Live CD Instructions
You may try the Virtual Pod system by booting into a live CD. The
Live CD is a slightly modified version of Ubuntu Linux that allows you
to run the Linux operating system off the CDRom. Of course next
time you reboot, all changes will be lost. Therefore it is highly
recommended you save your uncompressed IOS images on a USB drive for
easy installation into the virtual pod software. Once I receive
feedback from the beta-testers (that is you!) I will work on
persistence mode which will allow changes to be dynamically saved
/restored on a specially formatted pen drive.
Memory Requirements
I recommend a minimum of 1 GB of memory and make sure you delete
unwanted IOS images on the desktop. To conserve memory (unless
you are using persistence) only install the IOS you are planning on
using for that session, and do not leave unused files (e.g. IOS images)
on the desktop. I have sucessfully run seven routers using 3640
IP/FW/IDS 64MB on a 1 Gig machine without problems. I may be able
to run more but the lab I was using only had seven routers configured.
Running the VirtualPod
The terminal program is located und Applications ->Accesssories. Please watch the two videos "IOS Image Installation" and "Running VirtualPod". The Virtual Pod software is already installed on the disk.
Installation to Hard Drive
You may install the Linux operating system on your hard drive.
My recommendation is to purchase a new hard drive (20 GB or more will
work fine) and install on the fresh hard drive. If you have an
unused partition on a currently active hard drive, you may use that as
well. Either way, please be careful. Make a backup of your
system before you begin. Remember, you are installing a new operating
system. If you select the wrong disk for installation, you may
delete your primary operating system.
Bootup problems
If you find the disk not booting, press F6 on the
VirtualPod startup screen and replace the word "persistent" with
"acpi=Off". Please send me feedback if this was required or it
still does not work.