Ubuntu and VMWare

Youstolemyname · 14 Jan 2009 at 01:06

I recently installed Ubuntu on a spare partition to use as a secure install for all my online banking and credit card transactions, along with any other sensitive data handling. Im sick of hearing about Windows security loopholes so although I need to use Windows for Photoshop and other apps (The gimp just dont cut it) I want Ubuntu for all other sensitive stuff.

However, it is a bit of a pain to have to reboot from Windows when I have been surfing the net and decide I want to use Linux.

Now I know there is an easy solution to this- use Linux all the time

This is not an option though.

My thoughts were to install Ubuntu on a VMWare machine on my windows install. So a couple of quick questions:

1. How does Ubuntu fare via vmware?
2. Since the host OS is 32bit, can I run 64 bit Ubuntu in VMware and gain 64 bit benefits?
3. If the host OS got infected with a keylogger, would keystrokes in the VMware machine get picked up?

Thanks in advance.

Just want to have a nice, secure, unpolluted OS that I can do my banking etc on even after the missus has crippled windows by installing comet cursor or whatever latest spyware junk

yashiro · 14 Jan 2009 at 01:16

1. Fine.
2. No.
3. Yes.

Youstolemyname · 14 Jan 2009 at 09:56

yashiro said:
1. Fine.
2. No.
3. Yes.

Cheers for this.

HarryPainful · 14 Jan 2009 at 11:31

Your problem is the wife, not windows.

eXor · 14 Jan 2009 at 11:50

Youstolemyname said:
3. If the host OS got infected with a keylogger, would keystrokes in the VMware machine get picked up?

Possibly. I don't know.

If you don't game, it may be a better idea to run Windows in VMware. I don't know if there are any virtual-machine-aware nasties in existence, but having the "insecure" OS as the Host and the "secure" OS as the Guest sounds less than ideal.

The best solution is to do all your sensitive stuff on a well secured laptop. No slow booting inconvenience.

If money is tight, you can pick up a really, really cheap one and put a much slimmer Linux distro on it. It would run a web browser and not much else.

Private_(P)arts · 14 Jan 2009 at 13:30

Im pretty sure that if the physical machine is compromised then the virtual machines are too, however not the other way round.

JC · 14 Jan 2009 at 13:44

Why dont you run linux as your main OS and run photoshop in the VM, works fine here, you can give your wife her own VM too meaning any compromising software and you could just roll-back to a clean install instantly...

malef!c · 15 Jan 2009 at 20:33

I have Ubuntu desktop and server running fine in Virtualbox - nice and fast.
Both running happy in 256Mb VM