Arch Linux

Meikj

Member

From: Glasgow

Registered: 2009-01-07

Posts: 21

[SOLVED] VirtualBox running Windows applications

Hi again. I am going to wait until the next ISO of Arch Linux is released for the updated packages and new filesystem (I could do this right now but I would like to start fresh with ext4).

When I install Arch Linux I'm thinking about running some Windows programs through VirtualBox. But I was wondering what the performance is like. I am going try Adobe Photoshop (I could perhaps just get used to GIMP, but I'm so used to Adobe Photoshop) and a video editor such as Sony Vegas (I haven't came across any good video editor native to the Linux platform), how will this cope under emulation?

I would say I have fairly decent hardware: Intel Core Duo T2250 1.73GHz, Intel GMA 950, 1GB RAM (I might upgrade to 2GB).

Also, this may seem like a silly question but can VirtualBox handle games? There is a couple of games I play like SA-MP (multi-player addon to GTA:SA, it can't run under WINE due to DLL restrictions) and Counter Strike: Condition Zero.

Thanks for your time.

P.S. This may seem totally irrelevant but I just want to inform you that I am registered under these forums in multiple accounts, so please excuse it (I always like changing my name, but I don't like bothering the administration to change it for me). This will be my final account! And my exams are finished so I will be properly installing and getting used to Arch Linux!

Last edited by Meikj (2009-01-19 18:45:44)

Envil

Member

Registered: 2008-11-18

Posts: 52

Re: [SOLVED] VirtualBox running Windows applications

Starting apps etc is noticably slower in the vm than it would be if windows was running natively.
Photoshop shouldnt be much of an issue but video editing could be a pain, exspecially with your ram ^^
Your better off using a native program or running them trough wine which will be much faster.

As for games.. forget it, VirtualBox just added some very basic opengl support but most games want directx anyway.
VMWare supports some directx but its basically the same as wine... so you will have similar graphic bugs and even worse performance.
So while you can run some games the performance alone wont make it very enjoyable =P

userlander

Member

Registered: 2008-08-23

Posts: 413

Re: [SOLVED] VirtualBox running Windows applications

Another GB of RAM wouldn't hurt. If everything is configured right, performance should be pretty close to what you would get running windows natively. I've never really tried any games so can't comment on that, sorry.

moljac024

Member

From: Serbia

Registered: 2008-01-29

Posts: 2,676

Re: [SOLVED] VirtualBox running Windows applications

Virtualbox performance is great, it's near-native. But it can't handle 3D acceleration, so, no GTA or CS, sorry.
Everything else should work fast enough, you almost won't even notice it's a virtual machine. You might want to do that RAM upgrade though.

---

The day Microsoft makes a product that doesn't suck, is the day they make a vacuum cleaner.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
But if they tell you that I've lost my mind, maybe it's not gone just a little hard to find...

Ranguvar

Member

Registered: 2008-08-12

Posts: 2,563

Re: [SOLVED] VirtualBox running Windows applications

VMWare supports some directx but its basically the same as wine... so you will have similar graphic bugs and even worse performance.
So while you can run some games the performance alone wont make it very enjoyable =P

Actually, VMware's DirectX support so far is _far_ better than Wine.

My setup will be Wine, VMware, and a Windows 7 beta install. First choice is Wine, as there's no overhead from an additional OS. Second choice is VMware (you can use VMware with a 'real' installed OS), and worst case (some games), reboot into Windows. VMware and Wine together, though, make rebooting into Windows a rare occurance, as the only thing it's needed for are _some_ DirectX 9 (or 10) games

I would also do that RAM upgrade - maybe even to 4GB. RAM is dirt cheap these days, and it's the one thing a virtual machine will really eat up, since you have to partition your RAM across the VMs.

Last edited by Ranguvar (2009-01-19 18:21:42)

Meikj

Member

From: Glasgow

Registered: 2009-01-07

Posts: 21

Re: [SOLVED] VirtualBox running Windows applications

Thanks. I will get a RAM upgrade soon, I live in the UK so unfortunately I can't order from Newegg. As far as I know Counter Strike: Condition Zero runs perfectly fine on WINE but SA-MP can't run at all due to a graphics DLL being restricted to prevent hackers.

I wanted to refrain from dual booting and try and keep everything running within Linux. I will be able to experiment soon because the next ISO of Arch Linux will be released shortly!

Again, thank you for the help.