If you don’t want to spend money on something like Parallels Desktop to virtualize Windows or Linux on your Mac, then VirtualBox is an excellent free alternative. Read along to find out how you can install and set it up.
Does VirtualBox Support Apple Silicon Macs?
VirtualBox does have native builds for Apple silicon Macs, but they are developer previews, meaning you might come across some bugs and performance issues. Also, you will have to use a slightly older version since Oracle hasn’t updated the Apple silicon version in quite a while.
Still, you should be able to run most major Linux distributions without a hitch, and you shouldn’t face any major issues with general usage despite its shortcomings.
How to Install VirtualBox on an Apple Silicon Mac
You can use the following steps to download and install the native version of VirtualBox on any Apple silicon Mac:
- First, head over to the VirtualBox Downloads page and scroll down to VirtualBox 7.0.8. Then click the Developer preview for macOS / Arm64 (M1/M2) hosts button to download the Apple silicon version of the virtualization app. Your Mac will download a DMG file that should appear in the Downloads folder.
- Open the DMG file and double-click VirtualBox.pkg to open the installer.
- Follow the on-screen instructions till the setup is completed. Your Mac may ask you to provide the password during this process. The VirtualBox installer may also offer to move the DMG file to the Trash once the installation is complete.
Voilà! You have now successfully installed VirtualBox on your Apple silicon Mac. You can use Spotlight Search, Launchpad, or the Applications folder to launch VirtualBox.
Setting Up Your First VM in VirtualBox
We will show you how to set up your first virtual machine in VirtualBox for Mac. In this case, we have created a Linux VM running Ubuntu.
Before we begin, you have to download the ISO file for the operating system you want to install. If you also plan to start with Ubuntu, you can download it from the Ubuntu downloads page. Next, follow these steps:
- To create the first virtual machine, open VirtualBox and click the New button.
- Next, provide a name for the VM, select the storage location, and open the ISO file. If you are using a popular OS like Ubuntu, VirtualBox will automatically detect it and fill in the other details. If you want to configure settings like user accounts on the guest OS, check the box next to Skip Unattended Installation.
- If you chose Unattended Installation in the last step, you can now pick the username and password for the main account in the guest operating system.
- Once you provide login details for the OS user account, you can select the VM’s resources like RAM and processors by dragging the sliders. Choose according to the tasks you plan to do with the OS, but a good idea would be to allocate half of your Mac’s RAM and CPU core count to the VM.
- Next, you need to select the storage options for the VM. Refer to the basic requirements of the OS and then consider the space you need on top of that to choose wisely. In the case of Ubuntu, I recommend a minimum virtual storage space of 25GB.
- Now, VirtualBox will show a summary of your entire configuration. So, use this opportunity to double-check your selection before creating the VM. Once you’re ready, you can click Finish.
VirtualBox may take several minutes to complete the OS installation. Once done, you can find the new VM on the VirtualBox sidebar menu. You can now select the VM and click the Start button to boot the virtual machine.
Congratulations! You have now created your first VM using VirtualBox on a Mac.
VirtualBox is adequate if your VM needs are simple, but don’t count on it for gaming or heavy workloads. While it’s a great free option, it does have its limitations in support and features. So, if you plan to run intensive tasks, it is recommended running a VM using Parallels Desktop or UTM instead.