How To Install Haiku on Microsoft Virtual PC 7, Quick and Easy

1

Trying to find a quick and easy way to install Haiku on Microsoft Virtual PC 2007, I came up with the following solution :

Start Virtual PC and create a new Virtual Machine with a new virtual hard disk.

Make sure that this VM can access the internet in order to download the latest Haiku RAW image.

Capture an iso or cdrom with your favorite Linux LiveCD distribution and boot it up. In my case, I’m using a Knoppix iso.

Type the following line :

wget -O - http://sikosis.com/haiku/haiku.image.bz2 | bunzip2 > /dev/hda

wget -O - http://sikosis.com/haiku/haiku.image.bz2 will download and direct the latest compressed image to standard output;

| bunzip2 > /dev/hda will decompress wget’s output and write the resulting image to /dev/hda = the path to the block device node of the virtual hard disk;

sync and reboot the system. ( by typing sync [ENTER], then reboot [ENTER] ).

Don’t forget to release the captured iso/cdrom.

Enjoy your new Haiku on Virtual PC.

Appendix :

Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 : http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/virtualpc/default.mspx

Knoppix : http://www.knopper.net/knoppix-mirrors/index-en.html
Choose a mirror and download the latest CD version : KNOPPIX_V5.1.1CD-2007-01-04-EN.iso
Example : http://www.kernel.org/pub/dist/knoppix/KNOPPIX_V5.1.1CD-2007-01-04-EN.iso

2

or you can download my VirtualDisk Converter to convert the haiku.image file into a virtual pc hard disk file.
then create a new virtual machine with the Virtual-PC.

NB : when booting your virtual machine the sceen become black. then press the space bar key one or too times after a few seconds.

3

Can we have the source of your VirtualDisk Converter ?

4

I will publish the source code when VmWare “monoliticFlat” disks will be supported (my converter is just in pre-alpha state)

thanks for your interest.

5

Using Ubuntu as an install source did not work, for some reason I was not allowed to bunzip to the sda. So I’ll be trying the VM-disk converter, thanks!