First you need to download the Chrome OS image from Gdgt.com (Chrome OS VM image download) and download and install VirtualBox (VirtualBox download). Installing VirtualBox is pretty straightforward so I won't go into that. Choose the VMware image on Gdgt.com, as I could not get the VirtualBox image to boot. You can still use the VMware image with the VirtualBox program.
1. Make a New Machine
After you have VirtualBox opened up, Select the "New" button in the top left corner to create your new Chrome OS machine. Next, name your machine (I chose Chrome OS) and select "Other" under operating system and "Other/Unknown" under version. I think it would be okay to leave it on "Windows" and "XP" for these options, but I'm not sure if VirtualBox does anything special for a Windows machine, so I went with a generic start.
Update: It looks like the network connection won't work in Chrome OS for some people if they choose "Other" for their OS. We found out (through the discussion in the comments) that picking "Linux" as the operating system and "Linux 2.6" as the version might work better for some host PCs.
2. Select the amount of RAM for you Chrome OS virtual machine
Next you select the amount of RAM to dedicate to your Chrome OS virtual instance. I selected 542 MB of RAM as this should be plenty for Chrome OS and not push my test machine (2 GB of RAM total) to the limit. You would choose the amount of RAM you think is appropriate here.
3. Select the Chrome OS disk image
Next is the hard disk image selection. Select "Use existing hard disk" and click the small folder icon next to the text field to browse for the Chrome OS .vmdk image you downloaded. You will need to add a new disk image by selecting "New" in the top left corner and then browse to where your Chrome OS image was downloaded.
Continue after the break for the rest of the guide.
Next, VirtualBox simply asks you if you really want to make the Chrome OS machine. You probably do, so just select finish. Now you are ready to start your machine and see Chrome OS running for the first time! Simply push "Start" when your machine is highlighted and Chrome OS should boot up (quite quickly, too!). As an aside, I increased my video memory for Chrome OS to 60 MB (the default for an unknown machine is 5 MB). This may not be necessary, but you can do so under the settings for your machine.
If you can't get the network to work on your Chrome OS virtual machine, try logging in with the username "chronos". It has no password and many people have reported that it fixes the network problem.
Check out the comments for some troubleshooting if you are having a hard time. Or just leave a comment if you can help or have an opinion on Chrome OS!
Thanks for the guide, I get an error saying "Network not connected and offline login fail". Any ideas? I've tried changing from a NAT network connection to a bridged but not sure which network device to use as the adaptor type, any ideas?
ReplyDeleteNice how-to. However when I start up virtual box after following your instructions I get nothing. Just a black screen and my host PC runs really slowly.
ReplyDeleteHelp please. I've done that and got the blue screen, but once I type my account it says network not connected and offline login failed. But I am connected to my net?
ReplyDeleteCould you go into some of the settings you chose?
ReplyDeleteI'm still getting a black screen. Any other tips?
ReplyDeleteI've entered to win a Mac laptop here:
ReplyDeletehttps://bluehorseshoelovesbluestar.com/
I just stayed with VirtualBox's default settings for an "Other" OS and "Uknown/Other" version type. I even switched back to 5 MB of video memory (in the guide I alloted 60 MB) and it still works.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure why you guys are getting black screens but make sure you use:
-VirtualBox
-The .vmdk (image for Virtual Machine) from gdgt.com (linked to in the guide
-"Other" operating system and "Unknown/Other" version in the New machine settings (when you first make the new machine)
@Rob: what PC are you using? VirtualBox uses your PC's processing power and RAM, so if you have a low-end machine it may not be powerful enough to run it. Here are the minimum requirements for using VirtualBox: http://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/End-user_documentation
If your computer has less than 512 MB of RAM, you may run into problems...
I get the same response. Just a black screen and nothing else. Any reponse would be helpful.
ReplyDeleteThe default settings for "Network" were to have networking enabled and the "NAT" option for the "Attached to" setting.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, I didn't change any of the default settings in VirtualBox and I *did not* bridge the network.
I am using a Mac, which should not have an effect, but you never know.
Are you all using the virtual machine image (ends with .vmdk)?
ReplyDeleteI installed Chrome OS, usually with other OS's in VirtualBox when i install Guest Additions you can make the screen larger, has anyone been able to get full screen working on VirtualBox with Chrome OS?
ReplyDeleteI can't seem to get a larger screen size either. I have had this happen before with a few Linux distros...
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Linux, I have just got Chrome OS running in VirtuaBox in Ubuntu (9.10) with the exact same settings as I did on Mac OS X.
For those of you still having trouble:
What kind of computers/operating systems are you running? Do they have enough power to run a virtualized OS?
cant get logged in using the vmdk w/ nat or bridged.
ReplyDeleteusing the vdi, i get the black screen and it never boots, thoughts?
OS info: ubuntu 9.10, x86_64, VirtualBox-3.0.10-r54097
ReplyDelete@drew:
ReplyDeleteI assume you installed VirtualBox through Synaptic?
I installed VirtualBox through synaptic, used the .vmdk (virtual machine) image and the default settings for "Other" operating system in VirtualBox.
Without being able to see the set up myself, I would just keep playing with the settings to see if anything will work.
And are you sure of your Google sign in credentials? Make sure you have the correct password and username.
@travis, yup, have virtualbox doing other vm's, so i know that it works, and did the setup of the vm as indicated above.
ReplyDeletei am working on breaking the vm over my knee (via chrooting) to see if networking is coming up or not ...really, thats all! ;)... so i will let you know in a bit.
yea, i am sure of my creds :)
Okay, cool!
ReplyDeleteKeep us posted!
With regard to the instructions above to "browse for the Chrome OS .vmdk image you downloaded" -- the problem is that the downloaded zip file only contains a single file: chrome-os-v0.4.22.8-gdgt.vdi
ReplyDelete@wegriffi: that means you downloaded the image that Gdgt.com said is for VirtualBox.
ReplyDeleteYou can try using the .vdi file for your image, but I used the .vmdk (the one that says its for VMware on Gdgt.com). I tried to use the .vdi file and it did not work for me
How do you get the network? I tried about all of the combinations possible in the networking settings. Can't login without a network connection, so chrome is useless until I get this working.
ReplyDeleteHi, I can't seem to get the network going. I'm running win7 on fast laptop.
ReplyDeleteI've tried a bunch of options for both nat and bridged but still no luck;o(
Btw.. i'm using the vmdk and I'll keep trying...;o)
ReplyDeletei was able to look @ the network config file (/etc/network/interfaces) and at least on my vmdk it is not setup to bring up any interfaces other than lo, so, regardless of the vm config, i have no idea how it is expecting to auth to anything other than the localhost... (unless they are using all odd file locations and names on top of the default ubuntu release they are using for the base OS...)
ReplyDelete@Jonas
ReplyDeleteThat's odd that none of the networking settings work... I'm using a wireless network on my host PC. I'm not sure if it would help, but try connecting to the Internet wirelessly with your computer, if you can (and if you haven't already).
Interesting @drew.
ReplyDeleteNo telling what kind of things they have done to the underlying system. It's Linux, but they want it to be *very* secure and will probably change all kinds of things to throw off potential malware/virus creators. Especially when it comes to network security.
@Travis
ReplyDeleteI'm using wireless, but thinking about finding a cable and trying that. When I try Bridged I can see and select either of my network cards, and it supposedly is connected. But still nothing..
Anyways.. I'll keep trying..;o)
well, regardless, i get no networking to come up. i have changed the /etc/network/interface to bring up eth0 via dhcp on my vbox NAT. i then fired up wireshark to watch the dhcp communication (so i know the ip that it is on) but see NO traffic to/from the vm...
ReplyDeleteso, they are doing something convuluted, OR this vmdk that i have is b0rked.
Yeah @drew, you've definitely went into depth to fix it.
ReplyDeleteAs for the image being bad, did you try the VirtualBox image (.vdi)? I couldn't get it to work, but maybe it would work for you. I know some iso images can get messed up upon downloading them, so maybe that happened to your image?
I saw a torrent of the vmdk file on Gdt's discussion page, but it's probably the same image that we are using.
I haven't looked around too much, but maybe someone else has prepared an image. Or you could build it from scratch according to the directions on Chromium.org... I think I will check out the USB-boot build later, for a more "native" feel ;)
meh, ya...i will beat on it a bit more some other time...was *hoping* for a plug and play type of deal, didnt want/mean to spend all afternoon on it. :)
ReplyDeleteanyway, i am going to try a native type boot situation via usb, if i have any luck, i will certainly let you all know!
Ok so it is a browser that boots up in it's own OS. Not much of a big deal IMHO.
ReplyDeletethe .vdi gives black screen, the .vmdk starts the OS
ReplyDeleteCan't get the network to run. I'm using Virtualbox on an intel mac with wireless.
