Running Windows 7 beta on Sun xVM VirtualBox

I have recently installed the Windows 7 beta on a VM on my Vista box using Sun’s xVM VirtualBox. I had just two issues: no network driver and the Guest Additions reported they weren’t compatible with Windows 7. The solution to both was:

1. Mount the Guest Additions CD
2. Choose the “Open folder to view files” option when it auto-starts
3. Right click on VBoxWindowsAdditions and VBoxWindowsAdditions-x86. Select properties and enable XP SP2 compatibility (Vista compatibility might work, I just didn’t test it).
4. Run VBoxWindowsAdditions.
5. Now right click on Computer in the start menu and select properties, then device manager.
6. Select the Ethernet controller under Other Devices, right click and select Update Driver Software.
7. Choose the Browse my Computer option and search in D:\. Install the driver.

After restarting Windows 7, automatic mouse capture and release worked correctly and the network sprang into life.