Using Hyper-V in Windows 8

To access Hyper-V, open the Start screen and search for hyper. There are two options. You use the first option, Hyper-V Virtual Machine Connection, to connect your computer to a VM hosted on a Windows server or running quietly in the background on your computer. You will want to open the second option, the Hyper-V Manager.

Is Hyper-V activated on your computer?
Hyper-V might not be visible when you search for it on your computer. If this is the case, search for Programs and Features and run it from the Settings search results. In the left panel, click Turn Windows Features On Or Off; you will see Hyper-V listed in the dialog that appears. Select the check box to activate it.
Remember that Hyper-V is only supported in the 64-bit versions of Windows 8 Pro and Enterprise.

The Hyper-V Manager looks much the same as most other administration and management windows in Windows 8. The main controls are in Actions pane on the right. To create a new VM, perform the following steps:

1. In the Actions pane, click New and then click Virtual Machine.
   The New Virtual Machine Wizard opens.
2. Click through the first page of the wizard. On the second page (Specify Name And Location), assign the name of the VM and the hard disk location where you wish the VHD file to be stored.
3. On the next page (the Assign Memory page), specify how much memory to allocate to the VM.
   If you think you might need more memory for the VM in the future but can't allocate it all at this stage (it can't be changed later), select the Use Dynamic Memory For This Virtual Machine check box. With this selected, Hyper-V can automatically increase the memory allocation to the VHD when required.
4. On the Configure Networking page, specify what network connector to attach to the VM.
   You might find that there are no available options here.
5. On the Connect Virtual Hard Disk page, the wizard asks you to specify the size of the VM. You can also attach an existing VM at this point.
6. Lastly, on the Installation Options page, you are asked if you want to install an operating system into the VM now, later, or not at all.
   You can install an OS from a CD, DVD, ISO file, USB Flash Drive, or even a Floppy Disk.
7. Hyper-V displays your chosen settings for you to review. Confirm the setup and close the wizard by clicking Next, or click Previous if you need to make any changes.
8. In the main Hyper-V Management console, in the Virtual Machines pane (top center), click your VM, and then in the bottom half of the Actions pane, click Connect.
9. A VM window appears but you still need to start the VM. To do this, on the Action menu of the new window, click Start.

Creating Virtual Switches in Hyper-V

Mentioned earlier that there might be no available network connections when you set up your VM. This is because you need to create a Virtual Switch in the main Hyper-V Management console. To do so, perform the following procedure:

1. In the Actions pane, in the upper panel, click Virtual Switch Manager.
2. In the window that appears, give the virtual switch a name and then select what type of network connection you want it to have. Only external network types can access storage on the host computer, shared storage on the network, and the Internet. Internal and private networks are only for connecting to other VMs.
3. If you select External Network, you need to specify which network card in your computer the VM can use.
   
   Isolating Windows XP from the Internet and why you should do it
   Mentioned at the beginning of this tutorial, all support for Windows XP ends in April 2014. After this date there will be no more security, stability or other patches and updates.
   
   This makes Windows XP a security nightmare if it is allowed Internet access, because we can be certain that malware writers will target the OS (which is still widely used in the Far East) the moment all support ends. This threat isn't diminished even if the computer is sitting behind a hardware-based firewall in addition to the standard Windows XP firewall, because the security threat to XP from malware is so high, and most malware is delivered by tricking the user into installing it.
   
   You can isolate an installed copy of Windows XP from the Internet, protecting it from malware that doesn't come directly from your own files, if your computer has both wired (Ethernet) and wireless (Wi-Fi) connections but only if you use the Wi-Fi connection to get online and if the Ethernet port does not have a physical network cable plugged into it.
   
   Choosing the wired connection will allow the VM access to files stored locally on your computer but doesn't grant it access to your home or work network, nor does it grant it access to the Internet.
   
   You now need to connect the Virtual Switch to your VM. Again, you do this in the Hyper-V Manager console by performing the following steps:
   
   
4. Select your VM in the Virtual Machines pane (top center) and then in the Actions pane, in the lower panel, click Settings.
5. In the window that appears, in the left pane, see if you already have a Network Adapter listed. If you do, click it and change the Virtual Switch option to the switch you have created.
6. If you do not have a Network Adapter listed, click the Add Hardware link to add one and then add your virtual switch to it.

Integrating other services into a VM
Some operating systems still won't give you Internet or network access at this point. This means that you will need to install the Integration Services into the VM. To do this, with the VM running, on the Action menu, click Insert Integration Service Setup Disk.