Oracle has released VirtualBox 7.1, a major update to its popular virtualisation software. This release introduces a range of new features and improvements, focusing on user experience, cloud integration, and performance enhancements.
Table of Contents
Key Highlights of VirtualBox 7.1
1. Modernized GUI:
The user interface has undergone a significant overhaul, now offering a choice between "Basic" and "Experienced" user levels.
This allows users to tailor the interface to their needs, simplifying access to essential functions or providing more advanced options.
2. Enhanced OCI Integration:
VirtualBox 7.1 deepens its integration with Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI). The performance dashboard now displays resource usage for cloud-based virtual machines (VMs). Users can also clone and reset compute instances directly from the VirtualBox interface.
3. Improved Networking and VRDE:
This release introduces a new NAT engine with IPv6 support to enhance network compatibility and performance.
The Virtual Remote Desktop Extension (VRDE) now defaults to using self-signed TLS certificates if custom certificates are not configured.
4. Expanded Platform Support:
VirtualBox 7.1 adds support for Arm virtualisation on macOS/Arm hosts, allowing users to run Linux and BSD VMs on Apple Silicon Macs.
Wayland support has been added for Clipboard sharing on Linux hosts and guests, improving cross-platform usability.
5. Enhanced Guest Additions:
The latest Guest Additions introduce several improvements, including initial support for file transfers via Shared Clipboard on Linux and Windows, and significant performance optimisations for screen recording on Windows guests.
Other Notable Improvements
1. Unattended Installation Enhancements:
Setting up VMs in unattended mode is now more versatile with added support for subiquity-/cloud-init-based installers and the ability to specify separate passwords for user and administrator accounts.
2. VBoxManage Command Line Tool:
This release adds the ability to track and re-attach to a VM's video recording progress and a new Guest Control subcommand to query guest mount points.
3. Improved Accessibility and Bug Fixes:
VirtualBox 7.1 includes improvements to overall accessibility and updates to the Qt framework for better stability.
Bug Fixes
Numerous bug fixes address issues related to virtualisation performance, network drivers, EFI certificates, and more. Some of them are:
1. Improved Virtual Machine Manager (VMM):
This release addresses an issue with how EFLAGS.TF (Trap Flag) was handled for CPUID instructions when Hyper-V was being used.
2. Enhanced virtio-net Driver:
This release includes follow-up fixes for issues encountered with FreeBSD 12.3 and pfSense 2.6.0.
3. Improved EFI Support:
Users can now add new Microsoft DB/KEX certificates to newly created virtual machines.
4. Oracle Extension Pack Fix:
This release fixes an issue with the Oracle Extension Pack where the cryptographic support module for full VM encryption was not being shipped correctly.
5. GUI Enhancements:
Beyond the modernisation, this release also brings improvements to the overall accessibility of the GUI. It also updates the version of Qt used, likely leading to increased stability and performance.
6. VBoxManage Additions:
The VBoxManage command-line tool has been enhanced with the ability to:
- Show and re-attach to a (video) recording progress of a VM
- Query the guest's mount points via a new "mount" Guest Control subcommand (requires Guest Additions 7.1 or later)
7. Python API Changes:
The Python API bindings for Python 2.x are now marked as deprecated and will be removed in a future version. Users are encouraged to upgrade their code to use Python 3.
8. VBoxShell Improvements:
This release includes a number of smaller and bigger bug fixes for VBoxShell, as well as compatibility with Python 3.x.
Important Note: Oracle has updated the license for the VirtualBox Extension Pack, removing the evaluation option. Users who require the Extension Pack for evaluation purposes can download it from the Oracle Software Delivery Cloud.
Download Oracle VirtualBox 7.1
You can download Oracle VirtualBox 7.1 from the following link:
In the Downloads page, you can download VirtualBox 7.1 version for Linux (both RPM and DEB-based systems), macOS, Solaris and Windows platforms. It also has VirtualBox additions and extensions for all platforms.
Resource:
Related Read:
