is there a way to empty the hd completely,

[Devra]

devra is my guest name..................

convenient huh?

[devra@localhost ~]$ whoami
devra
[devra@localhost ~]$

[Just17]

devra is my guest name..................

convenient huh?

[devra@localhost ~]$ whoami
devra
[devra@localhost ~]$

That is good!  


Please open a terminal and do the following command and post back the results

df

[Devra]

now what...do i start over, upgrade vb, or do i go back to root and take vb out there    somehow...

[Devra]

[devra@localhost ~]$ whoami
devra
[devra@localhost ~]$ df
Filesystem            Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda1              12G  4.3G  7.0G  38% /
/dev/sda6             278G  356M  278G   1% /home
[devra@localhost ~]$

[Just17]

now what...do i start over, upgrade vb, or do i go back to root and take vb out there    somehow...

No, never go back to root.

You can do everything from your devra account once you know root's password .......  doing things this way is much much safer.

[agmg]

You scared us, Devra  
Why then did you issue the command free -m as root?

Anyway, I think this thread has gone far away from its original intention.
I believe you should make a new thread regarding your current problems with VirtualBox.

[Just17]

[devra@localhost ~]$ whoami
devra
[devra@localhost ~]$ df
Filesystem            Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda1              12G  4.3G  7.0G  38% /
/dev/sda6             278G  356M  278G   1% /home
[devra@localhost ~]$

That looks fine.
There is no action to be taken it seems.

You can launch VBox again and do the creation procedure.
Do it as Devra and not as root.

Watch for where the Storage Location is to be ........  somewhere under  /home/devra    will be correct.

[Old-Polack]

ok, thanks, did all that, this is where I'm at and want to check before i finalize..
will this be enough space? I let vb select for me


File type:
VDI (VirtualBox Disk Image)
Details:
Dynamically allocated storage
Location:
/root/VirtualBox VMs/windows xp/windows xp.vdi
Size:
10.00 GB (10737418240 B)

I went to the control center and
copied this info

Name: ‎L1-Cache

Installed size: ‎64 kB

Type: ‎Cache


Name: ‎L2-Cache

Installed size: ‎1024 kB

Type: ‎Cache


don't know if it's revelant

Being as no one else seems to have noticed the part I highlighted in blue above, I have to ask... are you running as root? You should not be. You should be running as your normal user always.

The only time it's relatively safe to run as root is when you are running from a liveCD/DVD doing repairs to an installed system. This also should not be done, unless you are being guided by someone with considerably more experience than you now possess. Running as root can cause severe damage to your installed system, as all commands are executed, without question, even if the command will destroy/delete a major part of the running system.

Always login/run as your normal user during normal daily use of your Linux system. If you do need root privileges for a specific task, there are tools provided to your normal user to allow that on a temporary basis, and should only be used until that particular task is completed.

Edit:

It seems this was caught, while I was preparing the above. 

[Devra]

I've encountered another snafu...................
the xp copy i was loaned ( i have a product key of my own) is for an upgrade.

so as there is NOTHING in there right now, there is nothing to upgrade...vb told me all this.

so i'm looking at my laptop across the room and i'm wondering how i can get the vista os off of it onto a disk...

how do i link this to start another topic?  can a moderator do it?

and thanks op, it was caught in time.

[smileeb]

 Devra, Answer questions with the responses of what they have you type.

Finish your install of VM by what they tell you and the info you supply.

After that you can start another reply or request for help on your laptop.

Finish one project before you start another.

[Devra]

I had answered the question, as he stated at the end of his post, the *root* issue had been found earlier and i'd taken care of it.

as my copy of xp that was going to go into the vb was an upgrade and not one of the OS, it wouldn't work.

I did start another post in the software section which is more revelent to the present situation i find myself in.

if i'm out of line please tell me where and I'll get back in line.

[pags]

I've encountered another snafu...................
the xp copy i was loaned ( i have a product key of my own) is for an upgrade.

so as there is NOTHING in there right now, there is nothing to upgrade...vb told me all this.

so i'm looking at my laptop across the room and i'm wondering how i can get the vista os off of it onto a disk...

how do i link this to start another topic?  can a moderator do it?

and thanks op, it was caught in time.

Microsoft can be a real pain in th...

They have many (often exclusionary) licensing schemes.  Just because you have a product key, does not give the legal access to use any particular install media.  The media needs to match the key.  This doesn't even take into consideration Volume Lic., Ent. Lic, or OEM (which, often has media tied to a particluar vendor BIOS)
If at all possible, you should find out what, exactlly, your product key supports, and try to get a matching CD...
 

Also, since NT4 (maybe even 3.5x), moving installed systems between various HW configs (which physcial to virtual is considered) can cause issues, up to and including failure to boot (blue screen).
 

I know you don't want to hear this last part, but publicly condoning violating the licensing (such as getting an installed copy of Vista off of a laptop and copied into a VM), must be frowned upon, as it could open this forum and distro to legal action...

However, if we were to discuss this hypothetically, such migrations are common in business, where Volume and/or Enterprise keys allow for multiple installations from the same media.  There are even tools used in such scenarios that accommodate physical to virtual migration (often focusing on the server-side).
If you had an interest to learn about such tools, I would recommend you do some searching on the term "p2v" with "XP" or "Vista".  Of course, this would be strictly educational...

[Devra]

thanks now my head really hurts.

and no, i have no desire to upset windows or cause problems here, nose, face, spite and all...

guess i have to call ms and see if i can get a copy thru the mail..

HAH

wish me luck.  the vb situation is on hold for now i guess.

[pags]

I would still recommend VirtualBox.

You can do the install from CD (once you have a working one) or ISO file (which you can create from your CD, and put the physical media somewhere safe).
XP won't need a lot of (HD) space, but since the file that will be the virtual harddrive is dynamic (it starts off small, and grows in actual size as files are added), I would configure a 40GB HDD.  As mentioned before, allocate 1GB RAM (you have enough RAM and HDD space).
XP runs quite well virtualized.  I use it for iTunes for my kids' iPods (VirtualBox let you use USB devices in the virtualized environment).

Take your time.  Ask questions.  Ask questions again, if you're not sure.  There are no stupid dumb questions, except the one that wasn't asked. 
It's a good solution, once you're familiar with the concepts.

[Just17]

Devra, you are now in a good position.

You are only using PCLOS as user Devra and not as root.

You have the basics of how Virtual Box works.

All you need is install media for Windows and you are good to go.

There were releases of Windows which were not tied to any particular hardware ....  I have at least one somewhere.

You will have to make up your own mind about such matters as Windows licences and what you are allowed to do with the product under its licence.

None of us here can advise you to do anything that might be illegal in your jurisdiction .... so we cannot advise on the matter at all.
IMO, it is up to the individual ....  but no discussion here  

Hopefully you understand the dilemma.

You do need a Win install media that allows for a full install and not an upgrade.

I hope you locate such media soon ......  you might have friends or acquaintances who have an old copy of a release which is not tied to specific hardware, and that should suit, if they donate it to you.