Migrate from Parallels to Virtualbox 2017: A Step-by-Step Guide

As Amazon Web Services (AWS) continues to grow in popularity, developers and organizations alike are looking for ways to integrate their virtual machines with the platform. In this article, we'll explore the process of migrating a VM created using Parallels to Virtualbox, with a focus on creating an AMI that can be launched on AWS.

The first step in achieving this is to search online for relevant information and tutorials. The AWS documentation provides a comprehensive guide on how to upload custom AMIs, but what we're looking for is a way to create a local image from our custom install media and then upload it to Amazon.

To do this, we can use Virtualbox's built-in functionality to create a virtual hard disk (VHD) from our Parallels VM. This process involves creating a new VHD file in Virtualbox, then copying the contents of the Parallels VM to the new file.

Once the VHD is created, we can configure it with the necessary settings and software installations required for our specific use case. In this example, we'll be configuring the VM with basic Postgres, Redis, and Nginx configurations.

Next, we'll need to convert the VHD to a format that's compatible with AWS, such as RAW or VMDK. We can do this using third-party tools like Virtualbox's built-in converter or other software like StarWind Converter.

After converting the file, we'll need to create an AMI from our converted VM image. This involves creating a new EC2 instance from our custom image and configuring it with the necessary settings and software installations.

In conclusion, migrating a Parallels VM to Virtualbox and then uploading it to AWS requires careful planning and execution. By following these steps, developers and organizations can create customized AMIs that are tailored to their specific needs.

By leveraging Virtualbox's built-in functionality and third-party tools, we can overcome the limitations of working with custom VM images and successfully migrate our Parallels VMs to AWS.

Migrate from parallels to virtualbox 2017