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Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 Removes Linux Support

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the but-adds-the-coveted-multiple-network-interfaces dept.

Psykechan writes "MSFN has got themselves a beta of the new MS Virtual PC 2004 which should be out at the end of this year. Most notable in their 'fixes' is the removal of Linux, BSD, Netware, and Solaris from the supported OS list. They may still work, they just aren't supported. We all thought that this would happen after MS bought Connectix but this just makes it official."

23 of 481 comments (clear)

  1. Pretty useless then by gilesjuk · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Why bother buying it at all then? if you really can only really test Microsoft OSes with it now then I can't see that being of much use to anyone.

    1. Re:Pretty useless then by PsyQ · · Score: 5, Informative

      Ummm.. Because it allows Mac OS users to run Windows applications? What other application does that (reliably)? SoftWindows has died, SoftPC had the same fate and RealPC is completely destroyed. Did you even consider that before posting?

      The only hope now lies in Bochs, an open source PC emulator/virtual machine thingy. Currently it's quite hard to configure and has very low compatibility with existing x86 OS's, but at least it somewhat works and the source is out there.

    2. Re:Pretty useless then by Mwongozi · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Although this is a pretty depressing state of affairs, don't be so damn naive. 99% of Virtual PC users run Windows on it, and nothing else.

    3. Re:Pretty useless then by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I use Virtual PC 5 on Windows at work to build & test Dephi & Java software. We get an enormous amount of control over the build and test enviroments by configuring the virtual machines exactly as we want them and enabling Undo Drives; the configuration can not change so we're 100% sure that the same setup is always used. This is much better than our current setup where I have to strugle to maintain four machines, especially the Delphi machines.

      We went for Virtual PC because it was cheaper than VMWare (By quite some margin, I might add).

      However we've already been shafted by the Connectix - Microsoft handover; we bought VPC 5.0, and when we wanted to upgrade to 5.2 they're no longer available. All we can get is a 5.2 trial, or the 5.0 we already have. The Virtual PC page at Microsoft also used to say VPC 2004 would be released in November; now it says "End of 2003". Bah!

    4. Re:Pretty useless then by rsmith-mac · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Bochs will never replace VPC as long as Bochs is written in "pure" platform neutral code. VPC works as well as it does because of platform-specific optimizations done all over the place, both in C code and in assembly. This can break compatibility(such as with the new G5), but it's the only way to get enough speed to be useful, otherwise it's going to be like trying to use MAME to run Windows(MAME of course is also pure, but it can get away with this because the environment it emulatates runs at a fraction of the speed of the host).

    5. Re:Pretty useless then by redhog · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Uh, that's why thee's a Plex86. Plex86 shares some code with bochs for the emulation of secure features of the processor and of extenal hadware, but executes ring code natively in ring 3 on the processor, just as VmWare.

      Anyway, I can't see why anybody would care about this VirtualPC M$ junk, when VmWare is out there and compatible with everything except OS/2 (I've checked, and it doesn't work, and OS/2 does not work unde Plex86 either, and there, I got some more debugging info, OS/2 uses a bit in CR2 that none of these vitualizers have caed to virtualize...(But ATM, I can't remember which bit...))

      --
      --The knowledge that you are an idiot, is what distinguishes you from one.
  2. Linux support by zephc · · Score: 4, Informative

    is still in there, you select "Other" in the hard drive image set up, and just have to format the image yourself, rather than VPC doing it for you. End of discussion.

    --
    "I would say that 99 per cent of what my father has written about his own life is false." - L. Ron Hubbard Jr.
    1. Re:Linux support by Alsee · · Score: 4, Informative

      Linux support is still in there... End of discussion.

      Did you even bother to finnish reading the Slashdot story? It says: "They may still work, they just aren't supported."

      So yes Linus still works, at least to some extent. It is NO LONGER SUPPORTED. It may fail in some way, and don't expect any help when you trip over some way in which does fail. It will most likely not work at all with in a future version, it may even fail after applying the next bugfix/patch.

      You cannot safely continue using Virtual PC for Linux, BSD, Netware, or Solaris. Merely applying a patch becomes a game of russian roulette. Not only might it kill the system outright, it could silently cause curruption. Unknown silent curruption is often far more damaging than outright failure.

      -

      --
      - - You can't take something off the Internet! That's like trying to take pee out of a swimming pool.
    2. Re:Linux support by norweigiantroll · · Score: 5, Funny

      So yes Linus still works, at least to some extent. It is NO LONGER SUPPORTED.
      Of course he still works, just not at Transmeta. And what are you doing calling Linus "it"? How dehumanizing. Also, I (and many other fans of Open Source) still support him!

    3. Re:Linux support by boredMDer · · Score: 5, Funny

      And of course if you look earlier in his post -
      Did you even bother to finnish reading
      Coincidence? I think not. He has it out for Linus.

  3. If you can't beat them, eat them by fsterman · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Just like Sony with the Virtual Game Station & Bleem! Cast. Sony sued the bejesus out of Bleem and Connectix. Connectix won and the Bleem ran out of funds. M$ decided to cut straight to the chase. Lets not forget what happened to Bungi after it's acquisition by M$, the games already in production got behind, especial on the ports, and nothing big has happened since then.

    --
    Is there anything better than clicking through Microsoft ads on Slashdot?
  4. Migration by ultrabot · · Score: 4, Funny

    From the MSFT web site:

    Microsoft Virtual PC is a powerful software virtualization solution that allows you to run multiple PC-based operating systems simultaneously on one workstation, providing a safety net to maintain compatibility with legacy applications while you migrate to a new operating system.

