It is possible to run Tails in a virtual machine using VirtualBox from a Windows, Linux, or macOS host operating system.

Running Tails inside a virtual machine has various security implications. Depending on the host operating system and your security needs, running Tails in a virtual machine might be dangerous.

VirtualBox 担供免費版, 稱之為VirtualBox 開源版 而某些商用要素,如對 USB 設備 的支援則需付費。

For security reasons, we recommend you to use only the Open Source Edition, though it does not allow the use of a Persistent Storage.

Security considerations for Windows and macOS

我們對虛擬器的安全警告 中建議,僅在信任的原機作業系統下運行 Tails 。

Microsoft Windows and macOS being proprietary software, they cannot be considered trustworthy. Only run Tails in a virtual machine on Windows or macOS for testing purposes and do not rely on it for security.

Installation

Debian 或 Ubuntu 下安裝 VirtualBox,請執行以下指令:

sudo apt install virtualbox

其它作業系統如何安裝 VirtualBox 的指引,請參考 VirtualBox 文件.

Running Tails from an ISO image

  1. Download Tails as an ISO image, instead of a USB image.

  2. Start VirtualBox.

要建立新的虛擬器:

  1. Choose Machine ▸New....

  2. In the dialog Virtual machine Name and Operating System:

    1. Specify:

      • Name: a name of your choice

      • ISO Image: the ISO image that you want to start Tails from

    2. Click Expert Mode.

  3. In the dialog Hardware:

    1. Allocate at least 2048 MB of RAM.

    2. Click Next.

  4. In the dialog Virtual Hard disk:

    1. Choose Do not add a virtual hard drive.

    2. Click Next.

    3. Click Continue in the warning dialog about creating a virtual machine without a hard drive.

啟動新的虛擬器:

  1. 在左側面板中選擇虛擬器。

  2. 點擊 啟動

VirtualBox Guest Additions has been removed since Tails 4.27. As a result:

  • The shared clipboard feature of VirtualBox is unavailable.

  • The screen resolution of Tails can't be changed by resizing the virtual machine window in the host OS. The screen resolution must be changed from inside Tails.

    To change the screen resolution from inside Tails, choose Applications ▸ System Tools ▸ Settings ▸ Displays ▸ Resolution.

    You might also need to adjust the virtual machine window in the host OS to fit the new screen resolution.

We plan to add back VirtualBox Guest Additions in a future version of Tails. See #18728.