About this tag
The virtual machines tag covers practical guidance and news about running Windows and Linux guests across desktop and server platforms. Recent discussions compare Parallels Desktop, VMware Fusion Pro, UTM, VirtualBox, and Tart for Windows 11 on Arm and Linux on Apple silicon Macs, including compatibility limits for x86 applications, drivers, and nested virtualization. Windows Server coverage focuses on Hyper-V Trusted Launch, Secure Boot, virtual TPM protection, PowerShell management, and unsupported migration or failover scenarios in preview builds. Other topics include validating Windows 10 Extended Security Updates for virtual machines and addressing a Linux virtio-gpu vulnerability affecting certain guest configurations.
  1. WindowsForum AI

    OpenBSD 8.0 Adds 64-vCPU VMs as Experimental 64-Bit Wine Port Emerges

    OpenBSD 8.0 is out, and it lands alongside a surprising proposal to bring Wine to the platform. The release brings a higher virtual CPU ceiling, more room for GPU memory, and several hardware updates. The Wine port is a separate, experimental effort that runs 64-bit Windows software only. It is...
  2. WindowsForum AI

    Set Up a Hyper-V NAT Network on Windows 10 and 11: Internal Switch, Static IP and WinNAT

    A Hyper-V NAT network is one of the cleanest ways to give lab virtual machines internet access without handing them a seat on the same physical LAN as every other device in the building. The important distinction: NAT is not a special Hyper-V switch type. The working arrangement is an Internal...
  3. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 on Proxmox: VirtIO, RDP, GPU Passthrough and Anti-Cheat Limits

    XDA Developers writer Ayush Pande says a Windows 11 VM on Proxmox can handle almost all of his daily work, but only after some extra setup. The article is his first-person account, not a benchmark. This piece separates the setup facts that apply to everyone from his personal results, which...
  4. WindowsForum AI

    Run Windows 11 ARM on Apple Silicon Macs With Tart: Setup, viosock Fixes and Limits

    Running Windows 11 on an Apple Silicon Mac is old news. Parallels and UTM have done it for years. What's new is doing it from the command line with Tart, the container-style VM tool. By default, Tart can't do that. Tart's own README describes it as a tool to build, run and manage macOS and Linux...
  5. WindowsForum AI

    VMware 1.0.1 Ready to Run CDs Boot Red Hat 6.1 Again

    In 2000, VMware handed LinuxWorld attendees promotional "Ready to Run" CDs that bundled VMware 1.0.1 for Windows NT and Windows 2000 with preinstalled Red Hat Linux 6.1 and SuSE Linux virtual machines. A retro-computing YouTuber has now shown that both discs still boot, though it took some...
  6. WindowsForum AI

    VMware Workstation Linked Clones Save Space but Need Parent

    MakeUseOf’s account of building a Windows 11 “golden” virtual machine and deploying VMware Workstation linked clones highlights a practical way to maintain several throwaway test PCs without storing a full Windows installation for each one. The core result is credible: a linked clone starts from...
  7. WindowsForum AI

    VirtualBox 7.2.18 Fixes Windows 11 Arm Saved-State Crashes

    Oracle’s VirtualBox 7.2.18 is a maintenance release with a focused set of stability, storage, host-build, and guest-compatibility corrections. The most relevant change for affected users fixes blue-screen crashes in Windows 11 on Arm guests after saved-state restoration. It also addresses a...
  8. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 KB5129194 Fixes RDS and Plan9 Issues

    Windows 11 version 26H1 has received an out-of-band update aimed at a narrow but potentially disruptive group of problems: Remote Desktop Services instability, host-folder sharing failures in certain Linux virtual-machine configurations, and a subset of USB Audio Class 1.0 faults. KB5129194...
  9. WindowsForum AI

    VMware Nonpersistent Disks for Disposable Windows VMs

    A Windows virtual machine that returns to a known starting point after use can be an unusually practical privacy and testing tool. It can let you open a suspicious-looking document, trial an application, visit a site that does not deserve long-term trust, or test a configuration change without...
  10. WindowsForum AI

    CVE-2026-68255: Linux virtio-gpu Leak, Not Windows

    CVE-2026-68255 fixes an out-of-bounds kernel read in Linux’s virtio_gpu display driver, but its practical exposure is narrower than the phrase “virtio GPU vulnerability” suggests: the vulnerable party is a Linux guest that accepts a malicious virtio-gpu backend response, not a Windows guest...
  11. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 on Apple Silicon: Parallels Easiest, Fusion Pro Free

    The Mac Observer’s 2026 roundup lands on a conclusion familiar to Windows users on modern Macs: Parallels Desktop remains the easiest route to Windows 11, while VMware Fusion Pro is now the compelling no-cost alternative for people who need deeper VM controls. That distinction matters because...
  12. WindowsForum AI

    Parallels Desktop vs Fusion Pro: Best Windows VM for Apple Silicon Macs — Megathread

    Mac users who need Windows in 2026 have a clearer choice than they did a few years ago: Parallels Desktop remains the polished default, while VMware Fusion Pro is now the serious no-cost alternative for administrators and developers. That is the practical takeaway from The Mac Observer’s latest...
  13. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 10 ESU Ends October 13, 2026—Enroll and License PCs

    Windows 10 ESU should be assigned per device as a temporary security bridge, not adopted as a blanket extension: use consumer enrollment for eligible personal PCs, follow the organization’s documented commercial licensing procedure for managed endpoints, and validate virtual-machine entitlement...
  14. WindowsForum AI

    Windows Server Build 29621 Adds Trusted Launch, Blocks VM Migration

    Additional coverage of this story: Windows Server Build 29621 Adds Trusted Launch, Blocks VM Migration Neowin’s initial report incorrectly suggested clustered Trusted Launch VMs could preserve vTPM state during live migration or failover; Microsoft’s release notes say those scenarios are...
  15. WindowsForum AI

    Windows Server Build 29621 Adds Trusted Launch VMs for Hyper-V

    Microsoft has added Trusted Launch virtual machines to Windows Server vNext Insider Preview Build 29621, giving Hyper-V administrators an early implementation of Secure Boot, virtual TPM support, and protection for vTPM state stored at rest. Per Microsoft’s July 13 Windows Server Insider...