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The 5 Best Virtual Machines For Windows 11 PCs

Virtual machines allow users to run multiple operating systems simultaneously on a single computer. They provide a safe environment to test software without risking the host system. The top virtual machines for Windows 11 are VirtualBox, BlueStacks, Nox Player, QEMU, and Hyper-V. VirtualBox is popular for running Linux distributions. BlueStacks and Nox Player emulate Android to run mobile apps and games on Windows. QEMU can run various operating systems at near-native speeds. Hyper-V is built into Windows Pro and allows running multiple VMs. The best virtual machine depends on intended use such as Android emulation or full desktop operating systems.

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117 views8 pages

The 5 Best Virtual Machines For Windows 11 PCs

Virtual machines allow users to run multiple operating systems simultaneously on a single computer. They provide a safe environment to test software without risking the host system. The top virtual machines for Windows 11 are VirtualBox, BlueStacks, Nox Player, QEMU, and Hyper-V. VirtualBox is popular for running Linux distributions. BlueStacks and Nox Player emulate Android to run mobile apps and games on Windows. QEMU can run various operating systems at near-native speeds. Hyper-V is built into Windows Pro and allows running multiple VMs. The best virtual machine depends on intended use such as Android emulation or full desktop operating systems.

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makeuseof.

com

The 5 Best Virtual Machines for


Windows 11 PCs
Tayo Sogbesan

10–12 minutes

Have you ever wondered if you could play your favorite Android
games on your Windows PC with all its processing power? Or, have
you wanted to try out other operating systems without deleting your
Windows OS and all its precious data?

Luckily, virtual machines can help you achieve all these and more.
They provide a safe environment for testing other operating
systems and their exclusive apps. And the best part? They require
little system resources, allowing you to run multiple VMs without
straining your PC.

What Is a Virtual Machine and Why Should You Use


It?

A virtual machine is a software environment that enables you to


emulate the operation of one computer on another physical
computer. For the most part, VMs are indistinguishable from
physical computers, given that they use the hardware resources of
the host machine.

The primary benefit of using a virtual machine is the ability to run


software that is otherwise incompatible with the host computer. For
example, an Android virtual machine lets you play mobile games on
a Windows computer seamlessly.

Properly configured virtual machines provide a secure environment


for testing dangerous software and other security vulnerabilities.
They are isolated from the host machine and can not directly affect
it, so there’s little risk of malware from the virtual machine infecting
the host.

Finally, virtual machines are one of the most popular methods of


creating server networks. They are cost-effective since you can run
multiple VMs on a single physical device. What’s more, some
environments provide communication channels between VMs
allowing them to share information quickly and securely.

There are hundreds of virtual machines that you can use to run
other operating systems on your Windows 11 PC. However, not all
VMs are equal, so we’ve gathered the five best VMs you can find
on the market today.

1. Virtual Box

Developed by Oracle Corporation, Virtual Box is arguably the most


popular virtual machine among Windows users. It is mostly used to
run different versions of the Linux operating system. Still, it can also
run Windows and limited versions of the macOS.

Virtual Box’s appeal lies in its high performance and many features.
What’s more, it is open source with increasing support for more
operating systems.

This software allows you to run multiple virtual machines


simultaneously and automatically balances system resources
between them. It provides an isolated environment to test security
vulnerabilities and other high-risk software without affecting the
host operating system.

Virtual Box provides several bridges that help the virtual machines
use resources from the host OS. For example, it offers multiple
network bridges, including the bridged adapter that allows you to
use the network cards directly.

In addition, you can allocate RAM and ROM resources to each


virtual machine and even set the number of CPU cores it can use.
Furthermore, Virtual Box can take snapshots of any VM, allowing
users to revert to the saved state when they choose.

One interesting way to use Virtual Box is to run a guest version of


the host OS. This helps to improve performance, especially when
resizing the virtual machine’s window. Also, Virtual Box works well
with multiple monitors, and it’s common practice to dedicate a
separate display to the VM.
Download: Oracle VM Virtual Box (Free)

2. Bluestacks

The Bluestacks App Player allows you to run Android apps and
games on Windows and macOS devices. This software simulates
Android operating systems and even specific Android devices.
What’s more, it allows you to run multiple virtual machine instances
simultaneously.

Bluestacks is specially designed to run mobile games. To that end,


it provides preset game controls that map to your keyboard, mouse,
and any connected gamepad. You can customize and share these
controls for shooting, MOBA, RPG, and strategy games.

Asides from game controls, Bluestacks does exceptionally well to


emulate common Android controls on your Windows PC. It provides
one-click screen shakes, swipes, zooms, and even an
accelerometer.

