screen switch that’s causing the problem. If so, I guess I just won’t do that.

    Try adjusting your power saver settings in Windows to Maximum Performance and see if that fixes the issue. Also check to make sure you installed the latest version of Guest Additions.

    See:
    https://forums.virtualbox.org/viewtopic.php?t=78018

    1. I assume it’s the latest version, since I installed them yesterday. That page is from four years ago, but I’ll try changing the power settings.

15. The operating system of the future…for five decades now.

    Sure sounds simpler than Windows…

    1. You must be new to Rand’s fine Web site.

       1. Not at all…This is probably the fifth or sixth rebuild of Rands I’ve experienced…

          1. 🙂 Rand likes to share the pain….

16. If you only need a couple of Windows programs, why not try Wine instead? https://www.winehq.org/ That’s much more fun to configure and get working than a VM instance. (values of “fun” may differ between experiences)

    1. As I said, because I got tired of having morons asking me what OS I was using because of their crap web app.

    2. I’ve used emulators in the past such as Cygwin-X to provide a Linux “like” environment under Windows native. And although for immediate use it worked fine the longer I used it the more often I would run into a frustrating incompatibility. That doesn’t happen with a VM because it is really and truly running the OS of choice.

       As for VM’s being toys, they have been the norm in Fortune 500s for about a decade. IT folks love them because they allow large servers to appear to provide far more compute resources than a single server. With the added benefit that when a single user’s VM crashes it doesn’t bring down the entire farm and can be brought back quickly and automatically. Same when a VM fails due to a virus or ransomware. They ARE a bit of a PITA to set up and they all have their quirks like any complex software does.

       1. I said a decade? Almost two. My how time flies…

17. The title is a misnomer. You’re way beyond simply booting off an SSD. More like “Installing Win 10 as a VM”… The SSD is simply the virtual disk host medium.

18. It’s Windows, Jake.

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