VBoxHeadless

Oracle VM VirtualBox remote desktop server.

Synopsis

VBoxHeadless [--startvm= [ uuid | vmname ]] [--vrde= on | off | config ] [--vrdeproperty=prop-name=[prop-value]] [--settingspw=[password]] [--settingspwfile=password-file] [--start-paused=vmname] [--capture] [--width=width] [--height=height] [--bitrate=bit-rate] [--filename=filename]

Description

The VBoxHeadless command is an alternate front end that enables you to remotely manage virtual machines (VMs). The front end is a CLI rather than the VirtualBox Manager graphical user interface (GUI).

For information about using this command, see .

Command Options

--startvm=uuid | vmname

Specifies the Universally Unique Identifier (UUID) or name of the VM to start.

Use the VBoxManage list vms command to obtain VM information.

The short versions of this option are -s and -startvm.

--vrde=on | off | config

Specifies how to use the VRDP server. The default value is config. Valid values are as follows:

  • on enables the VRDP server. 

    VBoxHeadless --startvm=vmname --vrde=on

  • off disables the VRDP server. 

    VBoxHeadless --startvm=vmname --vrde=off

  • config enables the VRDP server depending on the VM configuration. 

    VBoxHeadless --startvm=vmname --vrde=config

The short version of this option is -v.

--vrdeproperty=prop-name=prop-value

Specifies a value for one of the following properties:

  • The TCP/Ports property value is a comma-separated list of ports to which the VRDE server can bind. Use a hyphen (-) between two port numbers to specify a range of ports.

  • The TCP/Address property value is the interface IP address to which to bind the VRDE server.

--settingspw=[password]

Specifies a settings password to access encrypted settings. If you do not specify the password on the command line, VBoxHeadless prompts you for the password.

--settingspwfile=password-file

Specifies the file that contains the settings password.

--start-paused=vmname

Starts the specified VM in the paused state.

--capture

Records the VM screen output to a file. In addition to this option, you must use the --filename option to specify the name of the file.

--width=width

Specifies the frame width of the recording in pixels. This option is associated with the --capture option.

--height=height

Specifies the frame height of the recording in pixels. This option is associated with the --capture option.

--bitrate=bit-rate

Specifies the bit rate of the recording in kilobits per second. This option is associated with the --capture option.

--filename=filename

Specifies the name of the file in which to store the recording. The codec used is based on the file extension that you choose. You must specify this option if you use the --capture option.

Examples

The following command starts the ol7u4 VM: 

$ VBoxHeadless --startvm "ol7u4"

The following command starts the ol7u6 VM in the Paused state. 

$ VBoxHeadless --startvm "ol7u6" --start-paused

The following command starts the ol7u6 VM and records the session. The recording is saved to the ol7u6-recording WebM file. 

$ VBoxHeadless --startvm "ol7u6" --capture --filename ol7u6-recording.webm

See Also

,