How to Install Windows 10 on VirtualBox Software

This brief tutorial shows students and new users how to install Windows 10 Pro on VirtualBox virtualization software.

If you’re new to VirtualBox and wish to get Windows 10 installed, the steps below should be a great place to start.

Windows 10 is the latest and probably the best operating systems from Microsoft. It unveils new innovations & is better than the previous versions of Windows. more security, better hardware support and ease of use.

So, to get started with installing Windows 10 on VirtualBox, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Create Windows 10 Guest Machine

To run Windows 10 OS on VirtualBox, you’ll have to create a guest machine. follow the guide below to create a Windows 10 guest machine.

Open VirtualBox software and click New to create a new virtual machine. then type the machine name and select the type and the version as shown in the image below. and click Next

windows 10 virtualbox

On the next screen, select the Memory size. the default and recommended value is Okay. click Next to continue.

windows 10 virtualbox

On the next screen, create a new virtual hard drive. The default and recommended value is also Okay. so click Next to continue.

windows 10 virtualbox

Then select the hard disk type. again, the default VDI is recommended and selected by default. continue on the next page.

windows 10 virtualbox machine

On the next page, choose Dynamically allocated storage disk and click Next to continue.

virtualbox windows 10

On the final screen, click create complete the guest machine creation.

windows 10 virtualbox machineAt this stage, you should have a blank guest machine without any operating system.

Step 2: Install Windows 10 Pro

You may likely get Windows 10 Pro on a DVD or an ISO image format. Windows 10 comes in either 32-bit or 64-bit arch. Whichever version you have, make sure to insert the DVD or copy the ISO image on the host computer running VirtualBox software.

Next, click the guest machine settings and go to Storage ==> Controller: SATA – Empty ==> Select the drive with the DVD or browse for the ISO image.

virtualbox guest machine

Save the settings and start the virtual machine.

When you boot up, you should see Windows 10 boot screen as shown below. Click Next to continue

windows 10 boot

Then click Install now to begin the installation

windows 10 pro install

On the next screen, select the operating system you wish to install and click Next. If a single OS is on the DVD, you may not see the screen.

windows 10 pro

On the next screen, choose Custom: Install Windows only (advanced) and continue windows 10 pro virtualbox

Next, choose the drive to install Windows 10 Pro on and click Next to continue.

windows 10 hard drive

Then wait for the installation to complete. this should take about 15 minutes depending on the speed of the host computer.

windows 10 pro installation

After installing, the computer maybe reboot.

Step 3 Configure Windows 10 Pro

After the guest machine has rebooted, you are now ready to configure Windows 10. Choose your region (timezone) and continue.

windows 10 keyboard

Next, select your keyboard layout and continue.

windows 10 virtualbox

Then choose the type of select to use. personal use or for a organization. usually a business entity.

windows 10 pro

Next, choose to create an offline account if you don’t want to use Microsoft online account to logon. the offline account type is the one used in previous versions of Windows when you type a username and password to sign on to the computer.

You’ll then be prompted to create a username and password and hint.

Windows 10 user account

After that, choose to enable Cortina, accept the recommended settings and finish the setup. After a few minutes, you’ll logon to Windows.

When you logon to Windows 10, you should first install VirtualBox guest additions software.

windows 10 guest additions

Doing this should insert a virtual CD/DVD drive onto the guest machine. if you don’t get an installation launcher, browse to File Explorer to the D drive and double click it. this should star the installation.  Reboot after that.

This is it. a new Windows 10 guest machine should be ready to use

Enjoy!