Sync Host and Guest Folders in VirtualBox
As a follow up to our seamless Ubuntu in Windows tutorials, we’re going to show you how to sync a Windows (host) folder to a folder in the Ubuntu (guest). You’ll need to have guest additions installed on the guest OS for this one.
For this tutorial we’ll be syncing the H: drive on Windows (yours will probably be C:) with /home/jason/windows in Ubuntu.
Create a New Share
When you boot up into Ubuntu, do not switch to Seamless Mode just yet. Right click the blue folder icon at the bottom right hand corner.
The Shared Folders dialog will popup. Click the folder icon with the plus sign to add a new share.
Browse for a folder using the yellow folder icon next to Folder Path. I chose the location of my Windows installation, H:.
VirtualBox will then automatically fill the Folder Name, which you can change if you don’t like it. I kept the default. Make sure Make Permanent is checked. Click OK.
Mount the Share in Ubuntu
You can switch to seamless mode if you want now.
Open up Terminal (Applications → Accessories → Terminal). You’ll default automatically to your home folder. For the sake of simplicity, we’re going to mount the Windows drive inside your home folder.
Type the following to create a windows directory:
mkdir windows
You’ll have created /home/YOUR_USERNAME/windows
To mount your new drive, type the following:
sudo mount -t vboxsf YOUR_SHARE_NAME_GOES_HERE /home/YOUR_USERNAME/windows
For example, I’d type:
sudo mount -t vboxsf H_DRIVE /home/jason/windows
That’s about it to syncing a folder on your host Windows machine to an Ubuntu guest. If you have any question, direct them to the comments section below.
I'm Jason, the main author of Third Error, and many of the topics I'll focus on concern Windows (and applicable software), web applications, web design, and a bit of *nix (Ubuntu mainly). My computer runs Windows XP, with virtualized Ubuntu and OS X handy.