How to Run UTAU in VirtualBox

 

Original Kasane Teto fanart by CAFFEIN

 

Today I'm going to show you how to set up Ameya's UTAU program in VirtualBox, a popular Virtual Machine (VM) software by Oracle! 🖥️💻️✨️

I've heard that a lot of Macs can't really run VirtualBox that well, so hopefully in the future I can make a tutorial for UTM! (I'll need to get my hands on a Mac first 🤔️)

Before we get started, you might be wondering why you might even want to use UTAU in a VM. Chances are your computer uses some version of Windows, and UTAU was even updated this year! It might all seem very unnecessary. But it could be useful if:

• You don't want to change your computer's locale language (or need to change it for something else)
• You want a VM for all your "old school" vocal synth software (VOCALOID 1, anybody? 😎️)
• You actually ARE using Linux (like me right now!) and don't want to use OpenUtau (or can't figure out for the life of you how in the world to use Wine 🙃️)

If you want to go the VM route, then get ready! I'll do my best to break everything down step by step. I will say there are a lot of steps, but don't worry! We're gonna take it one at a time.

 

First, let's talk about what you'll need to have:

• VirtualBox Installation file
• Bootable Disk Image (ISO file) of your desired operating system.

For this tutorial, I'll be using Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 3. Virtual Machines can take a lot of processing power, but even a cheap laptop like mine can run a Windows XP VM very nicely.

Now I'm going to take a quick time out for a second to talk about getting an ISO file. You should know that technically, the only legal way to get Windows XP these days is to buy it second-hand, as Microsoft has long stopped supporting it and distributing it. Purely hypothetically, if you did manage to find an ISO with a product key of it online somewhere and downloaded it instead of buying a CD of it with a key, Microsoft wouldn't lose any money from that. Nor would they gain any money from someone buying it from a vendor. Because it's second-hand.

Just something to think about. From a hypothetical standpoint, of course.

Now then! 👏️ I assume you have the ISO you need at this point. So lets talk about what we'll be doing:

• Install VirtualBox on your computer
• Create a new VM in the program for Windows XP
• Install Windows XP with Service Pack 3 with VirtualBox Guest Services (this is necessary for file sharing)
• Install necessary languages in your VM
• Change locale for your VM
• Create a shared folder
• Put the UTAU setup exe in your shared folder & install

It's a lot of steps, I know! But don't be afraid! I'll help you every step of the way!✨️

First, I'll show you how to download and install VirtualBox for Windows. I'll be doing this in Windows 10 Pro on a Virtual Machine. But the process should look very similar on an actual device running various versions of Windows 10. It should be similar to Windows 11 too, but if not, let me know in the comments!

Afterwards, I'll link to a couple external sites for guides on installing VirtualBox on Ubuntu and Linux Mint.

INSTALLING VIRTUALBOX ON WINDOWS

 

Step 1: 

Go to the VirtualBox website here and click on the "Windows Hosts" link.

Highlighted link: "Windows Hosts"

 

 

Step 2: 

Once it's downloaded, go ahead and open the file. Click "Yes" when prompted by User Account Control.

Reads: "Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device?"; "VirtualBox Installer"; "Verified publisher: Oracle America, Inc."; "File origin: Hard drive on this computer"; "Show more details (link)"; "Yes (button)"; "No (button)"

 

 

Step 2a: 

You might need to do the following additional steps if you run into this error:

Reads: "Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20 needs the Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package being installed first. Please install and restart the installation of Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20."; "OK (button)"

 

If you don't see this error then skip to Step 3. Otherwise keep reading.

Step 2b: 

Go to this website and download the correct executable for your PC. I'm running a x64 bit processor that isn't ARM, so I'm going to click on the bottom link.

Link 1: "ARM64: Permalink for latest supported ARM64 version"; Link 2: "x86: Permalink for latest x86 version"; Link 3: "x64: Permalink for latest supported x64 version."

 

If you need to check which processor your PC has, you can do so by going to [Settings] > [System] > [About]. Look at the "System Type" text field and you'll see!

"System type: 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor"

Step 2c: 

Once you've downloaded the correct file, go ahead and open it. Check the box that says you agree to terms and conditions and click "Install". Click "Yes" on the prompt from User Account Control.

