.. _vbox_intro:


VBox Introduction
++++++++++++++++++

A “virtual computer” is a computer (a "guest") emulated in software, running
on a physical computer (a "host").  Its display can be run in a window on the
host, or it can take over the full screen. The emulation is accomplished by
“virtualization software”, the two main options for our purpose being
`Virtual Box <https://www.virtualbox.org/>`_ and
`VmWare <http://www.vmware.com/>`_.

This example is written for Virtual Box, which is freely available for
Windows, OSX, and Linux computers.

Running a "virtual computer" will only work on a computer with
reasonably generous resources: the virtual computer will need the following
from the host:

- at least 4Gb memory
- at least 16Gb video RAM
- 20Gb of hard drive space.

.. image:: /images/vbox_intro/vbox_intro.png
   :alt: CODAS virtual box introduction
   :scale: 70

.. image:: /images/vbox_intro/vbox_introB.png
   :alt: CODAS virtual box introduction
   :scale: 70




(Return to :ref:`TOP<Virtual_Computer_Setup>`)