Which virtualization software?

Hi,

I'm using Vista 32bit.

I tried Returnil Free version before,

but when I wanted to install a software,

I had to turn off the protection and reboot then install it.
(when I wanted the turn the protection on, I had to reboot again)

It was kind of uncomfortable to use.

So here is my question,

Is there a virtualiztion software which I can allow to remain a software installed even after a reboot?
And perhaps easy to use for newbies?

I don't care if I have to pay for the software, but I hope it's the average price for these kind of software.

But if there is no such software, which one provides a superb protection?

Thanks in advance!

 

Here's a link talking about lite virtualization where Blue gives the pros and cons.

 

Hello Ohmy,

While I have no personal experience with it, I believe that Altiris SVS(free) is what you are looking for.

http://www.svsdownloads.com/ (SVS Client 2.1 HF2 Personal)
http://lifehacker.com/software/inst...nstall-software-in-a-virtual-layer-162910.php (Hack Attack: Safely install software in a virtual layer)
http://www.donationcoder.com/Forums/bb/index.php?topic=7208.0 (Mini-Review: Altiris SVS)
http://www.freewaregenius.com/2007/02/19/altiris-svs/ (Altiris SVS)
http://4sysops.com/archives/review-symantec-altiris-software-virtualization-solution/ (Review: Symantec Altiris Software Virtualization Solution)
http://www.mydigitallife.info/2008/...on-svs-client-free-download-with-license-key/ (Symantec Altiris Software Virtualization Solution (SVS) Client Free Download with License Key)

Hope this helps.


Peace & Gratitude,

CogitoErgoSum

 

If you have the cash you could try rollback rx. It will do exactly what you want however it is a bit pricey at $69. There is a cheaper alternative called ayrecovery which is only $50 and is simply rollback under a different name

Or else there's a couple of cheaper options such as drive vaccine or first defense rescue which will also allow you to do what you described, they're around $39 however they don't have the advanced features of rollback.

 

Thanks all for your replies.
I really appreciate it.

Hi,
Is first defense recue and FD-ISR the same thing?
What do you mean by the advanced features?
Do I really need it?

I'll have to trial some popular virtualization software in order to see if it fits my need.
So what are the popular virtualization softwares I should try?? I only heard a lot about "DeepFreeze", "FD-ISR", "Returnil".
I hope it's not that expensive.

Thanks!

 

By advanced features i mean having multiple system snapshots, having the ability to jump back and forth between those snapshots, system backup/restore, disaster recovery etc... Programs like rollback rx, ayrecovery, eaz-fix and radix reload will allow you to do this.
Whether you need these features or not depends on what exactly you want to achieve. If you like to test software like i do then these programs work very well. Once you have your system exactly how you like it you install the program which creates a baseline snapshot which always stays the same so you can always revert back to your original setup whenever you want. From there you can install/test whatever you want, if you don't like it you simply reboot back to your baseline snapshot. If you like it you can create another snapshot which saves all changes. You can literally have hundreds of snapshots and boot back and forth between them.

FD-ISR and Firstdefense rescue are not exactly the same thing. Rescue is a cut down version of FD-ISR however rescue is the only one still available. It allows you to have 2 system snapshots so you could use one for testing and one for normal use for example.

Deepfreeze suffers the same problem as the free returnil in that you cannot keep changes over a reboot. The paid version of returnil does allow you to retain changes however once you've saved the changes they cannot be undone. Drive vaccine is similar to returnil and deepfreeze however it allows you to keep changes over a reboot and still undo them if needed. You can also permanently save the changes if needed as well.

I think you should first figure out exactly what you want to achieve and then decide which one best suits your needs.

 

Hello,

Try MojoPac:
http://www.mojopac.com/portal/content/hellomojo.jsp

Mrk

 

Maybe its better now but the last time tryed (4 mnd ago) it was full of bugs.

 

Hello,

I'm using it extensively = 0 bugs. I'm running games off it, even virtualization software.

Could you please elaborate what bugs?

Mrk

 

Hi,

Thanks for your reply.

I think I like First Defense Rescue,
because If I try a software out and don't like it,
I'll simply have to press the F1 button during the boot up.

I would love to try
rollback rx, ayrecovery, eaz-fix and radix reload you mentioned.
However, the price seems steep for me.

Price like FirtDefense Rescue($30~$45) seems just right for me, if there is any more

Whats the main difference between FD-ISR and FD Rescue?
I see more people using FD-ISR, but not FD Rescue?

