Again, the big picture of this lab is as follows in this step (this page and sub-menu items) we will accomplish #1 but for completeness I have listed all steps so students are aware of where they are in the process.
1. Install or setup your VM on your host system/OS
2. Download Ubuntu
3. Verify the the Ubuntu download’s MD5 Hash (Screenshot required)
4. Install the guest Ubuntu OS in your VM (and take a snapshot to save the system state) (Screenshot required)
5. Explore your new VM
Again, please read through all documents/Web pages in their entirety before beginning.
Desktop Virtual Machines
As background, there are several desktop VMs out there and they are listed below. You will choose one and I recommend you try VMWare first (please see submenu of this item). Again, a desktop VM is just an application.
VirtualBox (VB) – for Mac OSX, Windows and Linux. This is an Open Source solution maintained and distributed freely by Oracle. The Virtual Box Manual located is here and you will need to reference it throughout this lab and during the Final Project should you choose an FP requiring virtualization: http://www.virtualbox.org/manual/UserManual.html.
Microsoft Virtual PC – This is built in/available for free for Win7/Vista/XP has solved some student’s problems where they could not install VirtualBox.
Hyper-V – for Win 8 and Win 10 (free). This works but it seems to need a recent machine that was built for Win 8 or newer rather than an older machine that is upgraded to Win 8. If you need to use this please search YouTube for “Windows Hyper-V Linux Installation”
VMWare – for Mac OSX (i.e. Fusion) and Windows (i.e. VMWare Workstation or VMWare Player if VMWare Workstation has issues). This is proprietary software (costs money).
Parallels – for Mac OSX. This is proprietary software (costs money) but works without a hitch.
Download Recommendations
This can take some time depending on your connection speed. You may want to perform your downloads all at once and in the background (while making coffee, dinner, overnight, before you leave for the night or go skiing, etc.). Having said this you may wish to quickly read through this lab and get some downloads going as you encounter them and then return for a more precise reading. Also, it may be beneficial to download at the College or Library if their download speeds exceed your home download speed.
Installation Instructions
Again, most problems come from not reading through the instructions in their entirety before beginning, rushing through this installation, not following the instructions or a lack of attention to detail. To this extent you may wish to print out the instructions and highlight steps as you complete them.
In this item’s submenu, you will find VMWare Brightspace instructions. Please use VMWare as a first option but you will also find instructions for VirtualBox, Virtual PC, HyperV etc. in the submenu. Of course, these other latter options are optional. Note interfaces will unavoidably change, often without notice, but you should be able to navigate the installation with your knowledge.
After you install your VM and your Ubuntu Guest OS, please take a snapshot (not a screenshot) of your system saving its state should something go wrong. The actual steps required to take a snapshot are different for each VM so I will leave this for you to explore. Note taking a snapshot provides instructional value as you will see your Guest OS VM is just a file used by the virtual machine application (e.g. VMWare, etc.). This is analogous to you opening an MS Word document in MS Word.
If you have an old computer that you are no longer using or expect to use you may turn this into a dedicated Ubuntu Linux box rather than installing a VM. This will work well but be sure to get everything you need off it. You will also find a USB/Live CD option that is available to students with very old computers.
Getting Help
To provide help throughout this lab I need the specs on your system (Mac or Windows versions, Virtualization software and version, exact Ubuntu version and where you downloaded it to, etc.), the exact page in this menu LL9 menu system and the exact numbered step you are on and a screenshot. To this extent please take this opportunity to understand Help Desk challenges and improve on our Help Desk skills.