Virtualization help

[sentry]

So I've been playing around with virtualization and have come to the conclusion that I would like to try setting up a Windows XP virtual machine (for those times, and users, when it's absolutely needed).

I have a 30 gig partition reserved on a HD for windows and I can get past the first stage of the install fine using either Xen or QEMU. The stage when windows inspects your hardware and copies installation files over. The problem occurs when prompted for reboot, I get a message about NTDETECT failing.

Has anyone got any advice for me?

[moosport]

I briefly tried Xen. Without CD support in guest OS is an issue for me. I went with VMWare Server 1.04 and had been pretty happy with it. It is a lot easier to use.

VMWare ESX is Xen's equivalent. But you have to pay for it. The Server version is free.

[sentry]

Well, I guess I'll give that a whirl and see if it's any easier to use than Xen or qemu.