Thanks!

 

@ohmy With FD-Rescue you do not have to use the F1 to boot to a rescue area.You can go to FD Rescue management and on the Action tab will find the option of boot to rescue area.Example Install any new software you want you dont like open management action boot to rescue area once booted then copy update boot back to orginal and wala software gone.If you Like to keep any new software you open FD copy update and now your new software is included in your active area.The F1 is needed if your system needs to be booted to rescue area before windows starts If unstable.You can use it either way F1 or the management.cheers

 

Greetings

Have you looked at Steady State?

Believe it or not, it's from Microsoft. It does exactly what you want.

When you reboot, everything is returned to the original state EXCEPT if you select for changes to be made permanent.

So, if you are going to install a new program, or update your viral program etc, you select for changes to be permnent. Install you program, update your files etc, then reboot. On a reboot, the changes you made, program you installed etc is now still there. OK - now you deselect the permanent feature and carry on doing whatever you want to do. When you reboot, all those changes will be deleted ... but of course NOT the programs etc you selected to remain.

Works on XP and Vista. There is also an excellent handbook you can download from the Microsoft Windows SteadyState site.

And ... wait for it ... believe it or not ... it's completely FREE!

The link is :

http://www.microsoft.com/uk/windows/products/winfamily/sharedaccess/default.mspx

Please note this is the United Kingdom site, but all the information and the program download (6.5mb) is exactly the same as on their USA site.

Go for it!

Dr. Mac

 

Take the FREE if it works for you, but RETURNIL is also free and Farionics Deep Freeze is a classical static application (shareware) app that is extremely reliable and locks your sessions TIGHT whereupon a simple reboot from it's program can offer you options to keep your sessions restored as they were or open it up to add programs then re-lock them again.

EASTER

 

The original FD-ISR allowed you to have up to 10 snapshots, it had a freeze function would undo all changes upon reboot to selected snapshots, it had an archive feature to backup snapshots. It also had an empty snapshot option so you could install a clean copy or even a different version of windows alongside your current setup.
Sadly this original version has been discontinued, the only remaining version is rescue which has none of the mentioned features and only allows 2 snapshots. The only people using the original version are those who bought it while it was still available. Theres nothing else thats quite like fd-isr as far as i know.

Another option is drive vaccine from horizondatasys which is the same price as rescue and is basically a cutdown version of rollback rx. It only lets you have one snapshot but you can play with that snapshot as much as you want before deciding if you want to revert or keep the changes.

The cheapest of the rollback software is ayrecovery which is $50, so its not that much more expensive than rescue yet its far more convenient and efficient than rescue imo.

 

With Vista you don't need any aditional virtualization. Vista has virtualization in its core.

 

Mrk,

Nice find. Interesting approach to things. On a quick look, seems nice and stable. I'm taking it for a spin on one of the WD Passport drives I have laying around.

Blue

 

mojopac is very good played with it for along time - userland virtualization/software virtualization .

 

Hi,
I like it a lot. I have it on a 250GB WD Passport, running various games, Matlab, VirtualBox and whatnot ... Lots and lots of goodies in such a small product
Mrk

 

My experiences so for,even though against all odds (miserable past experiences with it in march 2008 i give it one more try but i have to admit shortcomings are still there. On the host where i setup this mojo pac it work fine but on a different rig it can,t initialise the installed software even the default copied IE plorer stay silent,weird that Sandboxie on the host throw up errors and when i try to fire up my internet radio a command box appear with " could't find DLL in ......System 32 bla bla bla. In short on a different host almost nothing work,maybe i'm missing something but for the moment it goes to the thrash,still like to hear others about this stuff.

 

An additional issue with MojoPac is that the host PC has to be XP (i.e., doesn't work on Vista).

 

What exactly do you mean? Could you please explain?

 

Not really an issue as it is not vista compatible but it does't work as expected on my XP pro rigs,maybe i'm missing something but its now the second time i tested it and same miserable results.(see my previous post)

 

SBIE is the culprit on the host,fired up Returnil then uninstalled SBIE,thereafter get Mojo Pac to the desktop and it work as expected.

Strange that SBIE installed in Mojo Pac or not,it does't work either way.
Without question SBIE stay and Mojo Pac is history.

 

Eaz-Fix is $49 from http://www.pcundo.com/eazpro.php

 

Which virtualization has the feature
to restore the frozen image whenever I want to?
Like pressing a button to go back?
Not like Free version of returnil or deepfreeze.
Thanks!