Windows on a Windows PC

Windows desktops and laptops are capable of running a second virtualized(VM) instance of Windows within the same computer hardware. ITS provides a service to setup Windows virtual machines and software to manage a second OS on your current Windows PC.

In order to install Windows on a Windows PC, a license for the Windows operating system is required and must be purchased separately from Microsoft (use the software order form).  Departments licensed under the MCCA Desktop program do not need to purchase a Windows license.

Windows on a Windows PC

Windows computers are capable of running a second virtualized instance of Windows within the same computer hardware.  We support the free Oracle VirtualBox software for managing Windows virtual machines on your Windows PC. Using VirtualBox you can take snapshots of your Windows VMs and revert back, making it useful for software testing and troubleshooting. Virtual machines are resource intensive so we recommend using them only on modern computers or servers, please see the recommended specifications for host hardware below.

Recommended PC Specifications:

• At least 4GB of RAM
• 50GB of free hard drive space

Default Virtual Machine OS:

• Windows 7 64-bit Enterprise

If you require a different virtual machine OS or container format (ovf, vdi, vmwarevm), please include this when filling your service request from the link below.

To Request a virtual machine please fill out a service request in ITRequest here.

For more information on Oracle Virtualbox, click here.