New Features for Release 7.0

Using Cloud Virtual Machines with Oracle Cloud Infrastructure

A cloud virtual machine (cloud VM) is a new type of VM that represents an Oracle Cloud Infrastructure instance.

Cloud VMs are shown in the VirtualBox Manager machine list, enabling you to create, manage, and control Oracle Cloud Infrastructure instances using Oracle VM VirtualBox.

Using cloud VMs, you can perform the following cloud operations in VirtualBox Manager:

Create a new cloud instance.
Add an existing cloud instance to VirtualBox Manager.
Configure a cloud instance. Change settings, such as display name or shape.
Control a cloud instance. Start, stop, and terminate the instance.
Create instance console connections.

See Using Cloud Virtual Machines for more details.

Unattended Guest OS Installation Changes

Unattended guest OS installation can now be done when you create a new VM using the Create Virtual Machine wizard. An optional step in the wizard enables you to specify the required parameters for unattended guest OS installation.

You can also use the wizard to install the Oracle VM VirtualBox Guest Additions automatically, after the guest OS installation has completed.

See Unattended Guest Installation.

VirtualBox Manager Changes

The following list shows the main improvements to the VirtualBox Manager user interface in this release:

The user interface has a new look and uses embedded dialogs for VirtualBox Manager tools. Progress and warning messages are shown in a sliding panel called the Notification Center.
Accessibility for the user interface has been improved.
Wizard screens have been redesigned and improved.

The Create Virtual Machine wizard includes the following changes:
- An ISO installation medium can be selected for the new VM. Previously this step was done using the First Start Wizard, which has now been retired.
- Unattended installation settings can be configured for the new VM. See Unattended Guest OS Installation Changes.
- More guest OS types are now supported, especially for Linux distributions.
See Creating Your First Virtual Machine.
Extension pack installation and removal is now done using the Extension Pack Manager tool. Previously, the Preferences window was used.
NAT networks are no longer configured using the Network tab in the Preferences window. This functionality has been moved to the Network Manager tool.
New monitoring tools, VM Activity Overview and Session Information, enable monitoring of system resource usage by guest VMs and the host system. See Monitoring of Virtual Machines.
For VMs that do not start up correctly, a wizard is shown that prompts the user to boot from an install ISO.
Tools such as the Guest Control File Manager and Log Viewer can now be accessed directly from VirtualBox Manager, on the machine tools menu for the guest VM.
A context-sensitive help system is available for many wizards and dialogs. Click Help to display the corresponding help topic.

Full Encryption of Virtual Machines

Full encryption of virtual machines is now supported, by using the new VBoxManage encryptvm command.

Previous releases of Oracle VM VirtualBox only supported encryption of the disk images for a virtual machine. You can now also encrypt other data, such as VirtualBox configuration files, EFI boot data, and saved state information.

See Encryption of VMs for more details.

Support for Windows 11

Windows 11 is supported in this release, both as a host platform and as a guest operating system.

See Supported Host Operating Systems.

Improved Support for macOS Hosts

For macOS hosts, this release includes support for the following features:

macOS system extensions
Apple M1 CPUs. An unsupported Technology Preview version is available for Apple silicon. See Supported Host Operating Systems.

Note:

Developer Preview is a public release for developers, which provides early access to unsupported software release and features.

Copying and Pasting of Files

Copy and paste of entire files between the guest and host systems is now supported, using the shared clipboard. This feature requires installation of the Oracle VM VirtualBox Guest Additions.

Networking Mode for Connections to a Cloud Service

This release introduces a new networking mode, called a cloud network. Using a cloud network enables a local VM to integrate with a virtual cloud network (VCN) on a remote Oracle Cloud Infrastructure service. See Cloud Networks.

The Cloud Networks tab in Network Manager lists all cloud networks that are currently available.

Improved 3D Graphics Support

The VMSVGA graphics controller now includes improved 3D graphics rendering. This graphics controller supports standards such as Vulkan, OpenGL, and DirectX.

Improved Hyper-V Support

Performance improvements have been made for running Oracle VM VirtualBox on a Hyper-V Windows host, including support for nested VMs.

Default Type for Host Audio Driver

The Default type can now be specified as the Host Audio Driver for a VM. See Audio Settings.

The Default option is enabled for all new VMs and selects the best audio driver automatically, depending on the host platform. This enables you to move VMs between different platforms without having to change the audio driver.

VBoxManage Command Line Changes

The following VBoxManage command changes have been introduced:

VBoxManage debugm: The guestsample subcommand creates a report of the guest activity and can be used to diagnose issues with virtual machines.
VBoxManage encryptvm: This new command enables encryption of virtual machine data. See Full Encryption of Virtual Machines.