If you want to install an old operating system like Windows XP in VirtualBox, Qemu or VMware Player, then the first thing you would need is the installation media. For example, in the case of Windows XP, you would need Windows XP CD. Unlike the newer versions of Windows, you cannot download Windows XP ISO image from Microsoft servers. You will have to use your old Windows XP CD to create an ISO image which can then be used to install Windows XP in VirtualBox or any other virtualization software.
It is very easy to create an ISO image from the CD, DVD or other types of optical media if you have all the proper tools like WinCDEmu. With the help of WinCDEmu, you can create a bootable ISO image from any of Windows CDs or DVDs. Here is how:
- First of all download and install WinCDEmu in your Windows PC.
- Insert the optical media in your computer’s optical drive.
- Open Windows File Explorer, right-click on the CD/DVD and choose Create ISO Image.
- It will show a file save dialog. You should choose the folder and ISO file name for the new ISO image.
- It will start copying the data from the optical media and create the ISO image. The progress window will display the time remaining for the completion of the ISO image creation. It will also give you option to auto-mount the new ISO image in a virtual drive.
- When the ISO image is created, it will display a informational message. Now you can start using this ISO image file for anything you want.
WinCDEmu can create ISO images not only from actual CD/DVD media, but also from folders on your hard drive. For this, you can right-click on a folder and select “Create ISO image” from the context-menu. However, ISO created from folders won’t be bootable images.