Bring that old Mac back to life with VirtualBox and Ubuntu

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Are you bummed that your current Mac won’t be able to run the upcoming MacOS Mojave this Fall? Well, don’t be, because I have found a way to make my old 2011 iMac current – and the best part is, IT’S FREE!

All you need are two things – a current copy of a free operating system called Ubuntu, and a Mac-compatible program called VirtualBox.

What is VirtualBox? It is a powerful x86 and AMD64/Intel64 virtualization product for enterprise as well as home use. Not only is VirtualBox an extremely feature rich, high performance product for enterprise customers, it is also the only professional solution that is freely available as Open Source Software under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL) version 2. See “About VirtualBox” for an introduction.

Presently, VirtualBox runs on Windows, Linux, Macintosh, and Solaris hosts and supports a large number of guest operating systems including but not limited to Windows (NT 4.0, 2000, XP, Server 2003, Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10), DOS/Windows 3.x, Linux (2.4, 2.6, 3.x and 4.x), Solaris and OpenSolaris, OS/2, and OpenBSD.

VirtualBox is being actively developed with frequent releases and has an ever growing list of features, supported guest operating systems and platforms it runs on. VirtualBox is a community effort backed by a dedicated company: everyone is encouraged to contribute while Oracle ensures the product always meets professional quality criteria.

Here’s what you need to do to give your Mac new life:

1. You’ll need to download a current copy of VirtualBox.

2. You’ll need to download a current desktop copy of Ubuntu.

3. After both files download, you’ll need to install VirtualBox first, as Ubuntu will “live” inside of VirtualBox.

4. Follow the installation instructions using the default settings. You can change them later if need be.

5. After VirtualBox is installed, You’ll want to ADD A NEW OPERATING SYSTEM to it by pressing the plus (+) button.

6. When VirtualBox asks you the type of operating system, select UBUNTU.

7. VirtualBox will ask you for the location of the downloaded Ubuntu file. Select it.

8. The Ubuntu installation may ask you if you wish to install a NEW COPY or UPGRADE an existing installation.

9. Select NEW – Yes, it will warn you that you’ll be deleting all of the data of the disk. Do not worry, you will NOT be deleting your entire Mac, just the Virtual space that Ubuntu is going to be in.

10. From here, follow the installation screens.

11. Once the installation has completed, it will want you to reboot into Ubuntu. Go ahead and do it.

12. The installation will exit, and then reboot into Ubuntu inside the virtual window.

13. That’s it!

Do you have any comments or question? Please ask them below.