Detailed Tutorial on Installing VirtualBox 6.0 on CentOS 8 / RHEL 8

VirtualBox is a free and open source virtualization tool that allows technicians to run multiple virtual machines (VMs) of different flavors simultaneously. It is commonly used to run desktops (Linux and Windows) and comes in handy when one is trying to explore the features of a new Linux distribution or wants to install software like OpenStack, Ansible, and Puppet in a VM, in which case we can launch a VM using VirtualBox.

VirtualBox is classified as a Type 2 hypervisor, which means it requires an existing operating system on which to install the VirtualBox software. VirtualBox provides the ability to create either a local network or a NAT network. In this article, we will demonstrate how to install the latest version of VirtualBox 6.0 on CentOS 8 and RHEL 8 systems and show you how to install VirtualBox extensions.

Installation steps for VirtualBox 6.0 on CentOS 8 / RHEL 8

Step 1: Enable VirtualBox and EPEL repository

Log in to your CentOS 8 or RHEL 8 system and open the terminal. Execute the following commands and enable VirtualBox and EPEL package repositories:

[root@linuxtechi ~]# dnf config-manager --add-repo=https://download.virtualbox.org/virtualbox/rpm/el/virtualbox.repo

Import the Oracle VirtualBox public key using the following rpm command:

[root@linuxtechi ~]# rpm --import https://www.virtualbox.org/download/oracle_vbox.asc

Enable the EPEL repository using the following dnf command:

[root@linuxtechi ~]# dnf install https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/epel-release-latest-8.noarch.rpm -y

Step 2: Install VirtualBox build tools and dependencies

Run the following command to install all VirtualBox build tools and dependencies:

[root@linuxtechi ~]# dnf install binutils kernel-devel kernel-headers libgomp make patch gcc glibc-headers glibc-devel dkms -y

After successfully installing the above dependencies and build tools, proceed with installing VirtualBox using the dnf command.

Step 3: Install VirtualBox 6.0 on CentOS 8 / RHEL 8

If you wish to list the available versions of VirtualBox before installing it, execute the following dnf command:

[root@linuxtechi ~]# dnf search virtualbox
Last metadata expiration check: 0:14:36 ​​ago on Sun 17 Nov 2019 04:13:16 AM GMT.
================ Summary & Name Matched: virtualbox =====================
VirtualBox-5.2.x86_64 : Oracle VM VirtualBox
VirtualBox-6.0.x86_64 : Oracle VM VirtualBox
[root@linuxtechi ~]#

Let’s install the latest version of VirtualBox 6.0 using the following dnf command:

[root@linuxtechi ~]# dnf install VirtualBox-6.0 -y

If any local user wants to connect the usb device to VirtualBox VM, then he/she should be a member of vboxusers group, use the usermod command below to add the local user to vboxusers group.

[root@linuxtechi ~]# usermod -aG vboxusers pkumar

Step 4: Access VirtualBox on CentOS 8 / RHEL 8

There are two ways to access VirtualBox. Type virtualbox in the command line and press Enter:

[root@linuxtechi ~]# virtualbox

In the desktop environment, search for "VirtualBox" in the search box.

Click on the VirtualBox icon:

This confirms that VirtualBox 6.0 has been successfully installed, let’s install its extension pack.

Step 5: Install VirtualBox 6.0 Extension Pack

As the name suggests, VirtualBox extension packs are used to extend the functionality of VirtualBox. It adds the following features:

• USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 support
• Virtual RDP (VRDP)
• Disk image encryption
• Intel PXE Boot
• Host webcam

Download the Virtualbox extension pack to the Downloads folder using the following wget command:

[root@linuxtechi ~]$ cd Downloads/
[root@linuxtechi Downloads]$ wget https://download.virtualbox.org/virtualbox/6.0.14/Oracle_VM_VirtualBox_Extension_Pack-6.0.14.vbox-extpack

After downloading, open VirtualBox and click "File -> Preferences -> Extension", then click the "+" icon to add the downloaded extension pack:

Click "Install" to start installing the extension package:

Click I Agree to accept the VirtualBox Extension Pack License.

After successfully installing VirtualBox extension pack, we will see the following page, click "OK" and start using VirtualBox.

Summarize

The above is a detailed tutorial on how to install VirtualBox 6.0 on CentOS 8 / RHEL 8. I hope it will be helpful to you. If you have any questions, please leave me a message and I will reply to you in time. I would also like to thank everyone for their support of the 123WORDPRESS.COM website! If you find this article helpful, please feel free to reprint it and please indicate the source. Thank you!