OS X Lion Allows Running Multiple Copies on the Same Machine (Virtualization)

[Undecided]

There aren't a whole lot of uses for this (I think virtualization sucks in general), but the main use for a typical end user is to run legacy software but still upgrade their system as a whole.

This is particularly important given that Lion won't include Rosetta. Using virtualization, you could upgrade your system to Lion, but run Snow Leopard in a virtual machine, in which you run the legacy software.

It's also handy, of course, to run a virtual windows system on your Mac, and to run software that requires keys that expire (backdate the virtual machine).

Software, such as TuneUp, is tied to a particular machine. I don't know if the software enforces that, but if it did, I suppose you could run it in a virtual machine, and then you can move that virtual machine around as you upgrade your Mac. ("lifetime" license but tied to a particular machine is stupid.)

 

[hehe299792458]

Officially, with Lion requiring the MAS to download and the installer needing to run from Snow Leopard...

How exactly are we to install Lion in a virtual machine again ?

My question exactly!

 

[Joelb955]

I'm Buying Lion now!

 

[diamond.g]

Let me also suggest Harmony for church presentation. It's a native Mac app, uses all the modern APIs.

http://sweeterrhythm.com

Cheers

Fraser Hess

That is awesome. Now I just have to work on convincing them to convert over to an all Mac church. It sure would make my job easier.

 

[Hrunga Zmuda]

Can I run OS 9 in Virtualization? That way I can play Deus Ex again!

 

[xStep]

Would be much more impressed it the EULA specified that you could run any Intel based OS X version.

 

[nerdo]

So we can run FCP7 and FCPX together after all! Now if we can copy the timeline from FCP to FCPX...

 

[BollywooD]

Officially, with Lion requiring the MAS to download and the installer needing to run from Snow Leopard...

How exactly are we to install Lion in a virtual machine again ?

Ive just finished doing just this, following the instructions from here:
http://www.obviouslogic.com:8080/solutions/lion-vmware/

 

[yustas]

This great, but what are the actual steps to install another instance of the Lion? Would that require a new (not yet released version of Parallels or VMWare)? I just switched from Windows, sorry if this is a dumb question.

 

[RalfTheDog]

Can some one please tell me the point/use of this feature (I probably sound very blond asking this)

You can keep your primary OS clean while you do your day to day stuff in a disposable alternative reality version.

Can anyone tell me how this will be implemented, given Lion is just a download from the Mac App Store? Don't you need to have installed Snow Leopard first before upgrading to Lion? And how are you going to virtualize Snow Leopard?

You just need something that will boot and run the install script. You create a minimalistic boot partition and dump the install script you downloaded into it. Run the script and you are running on tritium.

Does this mean I can run Parallels on my VMWare copy of Mac OSX...

There is an error for that. If I remember, it is something like, "Virtualization hardware not found." The primary OS has the Virtualization hardware in the processor. The client OS can't access it.

What I would love to see would be some kind of hypervisor that sits above all the OSes and passes out clock cycles and hardware access. That way, you don't need to worry about which OS is a client and what one is the primary. I do see much RAM upgrading in the future.

 

[KnightWRX]

Ive just finished doing just this, following the instructions from here:
http://www.obviouslogic.com:8080/solutions/lion-vmware/

Keyword : Officially.

 

[rmb7984]

recursive

Does this mean I can run Parallels on my VMWare copy of Mac OSX...

Does this mean I can run Parallels on my VMWare copy of Mac OSX…

 

[mjtomlin]

I don't understand why they just wont make a Mac version of EasyWorship. It feels like every time I am at church they have to reboot their computers due to that app.

You're obviously not praying hard enough when you launch the app.

 

[MacSince1990]

Meh. That's what multiple hard drives/partitions are for.

 

[Dr Kevorkian94]

that is cool but i wouldn't have a use for it personally, lets hope the GM release means that we will get it all the more sooner

 

[mjtomlin]

Ive just finished doing just this, following the instructions from here:
http://www.obviouslogic.com:8080/solutions/lion-vmware/

Whoa! That's my site. LOL Didn't think anyone was still following those instructions. Does it work with the latest build of Lion?

I'm guessing Apple is going to let us build/burn a DVD image of the Lion installer, otherwise it'll be a pain to have to run through those instructions.

Also, vmWare and Parallels, et al., will have to update their software to allow non-server versions of OS X to install.

 

[MacSince1990]

This seems like it continues to erode the importance of Mac OS X as time goes on as iOS becomes more important to Apple's bottom line.

How...

it seems like it's just a commodity piece of software now. I can see Windows users virtualizing OS X

Uhhh... you can only virtualize OS X... under..OS X..

Essentially removing the core of what it means to "have a Mac."

That pretty much happened when Apple switched to Intel. Macs are now just glorified PCs.

At least with a Hackintosh, you really worked hard to get the OS to work on non-Apple hardware. Now it seems to easy.

>_> All you have to do is emulate an EFI chip.. the hardware is all the same.There's nothing special about Macintosh hardware anymore.

 

[mjtomlin]

Can I run OS 9 in Virtualization? That way I can play Deus Ex again!

http://www.emaculation.com/doku.php/sheepshaver

I hope this opens the door to virtualizing OS X when running under a Boot Camped Windows.

B

Technically no this doesn't allow that, but I doubt Apple would really care as long as it's Mac hardware.

 

[iEdd]

Keyword : Officially.

So... Is the legal way to actually have 2 Snow Leopard licences - 1 for the Mac host and 1 for the VM, then this new EULA allows a single Lion licence to be used to upgrade both?

 

[mjtomlin]

That's what I want to know! If I can install Leopard and / or Snow Leopard in VirtualBox under Lion, I'd be an extraordinarily happy camper.

http://blog.rectalogic.com/2008/08/virtualizing-mac-os-x-leopard-client.html

 

[Digitalclips]

worship software?.. really?

Didn't I read the guy claiming the world would end recently collected as much as 19 million dollars from gullible followers? It's big businesses it seems I wonder why no one else though if that ... Oh wait a minute!

This great, but what are the actual steps to install another instance of the Lion? Would that require a new (not yet released version of Parallels or VMWare)? I just switched from Windows, sorry if this is a dumb question.

I kind of works using the server install but yes the Parallel Tools or VMTools need to be updated for this to work properly. There are beta versions out so I expect this will be available with Lion or soon there after.

 

[BollywooD]

Whoa! That's my site. LOL Didn't think anyone was still following those instructions. Does it work with the latest build of Lion?

I'm guessing Apple is going to let us build/burn a DVD image of the Lion installer, otherwise it'll be a pain to have to run through those instructions.

Also, vmWare and Parallels, et al., will have to update their software to allow non-server versions of OS X to install.

I followed the instructions pretty much to the letter for the GM, thanks for the clear instructions!
it took about an hour

 

[bearcatrp]

Now if I could network a Mac and PC together and run the virtual OS on the PC, using the pc's memory and processors, I would be very impressed. but would really like apple to license older OSX to vm on a PC. Would sell very well.

 

[AaronEdwards]

Uhhh... you can only virtualize OS X... under..OS X..

False.


Edit: Google and you'll find number of ways to virtualize OS X under Windows with VirtualBox or VMWare. Not to mention people running OS X on PC hardware.

 

[Aduntu]

Thanks for that, I didn't realize it would be a mainly developer thing.

It's not. There are tons of reasons to use virtual machines. Developing is just a few of them.