Overview: Linux Mint and Oracle VM VirtualBox v. 6.1.34

Linux Mint is a free of cost Ubuntu based operating system that comes fully equipped with out of the box capabilities for multimedia support, gaming, graphic design, web browsing, text editing, and more. It is a widely used alternative to Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. Linux Mint provides a safe and reliable environment for all of your OS needs with minimal maintenance requirements.

A virtual machine is a platform that runs an emulated computer that utilizes the hardware and resources of your main computer in a virtual environment. One of the more popular virtualization platforms today is Oracle VM VirtualBox, a type-2 hypervisor developed by Oracle Corporation. It allows users to run multiple operating systems like Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and various Linux distributions in a virtualized environment using a single physical machine. The benefits of virtualization are immense. Segmenting a physical device into multiple virtual machines can lead to the faster provisioning of resources, reduced IT costs, improved security, and greater resiliency in recovery situations.

This guide will assist you with downloading and installing all of the necessary components to run Linux Mint in a virtualized environment using Oracle VM VirtualBox v. 6.1.34 for Windows. It is meant to be a supplement or alternative to the many video guides available for this setup process on the wider web for those who prefer text-based instructions.

Please follow the steps in order and refer to the screenshots in each section as needed.