JANUARY 2007 MAXIMUMPC 49
We show you how virtual machines let you
easily run multiple OSes on a single PC,
and how you can make the most of them
Y
ou consider yourself hardcore, right? After
all, your processor smokes along at 500MHz
faster than stock, you voided the warranty
on that new videocard within seconds of hitting the
control panel and cranking up its clock speeds, and
you’ve dived head fi rst into water cooling. But not so
fast, budding enthusiast. You haven’t fully left behind
Noobville and entered the elite ranks of Geekdom
until you’ve played with virtual machines.
By emulating a specifi c set of hardware, virtual
machine (VM) software allows you to run one or
more operating systems inside your existing OS, in
essence creating separate PCs within your PC. So
when HaX0rJ0e starts ranting and raving on your
forum about the superiority of Linux, a virtual machine
makes it possible to see what the fuss is about with-
out having to nuke your OS or even bother repartition-
ing your hard drive to create a dual-boot environment.
But VMs are not just for those who fear commitment.
We love being the fi rst to test new beta software, but
we’re not so keen on some of the aftereffects. With a
VM installed, we can test every app that catches our
eye, and should a program prove to be a bug-ridden
mess, our squeaky-clean installation of XP remains
intact. And you don’t need to be an IT professional to
know the value of VMs for tech support.
To get started, you’ll need a separate license for
every OS you plan to run—even though they’re running
on a single PC, they count as separate installs; and we
recommend that your PC be equipped with at least a
1GHz processor and 512MB RAM. Finally, you’ll need
to choose a VM software package. On the next page,
we review three of the most popular VM apps, then we
show you how to set up our favorite and suggest spe-
cifi c uses for your new virtual machine.BY PAUL LILLY