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Software For Other Operating Systems
attachment:SeamlessVirtualizationResized.png
You can run applications created for other Operating Systems inside Ubuntu using two different approaches:
Running a different OS inside Ubuntu (typically done with virtualization).
- Using a Windows compatibility layer, like Wine or Cedega
In general, desktop and server apps work better with virtualization, multimedia apps like games work better with Wine or Cedega.
Playing Windows Games
[:Cedega:Cedega] can be used to play Windows games, including Half Life 2, Battlefield 1942 and most popular first person shooters. If Cedega can't play a Windows game, then it's unlikely that game can run under Linux at all. [:Wine:Wine] also plays a smaller list of games, including World of Warcraft.
Running Well Known Windows Desktop Apps
If you only need to run a well known Windows app - for example Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office, and World of Warcraft - check if it's supported by Wine. If not, see below.
Running any Windows desktop or server app
attachment:screenshot+windows+xp+in+qemu.png Windows XP run using QEmu on Feisty 7.04
You can run any Windows desktop or server app - with the exception of games - using a variety of virtualization tools.
- Ubuntu 6.06, 6.10, and 7.04 can run Windows, and all its apps, using
[:VirtualBox:VirtualBox] - Simple, Open Source, and can run all versions of Windows including Vista.
[:VMware:VMware] - Also simple, and more well known than VirtualBox. However VMware is proprietary software.
[:XenVirtualMachine:Xen] - Open Source, but complex and slower than VMware and KVM for running Windows.
- Ubuntu 7.04 also includes two virtualization tools that can run Windows in Linux:
[:KVM:Kernel Virtualization] (KVM) requires an Intel or AMD CPU that supports VT or Pacifica technology.
[:WindowsXPUnderQemuHowTo:QEmu] works on all systems. Feisty includes the kqemu driver, necessary to run Windows XP at speed.
[:SeamlessVirtualization:Seamless Virtualization] shows how to make applications from virtualized Windows OS appear directly on the Linux desktop.
Available Methods to Run Software from Other Operating Systems
Runs |
Tool |
Required Ubuntu Release |
Requires Hardware Virtualization |
Open Source |
Any x86 OS, including Windows |
[:VirtualBox:VirtualBox] |
6.06 or newer |
No |
Yes |
Any x86 OS, including Windows |
[:KVM:Kernel Virtualization] |
7.04 beta |
Yes |
Yes |
Any OS, including Windows |
[:WindowsXPUnderQemuHowTo:QEmu] |
7.04 (earlier Ubuntu lack the acceleration driver needed to run most OSs at full speed) |
No |
Yes |
Any x86 OS, including Windows |
[:VMware:VMware Player, Workstation, or Server] |
6.06 and newer |
No |
No |
Any x86 OS, including Windows |
[:XenVirtualMachine:Xen] |
6.06 and newer |
Yes, unless running Linux |
Yes |
Specific Windows Programs |
["Wine"] |
6.06 and newer |
No |
Yes |
Windows games |
["Cedega"] |
6.06 and newer |
No |
Mixed proprietary and OSS,must be purchased for full functionality |
Mac OS X (PPC) only |
[:MacOnLinuxHowto:Mac on Linux] |
6.06 and newer |
No |
Yes |
Linux |
OpenVZ |
6.06 and newer |
No |
Yes |