Few virtual machines can perform as well as Bluestacks does. It is


hardly RAM intensive and efficiently utilizes your GPU for graphics-
intensive applications. In fact, Bluestacks allows you to set the
maximum amount of RAM it can use. Also, it lets you choose the
graphics backend it uses for rendering.

Bluestacks’ file system is reminiscent of any Android device and is


separate from your PC’s file system. Nevertheless, it provides a
shared folder to move files between your PC and the virtual
machine easily. That way, you can ensure your VM files aren’t
overwritten.

This virtual machine is free to use and is considered the best


Android emulator due to its versatility and ease of use. The latest
version, Bluestacks 10, is a cloud-based hybrid that allows low-end
devices to run Android apps without worrying about performance
issues.

Download: Bluestacks (Free)


3. Nox Player

This Android app emulator is Bluestacks’ direct competitor, offering


many of the same features. However, it provides better support for
multiple instances. Also, it can run any mobile app, from social
media to performance-intensive games.

Nox Player can run on just 2 gigabytes of RAM and the same
amount of storage. It supports multiple versions of the Android OS,
from 4.4.2 to Android 9. While not strictly required, it would be best
to have a dedicated graphics card when running this software.

This emulator supports multiple gamepads and other input devices.


The multi-instance system is so sophisticated that it can assign a
dedicated controller to each instance, avoiding input conflicts. This
means that you can play multiple games simultaneously without
switching tabs or devices.

One of the quality-of-life features Nox Player provides is scripted


actions. This tool allows you to bind multiple key presses, swipes,
shakes, and any other mobile device control to a single button. As a
result, you can execute multiple actions with just one click or key
press.
Nox Player is free to use and GDPR compliant for privacy and
security. It also has a built-in screen recorder that can capture on-
screen events without affecting performance.

Download: Nox Player (Free)

4. QEMU

Quick Emulator, or QEMU, is a free and open-source emulator for


running programs and full operating systems on a virtual machine.
One of its defining features is the ability to run operating systems at
near-native speed using a Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM).

Unlike Virtual Box, which can only run operating systems, QEMU is
more lightweight and can run individual programs compiled for one
target on other architectures. Moreover, it can emulate the host’s
hardware only, allowing Xen to run the VM and hide the details from
QEMU.

QEMU’s virtual hard disks only take up as much space as they


actually use on the host machine. This means a 500GB Virtual
Hard Drive (VHD) on the virtual machine may only take up a few
megabytes of storage. One of the benefits of this system is that the
user can easily revert to a previously working state should the VM
become unusable.
Another benefit of using QEMU is that it doesn’t have to detect any
graphical output devices on the host machine. Instead, it uses an
integrated virtual network computing server and automatically
outputs to any working display. Also, it does not require admin
permissions unless running critical kernel modules.

QEMU uses a proprietary dynamic binary translator to convert


instruction sets from a source architecture to work on the target
architecture. This allows it to run virtual machines from other
software, including Virtual Box’s Virtual Disk Image.

This software can emulate nearly all 32-bit and 64-bit programs and
operating systems. It also offers excellent support for macOS apps
but struggles with emulating the full operating system.

Download: QEMU (Free)

5. Hyper-V

Hyper-V is a native hypervisor from Microsoft Corporation that


allows you to run multiple virtual machines on your Windows PC. It
allows you to create virtual hard drives, virtual USBs, and other
virtual devices and attach them to a virtual machine, much like the
physical equivalent.

Hyper-V lets you run software that is only compatible with older
Windows versions or even non-Windows operating systems. You
can even import and export virtual machines into other Hyper-V
environments like Microsoft Azure.

This VM environment is built into all Windows 11 devices except the


Home version of the OS. Moreover, you require only a few steps to
enable Hyper-V. Also, as listed on Microsoft Learn can run several
versions of the Windows OS and multiple Linux and Free BSD
distros.

One of the advantages of using Hyper-V is the ability to use virtual


switches to communicate between multiple VMs. These switches
inspect data packets before sending them to the intended recipient.
In addition, Hyper-V creates a secure server for hosting multiple
VMs, which you can use to test and develop applications. It is
highly scalable, and since it uses the underlying hardware directly,
highly performant. In fact, you only need 4 gigabytes of RAM to run
a fully-featured virtual machine.

Which Virtual Machine Should You Use?

Most virtual machines work similarly with no distinct advantage over


competitors. As a result, it may be difficult to know which one to
commit to. Nevertheless, one of the first things to look out for is
compatibility. Some environments can run the VM files of other
software.

Also, you must consider your use cases. If you want to run Android
games and other applications, it would be best to use dedicated
Android emulators. On the other hand, if you want to run full
desktop operating systems, virtual machines like QEMU and
Hyper-V would be best.

Regardless, these virtual machines are not overly performance or


memory-intensive, so nothing stops you from installing them all and
testing to see which works best for you.

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