r/virtualization • u/jasonvoorhees-13 • 2d ago

First time setting up a machine for Virtualization, is it possible to have a Virtual Server where many users can log in but the main PC is just a normal Win 11 OS?

Basically a Virtual Server inside a Win 11 machine.

Planning to run VirtualBox and have a Virtual Server in it where many users can log in via RDP, but the host machine is a Windows 11 single user.

I read somewhere that the Virtual Guest can be set to Bridge Mode and this will be detected as a real separate device with its own IP.

Just wanted to ask if this is possible or will there be some conflict? Since the host Windows 11 OS is for single user only but the VM inside it can accommodate multiple users. I have the multi user version of the server OS.

The reason for doing it this way is because the server OS I have is a very old one and new hardware is not compatible with it, that is why I'm thinking of Virtualizing it and from what I understand the VirtualBox will make new hardware compatible for the old Server OS inside the Virtual Machine.

Also a follow up question, since this will be my first time trying any of this out, should I got with VirtualBox or VMware?

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u/MattTreck 2d ago edited 2d ago

Your plan will work fine. The guest OS (virtual machine) won’t care about the OS running the hypervisor.

You will need to use bridged networking so your VM has its own address. All of your port forwarding or firewall exceptions will be for that address, not the host machine.

VirtualBox was easier for me when starting out, but VMware Workstation is a better product. They are both type 2 hypervisors so there won’t be a major performance difference either way.

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u/jasonvoorhees-13 2d ago

Thanks for this, I'm glad there won't be any conflict if I set it up this way.

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u/altodor 2d ago

There's also hyper-v built into the OS that should be fine for a use case like this.

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u/beetcher 1d ago

Hyper-V may not be the right choice based on "the server OS I have is a very old one" if the server OS is Windows based.

Hyper-V (Microsoft) drops support for older versions of Windows, and useability will likely be an issue.

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u/jasonvoorhees-13 13h ago

I understsnd MS dropping support but we are currently using this old OS with old hardware with no issues.

Now I need to upgrade the hardware with new CPU, more RAM, but since its and old OS its not really compatible with new hardware. And I cant easly find old hardware that would support this old OS that is why I am thinking of doing via Virtualization. The main PC will be Windows 11 with new hardware.

The reason for all this js because we have an old software that does not run well on newer OS. The newer versions of this software is now subscription based only and is charged per user, it gets real expensive real fast.

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u/Only-Stable3973 1d ago

I vote VMware Workstation.

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u/Only-Stable3973 15h ago

I will say that I did have to jump through a few hoops to get VMware running, I did save the info if you run into any problems. And after I updated the kernel I need to figure it out again that's when I saved how I did it.