ReplyDelete"Can't get the network to run. I'm using Virtualbox on an intel mac with wireless."
ReplyDeleteThat is exactly what I used to run Chrome OS to begin with and the network worked.
Did you set it up just like I did in the guide?
@Travis
ReplyDeleteYes I did. Can you check your network settings for us? Maybe you have something we don't?
I got mine working!
ReplyDeleteChanged the OS to Linux and Linux 2.6. Now I can log in using NAT network settings (eg not changing a thing)... :D
"Yes I did. Can you check your network settings for us? Maybe you have something we don't?"
ReplyDeleteOn a MacBook I have these settings under VirtualBox's network settings:
Enable network adapter: yes (box is checked)
Adapter type: PCnet-FAST III (Am79C973)
Attached to: NAT
Perhaps try what the comment above says:
"Changed the OS to Linux and Linux 2.6. Now I can log in using NAT network settings (eg not changing a thing)... :D"
Haha, yeah that was me (the same Anonymous :p).
ReplyDeleteHopefully this will help others too!
Here's what worked for me
ReplyDelete1) Use the .vmdk
2) Define the OS as Linux/Other Linux
3) Select memory soze (I chose 512)
4) Connect the disk
4) Finnsh and start
Networking now works using the default NAT
For me, nothing of this works. I've set the machine to run as Linux - Linux 2.6, RAM: 651 MB, it's the vmdk that's running and I use NAT, but I still can't log in. I only get the "incorrect password or no internet connection" even though I know that my credentials are correct.
ReplyDeleteMac / wireless / Linux / Linux 2.6 and still no NAT :(
ReplyDeleteVery strange. The internet on my XP works perfect on VB..
If NAT doesnt work under Linux, try bridging under Linux.
ReplyDeleteI noticed that the default keyboard configuration is qwerty. That was why I couldn't log in.
ReplyDeleteBy the way I managed to get it run on my Windows 7 PC with Ethernet (cable) connection.
Oh yeah, I use Mac OS X 10.6.2 with wireless (Airport) internet and it doesn't work with either NAT or bridge or different versions/distros of linux.
ReplyDeleteYOu have to go the the Settings once you have installed it, then go to the System tab, and click the Network box in the "Boot Order" box. It was unclicked in mine,and that fixed it immediately.
ReplyDeleteI have a Netbook with 2gigs of memory and Ubuntu 9.10 and VirtualBox. Installing the vdi netted a black screen. Installing the vmdk with Linux/other Linux did not connect to the network. Using Linux/Linux 2.6 worked fine. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI first used the .vdi file that turned out be a black screen. then I used the .vmdk file that did the job, then I used the brigde adapter started the machine, wich then complained about an error login. I reset the adapter to NAT en started the machine again, now the login worked, just with your gmail acount and password.
ReplyDeleteFirst look and feel, looks good but I'm missing stuff like screen settings, resolution, i don't know if the os detects thats stuff automaticly.
Still learning.
Thanks! Worked first time for me, vmdk image on VirtualBox 3.0.12 on PLD Linux TH 64bit host. Both bridged and NAT networks work fine.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I'm going to update the guide with Linux/Linux 2.6 settings. Those work for me as well and maybe they will get some people the networking right off the bat.
ReplyDeleteFor all with net problems like me, there is a hidden user "chronos". No password is needed. After loging the net worked for me.
ReplyDelete@Pedro J.
ReplyDeleteI can access the web when I'm logged in with "chronos" (I can even reach my gmai) but I cannot log in via the log on screen. I find that a bit strange, don't you?
@Wally
ReplyDeleteThat is odd. But it is a very early version, so it's expected. Perhaps we could join in the "community" aspect of this open source project and fix it? :)
@Travis R
ReplyDeleteSure =) That would be great. Do you have a link? (A)
@Wally:
ReplyDeleteContributing Code
and if you want to see what others are discussing about the code:
Chrome OS discussion group
I've tried to run it in a macbookpro with 2GB of RAM, vbox 3.0.12, neither NAT & bridged modes didn't work. I'm using the vmdk image and network used is wireless
ReplyDeleteDid you try changing the OS type? To Linux and Linux 2.6?
ReplyDeleteAlso try logging in as chronos (no password) like mentioned in the comments above.
Hi again, I'm the anonymous user with a macbookpro
ReplyDeleteloggin with chronos works and detect network but who's chronos? :-?
then I've changed video RAM from 1MB to 32Mb and enabled video acceleration to get more performance.
As I read in other comments.. there's no difference between ChromeOS and Chrome Browser run in kiosk mode with several two-dot-zero bookmarks as apps... I prefer the look & feel of eyeOS: apps looks like real apps although they use in most of cases webapps.
I think Google has a very long way to go...
regards & thank you TravisR and the other people.
@Luis:
ReplyDeleteNo problem! Chronos seems to be some kind of default user in this alpha/beta build. I agree with you that Chrome OS has a long way to go, but it is a *very* early build. Google doesn't plan to put this on any consumer devices for another year.
A lot later... I finally got to testing a wired network, and that actually works.. Chrome OS here we come..;o)
ReplyDelete@Jonas,
ReplyDeleteI've actually installed Chrome OS to a USB drive and booted my laptop with it (a Gateway, not the MacBook) and wireless doesn't work on it, so I'm going to give a wired connection a try.
I put up a guide for installing it to a USB, if you want to try it. I runs a lot faster than in VirtualBox. I'm actually surprised at how well Chrome OS works, seeing as how early a build it is.
Awesome, thanks for this guide. worked perfectly using the linux settings on my win 7 box.
ReplyDeleteActually, using other, can still connect to the Internet. But in the setting, you should choose "Network Adapter" with "Bridged Connection". Now, it should works.
ReplyDeletethanks it's really help me
ReplyDeleteI got mine running on my Mac virtual box: http://www.chemene.com:8080/Web/Blog/ViewPost.aspx?pageid=1&ItemID=29&mid=2
ReplyDeleteI got mine working: screenshot
ReplyDeletechrome-os-0.4.22.8-gdgt.vmdk
ReplyDeleteMacosx host Virtualbox 3.0.12 reports that the image is not bootable
It works on 10.6.2 with vbox 3.1.
ReplyDeleteNetworking problems could be caused by a proxy server. I tried it at work on my Lenovo T61 laptop where we have a proxy server and it didn't work. I tried it at home with the same laptop where there is no proxy server and connected right away. There should be a capability in chrome os to change proxy settings, but it doesn't seem to work in this version ie: "Customize and control Google Chrome"->Options->"Under the hood tab"->"Change Proxy Settings". So, if you are behind a proxy server you're out of luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information that you have provided. I also got some information about the Installation of Chrome with Virtual Box from
ReplyDeletehttp://www.techarena.in/guide/18379-installing-google-chrome-os-virtualbox.htm
I am eager to install the Chrome.
I have a similar article about running Chrome OS in VirtualBox. If you search for something, or want to ask something or have problems, please don't hesitate to visit or comment on my blog at http://it-nthusiast.blogspot.com/2009/12/google-chrome-os-on-virtualbox.html . Thank you !
ReplyDeletemine worked... win7 virtualbox. but it is VERY SLOW! and i gave it 1.5gb RAM and 100mb video. is everyones slow? or am i doing something wrong?
ReplyDeleteDavid, you might try playing around with your virtualbox settings. Mine wasn't really that slow.
ReplyDeleteI followed everything word for word and it's working perfectly. I had to bump up RAM usage because I don't exactly have the best computer (a 5 year old Pentium 4), but everything is working great...and now I can get rid of it because it's useless, lol.
ReplyDeleteChrome OS is just a browser. Nothing fancy. I hope there will be MUCH more in the official release. I'm unimpressed with what i've seen so far.
Does the operating system you are using get deleted
ReplyDeleteit works
ReplyDeleteThe only way I found to make the network work is select linux 2.6 as the os. The boots pretty fast (7 sec), shutdown is also fast at 3 sec. Surprisingly after you login it feels a little laggie and slow. I suppose thats just virtual machines for you. Pretty cool though. Reminds me of Xpud.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the easy to understand guide, however when I start up virtual box after following your instructions my pc became very slow. Is there any way to improve the speed of pc. Thanks
ReplyDeleteI have followed the guidelines you have given in your guide. My system is working perfectly and there is no problem with it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I followed the instructions, I got a black screen
ReplyDeleteHow do you install guest additions in this os?
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for provide nice info in this blog that to using the great services in this blog. The website main thing is for providing the different articles in this blog and using the simple language in this blog.
ReplyDeletehey does the os we r using gets deleted ??
ReplyDeleteplzzzzzzzz tell me
works well for me, thank you.
ReplyDeleteBen.