Install VirtualBox helper application

[camerons]

The FOSS4G GISVM seems to work quite well in Sun's Open Source version of Virtual Box, which you can apt-get install from Ubuntu.

To make it work better, like getting the mouse to move freely from the virtual box to your desktop, and to get the display to expand greater than 800x600, it seems you can install virtual box helper applications. See the comment trail on this blog for details:

​http://freegeographytools.com/2008/gisvm-a-virtual-ubuntu-linux-gis-workstation

We need to get this into an install script.

[tmitchell]

Assumed this is about the livedemo disk - reassigning.

[wildintellect]

Looking into this a little more, it looks like there are open source implementations of both VMware and VBox guest tools available via the package manager.

It looks like we could easily create a script to be run the first time a machine is booted up(maybe on the desktop, triggered by user) to install the appropriate tools.

sudo apt-get install open-vm-tools open-vm-toolbox

sudo apt-get install virtualbox-ose-guest-utils

There may be some recommended packages that go along with that, not sure if installing both would conflict with each other or not. Now that I've posted the final vm, please test and provide feedback.

[hamish]

apparently there is come conflict with vmware running at the same time. suggestion: install them both and use inittab runlevels to control which one is used: runlevel 4 could be VMware, level 5 be virtual box, level 3 be neither. (default to neither)

Cameron:

For development, I suggest we don't install the vmware tools, as when you try to access the image over the web, it expands to your screen size, and takes up much more bandwidth.

[hamish]

(adjust symlinks in /etc/rc[3-5].d/)

[wildintellect]

epifanio is recommending we install Virtual Box additions by default and that in testing when running a built iso it will be ignored. For VMWare users installation of the VMWare tools via apt-get should remove the VBox stuff to avoid conflict. This would mean only some users would need to do the extra step as opposed to all current users be effected.

The only issue I see is philosophical: Do we want to do this an give initial preference to VBox?

Test ​iso proving concept

Would be implemented in version 4.0

[hamish]

Replying to wildintellect:

The only issue I see is philosophical: Do we want to do this an give initial preference to VBox?

I'm not familiar enough with these products to give a technical opinion beyond the general 1) any solution which is apt-gettable is simpler and already proven on the platform so therefore easier for us to maintain, and 2) avoid 3rd party solutions which incur redistribution issues. Philosophically fully FOSS solutions should be favoured, whenever available && appropriate.

Hamish

[wildintellect]

We also need this package virtualbox-ose-guest-x11 looks like they split the X stuff out from the rest of the tools.

[hamish]

is this partially or fully taken care of by ./install_services.sh now?

apt-get --assume-yes install openssh-server vnc4server

Hamish (who's preference is for a recent build of QEMU-KVM as it's not crippleware, but diversity is + good)

[kalxas]

In version 5.5beta4 the VM works great under VirtualBox. I think this issue should be closed. Comments?

[camerons]

Agree that this issue is fixed, I've closed this issue.