Virtualization allows users to run multiple virtual machines (VMs) on a single physical machine. Each virtual machine functions as its own independent computer, with its own operating system and software installed. On PCs, virtualization provides many benefits like increased flexibility, security, cost-savings, and the ability to run software designed for different operating systems. There are several free and paid virtualization software options for PCs, with two popular free choices being VMware and VirtualBox.
VMware offers a range of virtualization products including VMware Workstation for desktops and VMware vSphere for enterprise data centers. VMware was one of the first companies to successfully commercialize virtualization for x86 compatible computers. VirtualBox is an open source virtualization product originally created by software company InnoTek before being acquired by Oracle. It is now managed by Oracle and available for free, even for commercial use.
For PC users, both VMware Workstation and VirtualBox allow running virtual machines locally to access different operating systems and sandbox environments on a single desktop or laptop. This article will compare the two platforms for use cases like running low-end PCs or older hardware.
Background on VMware and VirtualBox
VMware was founded in 1998 and released their first product, VMware Workstation, in 1999. It allowed users to set up multiple virtual machines on a single PC. In 2001, they released VMware GSX Server which brought virtualization to server environments. VMware has continued to innovate and expand their products over the past two decades, becoming a leader in enterprise virtualization and cloud computing.
VirtualBox was first released in 2007 by software company Innotek GmbH. Oracle acquired Innotek in 2008 and VirtualBox became part of Oracle’s product portfolio. Like VMware Workstation, VirtualBox also allows users to run multiple operating systems as virtual machines on a single PC. It is open source software and free for personal and enterprise use.
Both VMware and VirtualBox provide capabilities for running virtual machines on x86 compatible PCs and servers. They aim to make virtualization accessible and easy to use for desktop users. VMware offers some proprietary enterprise-focused products while VirtualBox is fully open source, but they overlap for basic virtual machine use cases.
Source: https://www.quora.com/Can-someone-trace-me-if-I-always-use-a-virtual-machine-for-the-Internet
System Requirements
When it comes to minimum system requirements for low-end PCs, VirtualBox has lower requirements than VMware in a few key areas:
RAM: VirtualBox requires only 512MB of RAM, while VMware Workstation requires 1GB and VMware Player requires 1.3GB (Source). This makes VirtualBox better suited for older systems with less RAM.
CPU: For the CPU, VirtualBox requires a reasonably powerful x86 processor. However, it can run on lower-end CPUs like Intel Atom. VMware recommends at least a 1.3GHz processor (Source). So VirtualBox has lower CPU requirements.
Storage: VirtualBox requires around 15-20GB free disk space depending on usage. VMware Player requires 10GB free space, while VMware Workstation requires more. So for storage, the platforms have comparable minimum requirements.
Overall, when it comes to critical components like RAM and CPU, VirtualBox has lower minimum system requirements for running on low-end Windows PCs.
Ease of Use
When it comes to ease of use, VirtualBox tends to have a slight edge over VMware Workstation. VirtualBox’s user interface is praised for its simplicity and intuitiveness, making it relatively easy for beginners to get started with virtual machines.
Basic operations like creating, configuring and starting VMs are straightforward in VirtualBox. The workflows are kept simple with wizards guiding users through the initial setup process. In contrast, VMware Workstation has a more complex interface with a steeper learning curve according to some users.
However, VMware Workstation offers more fine-grained controls and customization options for power users. While VirtualBox aims for simplicity, VMware Workstation caters more towards IT professionals who are willing to invest time to master its capabilities. Ultimately, VirtualBox may be easier for casual or new users, while VMware Workstation offers deeper configuration options for advanced requirements.
Performance
When it comes to virtual machine performance, VMware generally outperforms VirtualBox. Independent benchmark tests have shown that virtual machines created in VMware have faster CPU, memory, storage, and graphics performance compared to VirtualBox.
In CPU performance tests, VMware virtual machines consistently scored around 10-25% higher than VirtualBox in benchmarks like Geekbench and PassMark (https://www.testgorilla.com/blog/vmware-vs-virtualbox/). The main reason is that VMware utilizes Intel VT-x and AMD-V virtualization technologies more efficiently than VirtualBox.
For memory and storage, VMware also has the edge. Memory operations like reading and writing data are faster in VMware, and its virtual disk I/O performance is better as well. In storage benchmarks, VMware VMs outperformed VirtualBox by 15-30% (https://www.testgorilla.com/blog/vmware-vs-virtualbox/).
Graphics performance is also generally better with VMware due to its more mature and optimized graphics driver support. Running graphically intensive applications and games will have higher frame rates in a VMware virtual machine.
So for low end PCs looking for the best virtual machine performance, VMware is the clear winner over VirtualBox. The performance difference can be noticeable, especially for more demanding workloads.
Features
Both VMware and VirtualBox offer a robust set of features for virtual machine management and configuration. Some key differences in features include:
VMware offers more advanced virtual networking capabilities like vMotion, which allows live migration of running virtual machines between hosts with no downtime. VirtualBox’s virtual networking is more basic, allowing host-only, internal, NAT, and bridged networking. VMware also includes features like fault tolerance, high availability, and distributed resource scheduling which are not available in VirtualBox.
When it comes to snapshots, both platforms allow you to take snapshots to easily roll back to previous VM states. However, VMware allows incremental snapshots while VirtualBox requires full snapshots each time. VMware also allows snapshots with memory states, while VirtualBox only snapshots disk states.
In terms of storage, VMware supports more virtual disk formats than VirtualBox, including thin provisioning and SCSI disks. VirtualBox is limited to VDI, VMDK, VHD, and HDD formats.
Overall, VMware includes more extensive features for enterprise use cases, while VirtualBox provides a basic but solid feature set for personal and small business use.
Linux Guest Support
Both VirtualBox and VMware work well for running Linux guest virtual machines. However, VMware generally has better Linux guest support and integration with some advantages.
For example, VMware tools are available for most major Linux distributions, providing optimized drivers and utilities for things like shared folders, copy/paste, dragging files, auto-resizing display, and time synchronization. This results in a more seamless experience. VirtualBox also has guest additions available for Linux, but the level of integration is not quite as deep in some cases [1].
Additionally, VMware Workstation has experimental support for Wayland Linux guests, whereas VirtualBox only supports X.Org server at this time. And VMware generally has better 3D/OpenGL acceleration support for Linux guests [2].
However, for basic Linux guest usage, both VMware and VirtualBox work quite well. It’s mainly for more advanced usage where VMware’s Linux integration and performance advantages stand out.
Community Support
VirtualBox has an active community forum hosted on virtualbox.org where users can get help troubleshooting issues and discuss VirtualBox features. There are over 200,000 registered forum members as of 2022. The forums see several hundred new posts per day across a variety of categories covering general usage, networking, Linux guests, Windows guests, and more. The active forums and large knowledge base indicate a strong, engaged user community.
VMware also has an extensive community forum at VMware Communities with over 300,000 members as of early 2023. There are active discussions in categories like VMware Workstation, VMware Fusion, and all other VMware products. The forums have thousands of discussions and demonstrate VMware’s large user base.
Both VirtualBox and VMware provide extensive official documentation and guides. VirtualBox documentation covers topics like installation, configuration, guest additions and more. VMware has detailed documentation for its products like Workstation Pro and Fusion. Overall, both platforms have helpful documentation accessible to users.
In summary, VirtualBox and VMware both have sizable user communities and documentation available. VirtualBox’s forums may be more active on a daily basis, while VMware’s community reflects its large enterprise user base. Both provide sufficient resources for troubleshooting issues and learning how to use the virtualization products.
Security
VMware and VirtualBox offer different security features and protections. Both have some vulnerabilities that should be considered.
VMware utilizes advanced security measures like encryption, role-based access controls, and secure boot to protect virtual machines. However, VMware has been susceptible to some high severity vulnerabilities in the past, like remote code execution flaws (https://medium.com/@alexandragrosu03/the-trojans-escape-how-virtual-machines-can-be-used-to-evade-detection-ae7c96500756). Proper patching and security hygiene is critical.
VirtualBox offers basic security like encryption for virtual machines. However, being an open source platform, vulnerabilities have been discovered, like a local privilege escalation flaw in hosted VMs (https://www.quora.com/Is-VirtualBox-safe-on-Windows-Can-Windows-track-anything-that-I-do-in-VirtualBox-or-do-I-need-to-make-my-main-OS-Linux). Users should be cautious about potential exploits.
Overall, VMware likely provides more robust enterprise-grade security, while VirtualBox offers basic protections. Both require patching and secure use for optimal safety.
Conclusion
In summary, the key differences between VMware and VirtualBox for use on low-end PCs are:
– VMware has higher system requirements, especially for RAM, which may make it unusable on very old or limited hardware.
– VirtualBox is open source and free, while VMware Workstation requires a paid license.
– VirtualBox is generally easier for beginners to set up and use.
– VMware offers better performance and more robust feature set for more demanding tasks.
– VMware has wider support for Linux guest OSes and tools.
– VirtualBox has a more active community for troubleshooting and support.
Overall, for low-end PCs, VirtualBox is likely the better option. It has lower system requirements, is free and open source, and is simpler to use for basic virtualization needs. The performance is sufficient for lighter tasks, and there is an active community for support. Unless you specifically need an advanced feature only VMware offers, VirtualBox is easier to get up and running and suitable for most basic virtualization uses on older or limited PCs.