    After saying that, it would be kinda embarrassing to mention that it supports Linux.

    --
    Save your wrists today - switch to Dvorak
  5. Never thought I would see this on a Microsoft site by Polyploid+Pimp · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Check out the following statements about Virtual PC for Mac from the Microsoft site: "It has a great Mac OS X user interface and it takes advantage of the stability in Mac OS X."

    Are the guys at MS indirectly saying that Windows is not stable? Seems they could be finally saying it!

    Also, if Virtual PC supports Mac OSX, couldn't it also support some of the BSDs since OSX has at least some BSD components underneath?

  6. Re:VMware? by yamla · · Score: 4, Informative

    No. VMWare is a virtualiser rather than an emulator. You need to emulate the ix86 instruction set on a Mac in order to run ix86 software.

    --

    Oceania has always been at war with Eastasia.
  7. Eddy the Prophet is back. by eddy · · Score: 4, Interesting

    MS removes features in beta, release it and gauge reaction. If highly negative, say "That was only a beta" and add the support back. If no reaction, then go ahead with plan.

    The prophet has spoken.

    --
    Belief is the currency of delusion.
  8. Re:It's not the end of the world... by weileong · · Score: 4, Insightful

    They may still work,

    For those of us who remember Windows 3.11 and DR-DOS, the question that comes to mind is "Really?? For how much longer?"

  9. Anyone notice this? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
    From the FAQ:

    Q. Why is there a delay between the end of sales for Connectix Virtual PC for Windows and the start of sales for the Microsoft version of Virtual PC?

    A. Development work takes time, and we want to ensure a quality product for customers. Much of our development focus is on improving the security of the product so that it meets stringent Microsoft standards.

    :)

  10. This is the first step to killing VMware by katorga · · Score: 4, Insightful

    MS tried to buy VMware and did not succeed. They intended to halt support for Vmware on linux. Instead they bought Connectix and plan to bundle "virtual PC" capability into Windows server in order to kill off the VMware market. Flat out, too many folks are consolodating wintel servers into VMware sessions running on top of Linux and MS does not like it.

  11. Re:Virtual Linux Machine by demon · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The developer of MacOnLinux is supposedly looking at hacking it to run in OS X, so you can run OS 9 and OS X inside MacOS X. There is some preliminary support in its codebase for running a Linux kernel inside the virtual machine, and with appropriate changes to a kernel, it could use a virtual drive, and run a full Linux install, inside the virtual machine. Unfortunately, you can't use an unmodified kernel. You'd have to have support for the MOL block device interface - it doesn't try to pretend it has an IDE interface. MacOS and OS X load drivers at boot (OS 9 loads them out of OF ROMs) to support it, so it's pretty much transparent there, but it might be slightly more involved with Linux.

    If you know what you're doing, he would probably appreciate the help. If not, don't overwhelm Samuel with "ooh, I heard you're gonna do this! whenwhenwhenIWANTITNOWGIMMEGIMME!" This is open source, and he's contributing to the community, so be nice to him, he's doing you a favor by trying at all.

    --

    Sam: "That was needlessly cryptic."
    Max: "I'd be peeing my pants if I wore any!"
  12. that's a joke, right? by twitter · · Score: 4, Insightful

    it allows Mac OS users to run Windows applications? What other application does that (reliably)?

    When Windows applications are themselves reliable, we can fault the maker of emulators and hardware for problems. When the hardware maker is bought by M$, it will soon be junk.

    I'm sure the previous poster considered the dearth of x86 hardware for Mac. He seems to think that x86 hardware for Mac is more useful for running Linux, BSD and other free software than it is for running M$ junk.

    What this means is that Microsoft is moving to put in barbs to mess with anything but Windoze. That these barbs will mess windoze too is not their concern because Microsoft cares even less about Mac users than they care about their own users. They have always done this kind of thing and they always will. The next challenge is the Next Generation Security BIOS which will lock everything but M$ out of commodity hardware. If it's not under M$ control, it won't make money for M$ and M$ can't tollerate that. Wierd, screwed up, agressive and paranoid but true, M$ has and continues to repeate their desire to run everyone's computer.

    --

    Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.

  13. Re:What? You can't code? by TheLink · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "If you want it so badly why don't you write a "contender"? I hate it when people complain about open source / free software but they don't do jack to help out the movement..."

    That's a stupid statement. I wish people would stop using it.

    Just because you are hungry or have an exquisite palate does not make you a good cook/chef.

    There's already tons of crap code out there (BIND, sendmail etc).

    Where people could help is with money. Even if they can't code, they may have other valuable skills and earn money with them. They can use that money to encourage people with the relevant coding skills to code.

    There are many many other ways to help too.

    --
  14. Re:Try VMware on a mac by boaworm · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Stop trolling.

    I configured my DLink DWL 900AP (wireless accesspoint) using Virtual PC. Plugged the USB adapter into my Mac, started VPC and installed software. All done.

    And of course it's a bit slower than VMWare, it has to emulate the CPU, not just work as an API.


    I dont require people to like Apple, but i find it really amusing when people make things up just to whine...

    --
    Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities.
    Aristotele
  15. downloaded it, linux support still in there. by acid_zebra · · Score: 5, Insightful

    calm down people!
    You can download the trial from microsoft, and it still has options for running all the fun stuff (AKA linux, solaris, BSD). So they pulled the support. Big deal! The whole net is our support!
    Look, any simulated X86 architecture that runs windows will by default run linux.
    It's what we've been doing all along, right?

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    -- No Sig is a Good Sig