Carnegie Mellon University School of Computer Science

Launching an SCS Virtual Machine

When we install a Virtual Machine (VM) on a new host computer, the VM is installed using an account different from the standard user account. As a result, the VM may need to be added to VirtualBox. The steps to add a VM will vary slightly depending on the operating system running on the host computer. (The operating system on the VM will not impact the instructions.)

Linux hosts

On Linux hosts, you should not need to add the VM. The VM should appear in VirtualBox when you open it. To launch a VM using VirtualBox on a Linux host, follow these steps:

  1. Open VirtualBox
  2. Double-click the VM that appears on the left of the main display area

Windows hosts

To add a VM on a Windows computer, follow these steps:

  1. Open VirtualBox
  2. From the main menu, select Machine and then Add...
  3. Navigate to C:\Users\Public\VirtualBox VMs\gsYYNNN\ (where gsYYNNN is the hostname)
  4. Select the .vbox file
  5. Click Open

Now that the VM has been added, it can be launched, Double-click the VM as it appears on the left side of the main display area to launch it.

macOS hosts

To add a VM on a MacOS computer, follow these steps:

  1. Open Terminal
  2. Run the following commands:
    1. cd /Users/Shared/
    2. sudo chown -R username "VirtualBox\ VMs" (When prompted, use the password used to log in to the laptop.)
  3. Open VirtualBox
  4. From the main menu, select Machine and then Add...
  5. Navigate to /Users/Shared/VirtualBox VMs/gsYYNNN/ (where gsYYNNN is the hostname)
  6. Select the .vbox file
  7. Click Open

Notes

VM settings like the amount of RAM allocated to the VM can be freely modified. Please contact us with questions about changes to settings. By default, laptops should be configured to use the WiFi interface.