VirtualBox is open-source hypervisor, creating a VM (virtual machine) in which the user can run another OS (operating system). This article will serve as an informative guide and give you a clear understanding of how to perform a silent installation of VirtualBox 5.2.34 from the command line using both EXE & MSI installers.
How to Install VirtualBox Silently
VirtualBox 5.2.34 Silent Install (EXE) (32-bit Operating System)
- Navigate to https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2
- Select the Windows Hosts under VirtualBox 5.2.34
- Download the file to a folder created at (C:\Downloads)
- Open an Elevated Command Prompt by Right-Clicking on Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator
- Navigate to the C:\Downloads folder
- Enter the following command:
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --silent --ignore-reboot - Press Enter
After a minute or so you should see the Oracle VM VirtualBox Desktop Shortcut appear. You will also find entries in the Start Menu, Installation Directory, and Programs and Features in the Control Panel.
| Software Title: | Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2.34 (32-bit) |
| Vendor: | Oracle Corporation |
| Version: | 5.2.34.133893 |
| Architecture: | x86 |
| Installer Type: | EXE |
| Silent Install Switch: | VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --silent --ignore-reboot |
| Silent Uninstall Switch: | MsiExec.exe /x {613B857D-7161-4C66-AE2D-7DF59F9D58F4} /qn |
| Download Link: | https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2 |
VirtualBox 5.2.34 Silent Install (EXE) (64-bit Operating System)
- Navigate to https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2
- Select the Windows Hosts under VirtualBox 5.2.34
- Download the file to a folder created at (C:\Downloads)
- Open an Elevated Command Prompt by Right-Clicking on Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator
- Navigate to the C:\Downloads folder
- Enter the following command:
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --silent --ignore-reboot - Press Enter
After a minute or so you should see the Oracle VM VirtualBox Desktop Shortcut appear. You will also find entries in the Start Menu, Installation Directory, and Programs and Features in the Control Panel.
| Software Title: | Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2.34 (64-bit) |
| Vendor: | Oracle Corporation |
| Version: | 5.2.34.133893 |
| Architecture: | x64 |
| Installer Type: | EXE |
| Silent Install Switch: | VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --silent --ignore-reboot |
| Silent Uninstall Switch: | MsiExec.exe /x {D5F867A5-B6AB-491E-8BE1-329D4D7C7760} /qn |
| Download Link: | https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2 |
VirtualBox 5.2.34 Silent Install (MSI) (32-bit Operating System)
- Navigate to https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2
- Select the Windows Hosts under VirtualBox 5.2.34
- Download the file to a folder created at (C:\Downloads)
- Open an Elevated Command Prompt by Right-Clicking on Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator
- Navigate to the C:\Downloads folder
- Enter the following command:
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --extract -path C:\VBox - Press Enter
- Navigate to the C:\VBox folder
- Enter the following command:
MsiExec.exe /i VirtualBox-5.2.34-r133893-MultiArch_x86.msi /qn - Press Enter
After a minute or so you should see the Oracle VM VirtualBox Desktop Shortcut appear. You will also find entries in the Start Menu, Installation Directory, and Programs and Features in the Control Panel.
| Software Title: | Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2.34 (32-bit) |
| Vendor: | Oracle Corporation |
| Version: | 5.2.34.133893 |
| Architecture: | x86 |
| Installer Type: | MSI |
| Silent Install Switch: | MsiExec.exe /i VirtualBox-5.2.34-r133893-MultiArch_x86.msi /qn |
| Silent Uninstall Switch: | MsiExec.exe /x {613B857D-7161-4C66-AE2D-7DF59F9D58F4} /qn |
| Download Link: | https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2 |
VirtualBox 5.2.34 Silent Install (MSI) (64-bit Operating System)
- Navigate to https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2
- Select the Windows Hosts under VirtualBox 5.2.34
- Download the file to a folder created at (C:\Downloads)
- Open an Elevated Command Prompt by Right-Clicking on Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator
- Navigate to the C:\Downloads folder
- Enter the following command:
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --extract -path C:\VBox - Press Enter
- Navigate to the C:\VBox folder
- Enter the following command:
MsiExec.exe /i VirtualBox-5.2.34-r133893-MultiArch_amd64.msi /qn - Press Enter
After a minute or so you should see the Oracle VM VirtualBox Desktop Shortcut appear. You will also find entries in the Start Menu, Installation Directory, and Programs and Features in the Control Panel.
| Software Title: | Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2.34 (64-bit) |
| Vendor: | Oracle Corporation |
| Version: | 5.2.34.133893 |
| Architecture: | x64 |
| Installer Type: | MSI |
| Silent Install Switch: | MsiExec.exe /i VirtualBox-5.2.34-r133893-MultiArch_amd64.msi /qn |
| Silent Uninstall Switch: | MsiExec.exe /x {D5F867A5-B6AB-491E-8BE1-329D4D7C7760} /qn |
| Download Link: | https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Download_Old_Builds_5_2 |
The information above provides a quick overview of the software title, vendor, silent install, and silent uninstall switches. The download links provided take you directly to the vendors website. Continue reading if you are interested in additional details and configurations.
Additional Configurations
Suppress VirtualBox Update Checks
You can suppress VirtualBox balloon notifications and update checks by running the following commands:
Note: These settings are per User and NOT per System so they will need to be run once for every user who logs on.
"%ProgramFiles%\Oracle\VirtualBox\VBoxManage.exe" setextradata global GUI/SuppressMessages "all" |
"%ProgramFiles%\Oracle\VirtualBox\VBoxManage.exe" setextradata global GUI/UpdateDate "never" |
Change Default Installation Directory
You can change the default installation directory by using the following command line parameters. In this example, I’m installing VirtualBox to “C:\VirtualBox”
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --msiparams INSTALLDIR=C:\VirtualBox --silent --ignore-reboot |
Create an Installation Log File
The VirtualBox installer offers the option to generate a log file during installation to assist with troubleshooting should any problems arise. You can use the following commands to create a log file with details about the installation.
Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2.34 Silent Install w/ Logging
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --silent --ignore-reboot --logging |
The log file will be located in the following Temp directory of the user account from which the installer was run:
C:\Users\<User Name>\AppData\Local\Temp\VirtualBox
VirtualBox Install With NO Desktop Shortcut
You can specify whether or not an Oracle VM VirtualBox desktop icon will be created on the desktop. The default installation behavior is to include a desktop shortcut, however in the example below a desktop shortcut will not be created during the install.
Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2.34 Silent Install with NO Desktop Shortcut
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --msiparams VBOX_INSTALLDESKTOPSHORTCUT=0 --silent --ignore-reboot |
Do Not Install VirtualBox Certificate Automatically
You can specify not to install the VirtualBox certificate automatically when silently installing the application. The default behavior is to install the certificate automatically, however the command line below will exclude it.
Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2.34 Silent Install Excluding Certificate
VirtualBox-5.2.34-133893-Win.exe --no-silent-cert --silent --ignore-reboot |
How to Uninstall VirtualBox Silently
- Open an Elevated Command Prompt by Right-Clicking on Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator
- Enter the following command:
- VirtualBox 5.2.34 on 32-bit Operating System:
- MsiExec.exe /x {613B857D-7161-4C66-AE2D-7DF59F9D58F4} /qn
- VirtualBox 5.2.34 on 64-bit Operating System:
- MsiExec.exe /x {D5F867A5-B6AB-491E-8BE1-329D4D7C7760} /qn
- Press Enter
Always make sure to test everything in a development environment prior to implementing anything into production. The information in this article is provided “As Is” without warranty of any kind.