By the way, I’m running Windows 7 64-bit on my laptop (I also have Windows 8.1/10 on my desktop) and I had the same issue: only 32-bit options showed up in VirtualBox. Since I was running Windows 7, that pretty much instantly ruled out Hyper-V as a problem and I was also 100% sure that all virtualization settings were enabled in BIOS. When I start VirtualBox, I only have 32 bit operating systems available. After some research I followed the steps on another post but to no avail. My host OS is 64 bit, Intel Virtualization Technology and VT-d are both enabled in the BIOS, and Hyper-V platform is disabled in the Windows Feature list, yet I still only am presented 32 bit. Jan 22, 2020 Go to the system configuration tab. You will find visualization technology as disabled. Turn it Enabled. Select virtualization technology row and press enter. Press F10 to save the changes and exit. Now I am able to select ubuntu 64 bit when I create VirtualBox.
If the file is not valid or of a different kind, you will not see 64-bit operating systems in the options of VirtualBox. Prerequisite: Making sure you have x64 CPU. To run 64-bit guest operating systems, it is a must that you have an x64 bit supported CPU. There are usually two types of CPUs i.e. 32-bit and 64-bit. I have an optiplex 990 with the latest bios and virtualization enabled in the bios but VirtualBox will not work with 64 bit guests. C: Program Files Oracle VirtualBoxVBoxManage.exe showvminfo 'Windows 7 Pro x64' -details Name: Windows 7 Pro x64 Groups: / Guest OS: Windows 7 UUID: 36be8f72-a364-4e60-81bd-91 Config file: C: Users VirtualBox VMs Windows 7 Pro x64 Windows 7 Pro x64.
When trying to create a Virtualbox VM recently I was only presented with the option of creating a 32-bit client. After a bit of research it turns out this can be caused by incorrect settings in the BIOS or by a competing Virtual Machine software cohabiting the system.
CPU
First of all your CPU must support the virtualization extensions. We can check this on a Bash console if you have installed the integrated feature.
If it returns a positive number, 1 or higher your CPU does support the virtualization extensions. You must still ensure it's enabled in the BIOS. If it returns 0 then your CPU does not support hardware virtualization.
BIOS
You must have hardware virutalization enabled in the BIOS to create and run 64-bit virtual machines.
The following BIOS features need to be enabled:
- Intel Virtualization Technology [Enabled] (or AMD-v).
Hyper-V
If Hyper-V is enabled then Virtualbox will not be able to create 64-bit virtual machines.
If Hyper-V was enabled this will require a reboot.
References
I ran into an interesting (read: frustrating) problem this week at work. I was wanting to install a Linux VM so that I could do some testing on a few applications, as well as use it as an excuse to improve on my pathetic Vim skills (you can find my very basic .vimrc on my Github). So I headed on over to Ubuntu.com, downloaded the latest version of Ubuntu Server, and was about to get started.
I then thought to myself, “How do I want to virtualize this?”
“Oh! I’ll just use vCenter and create a quick dev box. Well, no, actually, I don’t want to do that. I want to keep this separate from everything else, since it’s just a test machine.”
Then I thought to myself, “Maybe I’ll just use Hyper-V on my local machine. That’ll be easy.” I went into the “Programs and Features” and enabled Hyper-V. Then, I got sidetracked and finally thought, “Nah, that’s too much work. I’ll just download VirtualBox.” Grand hall grill 608sb instruction manual.
I installed VirtualBox, no problem. I then added the Ubuntu Server VM, configured it quickly, and was up in no time. Piece of cake.
Two days later, I had a little bit of downtime at work, so I figured I’d mess around with the VM a little bit more. I opened up VirtualBox, and was greeted with this beautiful message:
What on earth had happened?! I hadn’t changed anything since then and now! Naturally, I resorted to my GoogleFu for the answer. Results turned up pretty quickly, actually. Everyone on the internet had mentioned to enable Virtualization in your BIOS. That couldn’t be it, though, because it was working fine before. Plus, why would I have had that turned off in the first place, anyway? I figured I’d give it a shot anyway, just to be sure. After restarting my computer, I found that Virtualization was already enabled through my BIOS.
Still very frustrated, I figured that I would just delete the VM and start from scratch, since I hadn’t really done anything to it yet. After deleting the VM, and trying to re-add it, I was greeted with another issue. Even though I’m running a 64-bit OS (Windows 10), and have a 64-bit CPU architecture, I couldn’t create a 64-bit VM. I could only select a 32-bit option from the dropdown menu.
Great. Now not only will my VMs not boot, I can’t even select a 64-bit version. I was banging my head against the wall trying to figure this out. I thought back two days ago, trying to “retrace my steps”, remembering what I had done. Then, I remembered, when I began this entire process, I had initially enabled Hyper-V on my system. Could that be it? Could the two possible be fighting each other?
I went to “Control Panel”, then “Programs”, then “Windows Programs and Features”. Sure enough, Hyper-V was installed. I unchecked it, hit “OK”, and then gave it a shot. Opening VirtualBox, I tried adding a new VM, and I was greeted with this beautiful sight:
So now, I felt pretty stupid for deleting the first VM that I had created in the first place, because now I’ll have to recreate everything that I did in the first place, but that’s alright, I suppose. It was a good learning experience.
TLDR; Conclusion
Virtualbox Only Shows 32-bit
If you’re having issues, make sure: