Virtual Machine /w USB

[bryris]

I have a digital voice recorder that I use on a regular basis. On my desktop PC (running Windows 2000 Pro), it syncs up just great and downloads the audio files from the DVR.

I recently purchased a Vista laptop, and come to find out, the drivers for the digital voice recorder are not compatible with Vista.

So, I did some research and decided that a solution might be to install a virtual machine running Windows 2000 Pro. I downloaded MS Virtual PC 2007 and proceeded to install Windows 2000 Pro to it. I got it all set up, and then it turns out that MSVPC2007 doesn't support USB.

So, I downloaded VMWare 1.0.3, and tried to convert from MSVPC to VMWare and of course that didn't work - that'd be too easy. So, I created a second virtual machine and installed Windows again. I enabled USB and it still doesn't work.

I think the problem is a sharing thing between the host OS (Vista Home Prem) and the guest OS (Windows 2000 Pro).

I cannot seem to be able to make the guest OS recognize that a USB device has been added. I go to the VM, removable devices, and I click the device, and nothing different happens.

Any help would be great.

 

[mechBgon]

I use Win2000 Pro in a VM (Virtual PC 2007) sometimes, and it supports USB mice (I haven't tried anything else). Maybe your recorder needs USB 2.0?

 

[bryris]

If so, what do I do?

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: bryris
If so, what do I do?

Check with the manufacturer of the DVR to see if they've got a Vista driver available, or on the way. If it installs OK but its software doesn't work, try setting the software to WinXP SP2 compatibility mode (right-click a shortcut to the software, choose Properties and then hit the Compatibility tab).

 

[Rilex]

VPC/VS support basic input (mice/keyboard) for USB, but nothing else.

 

[Pabster]

Originally posted by: Rilex
VPC/VS support basic input (mice/keyboard) for USB, but nothing else.

Yep, OP needs VMWare Workstation to do what he wants. It isn't cheap, but it has full USB support. I've used it on many occasions to run legacy hardware that doesn't sit well with Vista under an XP VM.

AFAIK VMWare is the only one that has full USB support. Most will do a keyboard or mouse but nothing more.

 

[skwicz212]

Originally posted by: bryris
If so, what do I do?

Download VM server. Make your image machine. Use vm player to run it.

 

[bryris]

Can you clarify this?

 

[nerp]

What kind of voice recorder is it? If it's a Panasonic, they updated their Voice Editing software just recently with Vista capable versions. I'm running my recorder just fine in Vista now. I'm a reporter and my recorder is a critical tool. I too was considering running a virtual machine but noticed the update came out before I went through with it.

 

[bryris]

Its a VN-960PC Olympus.

 

[skwicz212]

Originally posted by: bryris
Can you clarify this?

You want USB support and said VPC wasnt working. VM server allows you to create an image of the Win2k machine you want. It's free.
http://www.vmware.com/products/server/.

 

[bryris]

I downloaded that and installed Windows 2000 and still no go. DAMN!!

 

[skwicz212]

Originally posted by: bryris
I downloaded that and installed Windows 2000 and still no go. DAMN!!

Have you patch win2k and made sure usb works? Do you need to install driver for your usb?
If vmware still doesnt support it, you can always dual boot.

 

[bryris]

Can I set up a dual boot fairly easily?

 

[pcgeek11]

Originally posted by: bryris
Can I set up a dual boot fairly easily?

Very easy...

Go here and follow the guide.

http://www.pro-networks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=88231

pcgeek11