Qemu can emulate many things including Windows operating systems. However, being that it must boot from an ISO image or CD, it needs to be a Live CD. It is possible to boot from a Windows Setup disc, but it is difficult to get through the setup completely. The best choice when using Qemu is to download/rip the ISO image of your favorite Live CD. I will explain how to set this up and get yourself emulating.
I am going to run Knoppix 3.7 through Qemu. I will share other OS's that I have run and tried and what my take is on using them.
You will need to download a Windows installer version of Qemu. I am using 0.7.2. Version 0.8 was released on December 19th, but currently there is no Windows version supporting that update yet. Go ahead and install that.
Once completed, you should have a Shortcut in your start menu called QemuMenu. Go ahead and open that. The first thing you need to do is set the amount of memory that Qemu is allowed to use. Hit M and enter. Now it asks you how much in MB you would like to use.I recommend at least 256 MB. It defaults to 128 and there is a noticeable difference when you add even a little bit. If you have 768 MB or more, I suggest giving it a good 512 MB. This will reduce hangs and gliches alot more. Type in your choice and hit enter. This brings you back to main screen.
I am assuming that you have an ISO of a LiveCD already on your computer. If not, you can rip the ISO from a CD you have using a trial of Alcohol 120%. If you have no CDs to rip, you can download an ISO from a number of different sites based on your choice of distrobution. Here are links to a few you may want to try.
- Ubuntu Linux
- Knoppix (use version 3.9 or earlier)
- PCLinuxOS
- Damn Small Linux (just use the embedded version, read this article)
- PuppyLinux (site is hard to reach, look for a mirror)
If you are not happy with those, check out FrozenTech's LiveCD List or DistroWatch.
Back in Qemu, you will need to create an image file. Well, wait! Isn't the ISO that I just downloaded the image file? No. The image file is like a virtual harddrive that Qemu uses. Since this is a LiveCD, theoretically no harddrive is even required, right? Right. But, in order for Qemu to boot from a LiveCD, you must assign it to an image file. To create an image file, type c in Qemu. Give it a name (I use 'linux') and a size in MB. Being that this a LiveCD, we need no harddrive space, so make it 1MB in size just so Qemu recognizes it. Choose the raw compression format.
Now you should be back at the main menu. We need to assign the ISO file to the image. Type I and hit enter. It will ask you to drag and drop the ISO file onto the Qemu window. Go ahead and do that. Hit enter, then Y.
Back at the menu again, it is time to boot. Type in the number of your image you created. Usually 1. Hit enter and your LiveCD should start booting. Congrats! You can now run Linux within Windows in a quick and easy way.
As of now, I have tried running Ubuntu Live, Kubuntu Live, Knoppix 3.7 and Knoppix 4.0. I only had a problem with Knoppix 4.0. For some reason it would hang at the first line of text.
Article by: Colin
