VirtualBox Guest Integration

Summary

VirtualBox is popular, easy to use virtual-machine software. The purpose of this change is to ship the VirtualBox guest-drivers and -tools by default in the Fedora workstation product.

Owner

Name: Hans de Goede
Email: hdegoede@redhat.com
Release notes owner:
Product: Workstation

Current status

Targeted release: Fedora 27
Last updated: 2017-07-06
Tracker bug: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>

Detailed Description

VirtualBox runs on Windows. MacOS and Linux and is used by many users to try it Linux for the first time. As such it is important for Fedora to work well in VirtualBox virtual-machines. Like other virtual-machines VirtualBox virtual-machines can offer an enhanced user-experience when some VirtualBox specific guest-drivers and guest-tools are installed. This change is about adding the guest-drivers to the Fedora kernel package, packaging the userspace-tools (VirtualBox Guest Additions) and adding the VirtualBox Guest Additions package to the default package list for the Workstation product.

Benefit to Fedora

Better integration with VirtualBox leads to a much better user-experience for users who decide to run Fedora under VirtualBox. Also see the extra features this enables below under "User Experience".

Scope

Proposal owners:
- Adding the VirtualBox guest drivers to the kernel package. To make this happen work is underway to clean them up and submit them upstream.
- Package VirtualBox Guest Additions userspace parts
- Add VirtualBox Guest Additions package to the default package list for the Workstation product
Other developers: N/A (not a System Wide Change)
Release engineering: [1] (a check of an impact with Release Engineering is needed)
- List of deliverables: N/A (not a System Wide Change)
Policies and guidelines: N/A (not a System Wide Change)
Trademark approval: N/A (not needed for this Change)

Upgrade/compatibility impact

Upgrade paths which automatically install new default packages will automatically get this feature enabled. Users using other upgrade paths (e.g. a manual dnf update) will need to install the VirtualBox Guest Additions package manually to get this feature enabled.

How To Test

Install Fedora 27 into a VirtualBox virtual-machine.
Test the features listed below under "User Experience".

User Experience

Users running Fedora under VirtualBox will gain the following features:

Automatic resizing of the guest desktop-resolution to the vm's window-size
Seamless mode support (only show guest windows, hide guest background)
Copy and paste between guest and host
Folder sharing
3D passthrough

Dependencies

N/A (not a System Wide Change)

Contingency Plan

Contingency mechanism: The proposal owner will remove the VirtualBox Guest Additions package from the default package list for the Workstation product if it is not working properly
Contingency deadline: Beta Freeze
Blocks release? No
Blocks product? Workstation

Documentation