Meet Hyper-V in Windows 10
Microsoft provides a built-in tool called Hyper-V to create a virtual machine on Windows 10. It’s only available on these platforms:
Windows 10 Enterprise (64-bit)Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)Windows 10 Education (64-bit)
While Hyper-V is a useful tool, it may not be the ideal solution for software development. As Microsoft explains about Hyper-V, programs and apps that require specific hardware—like a discrete graphics processor—may not work correctly in a virtual machine. Even more, simply enabling Hyper-V may cause performance issues for “latency-sensitive, high-precision applications.” Not just any computer can run a virtual machine, however. You’ll need to see if your PC’s processor can handle a virtual machine before moving forward.
How to Check Virtual Machine Hardware Compatibility
Here are the hardware requirements from Microsoft:
64-bit Processor with Second Level Address Translation (SLAT)CPU support for VM Monitor Mode Extension (VT-c on Intel CPUs)Minimum of 4GB system memory
Here are the BIOS settings required to run a virtual machine:
Hardware Enforced Data Execution PreventionVirtualization Technology (or a similar label, depending on the motherboard manufacturer)
Still not sure your Windows 10 PC can run a virtual machine using Hyper-V? Microsoft provides the means to find out. Follow these steps:
How to Enable Hyper-V in Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise, and Education
It’s likely your Windows 10 PC doesn’t have Hyper-V features turned on by default. If that’s the case, you won’t find any Hyper-V entries on the Start Menu. Follow these steps to get your virtual machine support up and running.
If you see “Yes” next to the four Hyper-V requirements: Your PC can run a virtual machine.If you see “No” next to the four Hyper-V requirements: Your CPU doesn’t support virtual machines and/or you need to adjust settings in the BIOS.If you see “No” next to “Virtualization Enabled in Firmware” in the results: You will need to reboot into the PC’s firmware and enable this feature. The setting’s label depends on your PC’s motherboard and BIOS version.If you see “A hypervisor has been detected. Features required for Hyper-V will not be displayed” in the results: You’re already running Hyper-V in Windows 10.
How to Create a Virtual Machine in Windows 10 Using Hyper-V Quick Create
This is one of two methods to create a virtual machine using Windows 10’s built-in tool. It’s the quickest and visually easier of the two. Here you’ll find options to install two Linux builds, the MSIX Packaging Tool Environment, and the Windows 10 Development Environment. If you want to run a preview build of Windows 10, you’ll need to manually download an ISO.
How to Create a Virtual Machine in Windows 10 Using Hyper-V Manager
At first glance, this version looks old-school compared to the Quick Create version. However, this interface is the meat of your virtual machine loading and unloading. Here you’re provided with advanced tools for importing a virtual machine, creating a virtual machine from scratch using a step-by-step process, and more. However, if you have a different OS you want to use, continue on with Step 4. You can access the simpler Quick Create tool from this interface as well.
A Virtual Machine Example: Ubuntu 19.04
Once you select the Ubuntu 19.04 option and click Create Virtual Machine, the Hyper-V client will download and install Ubuntu in a software “container” (aka virtual machine). Once completed, Hyper-V prompts you with two buttons. However, if you have a different OS you want to use, continue on with Step 5.
How to Load Your Virtual Machine
Because you’re not installing a second operating system directly onto your PC, there’s no shortcut on the Start Menu or the desktop. There’s also no option to load your virtual machine from the Hyper-V Quick Create tool. Instead, you must load and shut down your virtual machine using the Hyper-V Manager.
