How to Install Kali Linux on VirtualBox

Why Run Kali in a Virtual Machine and Not as My Main OS?

You certainly can run Kali as your main operating system, but there are a lot of reasons to stick with using it as a virtual machine.

1. Kali is not designed to be a primary operating system for day-to-day use (a daily driver). Regular daily-use operating systems should have a focus on tools like word processors, calendars, etc. That is not what Kali is primarily designed for.

2. You will not have to dedicate hardware to Kali. Unless you are buying a laptop or desktop only for hacking, running it as a virtual machine is more convenient and less expensive.

3. You will be running and storing malicious scripts on your Kali instance, opening ports, running temporary webservers, etc. It is safer to keep those sandboxed in a virtual environment.

4. When practicing hacking, you will be running other virtual machines as targets. This will be easier to set up if everything is running on the same hypervisor.

5. The hypervisor handles compatibility, so you won’t have to worry about Kali not being compatible with your hardware, such as your graphics or network card.

6. A hypervisor allows you to take frequent snapshots easily, allowing you to roll back your Kali to an earlier state if you have a problem.

Download & Install Virtual Box

VirtualBox is available on Windows, macOS, Linux, and other lesser used systems. We will walk through installation on a Windows system, but the steps are essentially the same no matter what operating system you are using as your host.

First, visit the VirtualBox downloads page (www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads) and select the platform package that matches your operating system. In our case, we will be choosing Windows hosts.

You will also want to download the VirtualBox Extension Pack (there is only one options that works for all supported operating systems).

Download Kali Linux

Go to the download page on kali linux website and download the ISO image file as per your operating system.

You have the standard offline installer, which is what we will be using in this article. It comes with the primary tools and requires no internet connection for the actual installation process. This is ideal if you were planning to put this on a USB and install has a host system as well.

Once you have the .iso, click New in VirtualBox.

You will be prompted to create a new machine. Name the machine whatever you like. VirtualBox will have a default folder, you can leave it as is or change the location. Lastly, choose the .iso image and click next.

You will be asked how much RAM and processing power you wish to use. The defaults are fine, but you will see better performance providing it 6GB of RAM and 2 CPUs.

You will have to allocate hard disk space for the VM. The minimum is 25GB, but you will need more than that as you save files and modify your system. If you have the room, 35GB if a good number to begin with.

You will be shown a summary of your choices. When ready, click Finish.

We’re not done yet, however. In the VirtualBox manager, highlight the Kali instance and click Start. Now we have to install Kali like we would any other operating system.

Kali will boot and ask you how you wish to install. Choose Graphical install.

Kali will now begin loading files.

Follow the onscreen instructions, set username & password.

For the disk partitioning, choose “Guided - use entire disk.”

Kali will only give you one option, so click Continue.

After reviewing, select “Finish partitioning and write changes to disk” and click Continue.

It will ask you to confirm. Select “Yes” and Continue.

The base system will install.

You will have the opportunity to select a desktop environment. Xfce is the lightest on resources and the most commonly used now. We also think it’s the best looking. Click Continue.

You will want to install the GRUB boot loader. Select Yes.

You do not need to set up the boot loader manually, so select the recommended hard disk and continue.

Kali will now reboot.

Once done, you will be taken to a login screen. Use your credentials to log in.

You can update the Guest Additions by clicking “Devices” in the VirtualBox window and click “Upgrade Guest Additions.” Installing Guest Additions will help kali to open in full-screen mode.

Type sudo su to switch to the root account (you will be prompted for your password). Then type:

apt update && apt upgrade -y

This will install all needed updates and get your Kali OS to the latest release.