Microsoft Visual C++ 2015-2022 Redistributable (x64) - 14.40.33810, with Microsoft Software License Terms; "[Checkbox, checked] I agree to the license terms and conditions"; "Install (button) (highlighted by mouse cursor)"; "Close (button)"

Reads: "Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device?"; "Microsoft Visual C++ 2015-2022 Redistributable (x64) - 14.40.33810"; "Verified publisher: Microsoft Corporation"; "File origin: Hard drive on this computer"; "Show more details (link)"; "Yes (button) (highlighted by mouse cursor)"; "No (button)"

The whole thing should only take a few seconds. Once you see the "Setup Successful" message, you can go ahead and click the "close" button.

Reads: "Setup Successful"; "Close (button)"

 

 

Step 2d:

Go ahead and reopen the VirtualBox executable file and click "Yes" when prompted by User Account Control.

Step 3:

You should now see this screen:

Reads: "Welcome to the Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20 Setup Wizard"; "The Setup Wizard will install Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20 on your computer . Click Next to continue or Cancel to exit the Setup Wizard."; "Next > (button)"; "Cancel (button)"

Congratulations! Now you can install! Go ahead and click "Next".

Step 4: 

Your screen should look something like this:

Reads: "Custom Setup: Select the way you want features to be installed."; "Click on the icons in the tree below to change the way features will be installed."; Tree diagram root node (highlighted): "VirtualBox Application"; Description reads: "Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20 application. This feature requires 209MB on your hard drive...."

For Windows, we'll need to change something before continuing. (Otherwise we might run into a "missing dependencies" error that might affect things.) Click on the icon next to "VirtualBox Python Support" and click "Entire feature will be unavailable" like this:

Tree diagram subnode of root (highlighted): "VirtualBox Python Support: Python support for VirtualBox. This feature requires 0KB on your hard drive."; Dropdown menu options: "Will be installed on local hard drive"; "Entire feature will be installed on local hard drive"; "Entire feature will be unavailable (highlighted)"

Step 5: 

Okay! Now click on the text that says "VirtualBox Application" at the top so that it's highlighted, like this:

Buttons read: "Browse"; "Disk Usage"; "< Back"; "Next >"; "Cancel"

If you want to change where VirtualBox is installed, click "Browse". Otherwise, just click "Next".

Step 6: 

You'll probably see this screen:

Reads: "Warning: Network Interfaces"; "Installing the Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20 Networking feature will reset your network connection and temporarily disconnect you from the network."; "Proceed with installation now?"; "Yes (button)"; "No (button)"

You'll have to click "Yes" if you want to install Virtualbox. So go ahead and do that.

Step 7: 

You should see this screen:

Reads: "Please choose from the options below:"; "[Checkbox, checked] Create start menu entries"; "[Checkbox, checked] Create a shortcut on the desktop"; "[Checkbox, checked] Create a shortcut in the Quick Launch Bar"; "[Checkbox, checked] Register file associations"; "< Back (button)"; "Next > (button)"

I leave everything as it is. But if you want to uncheck any boxes feel free to do so. When you're ready, click "Next".

Step 8: 

After that, you'll see this:

Reads: "Ready to Install"; "The Setup Wizard is ready to begin the Custom installation."; "Click Install to begin the installation. If you want to review or change any of your installation settings, click Back. Click Cancel to exit the wizard."; "< Back (button)"; "Install (button)"; "Cancel (button)"

When you're ready, click "Install".

Step 9: 

It might take a few minutes. Once it's done, you'll see this screen:

Reads: "Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20 installation is complete."; "Click the Finish button to exit the Setup Wizard."; "[Checkbox, checked] Start Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.0.20 after installation"; "Finish (button)"

You did it! You can uncheck the box if you want, then click "Finish".

INSTALLING VIRTUALBOX ON UBUNTU/LINUX MINT

Installing software on Linux can be a little... tricky. 😣️ This is the guide I used for my own Linux Mint laptop: https://linuxiac.com/install-virtualbox-7-on-linux-mint-21/

The author also has a guide for Ubuntu: https://linuxiac.com/how-to-install-virtualbox-on-ubuntu-22-04/

 

Once you've got it all set up, pat yourself on the back. We're so close to having Windows XP at our fingertips!

 

 

SETTING UP A VIRTUAL MACHINE FOR WINDOWS XP WITH GUEST ADDITIONS

Step 1: 

Open VirtualBox. You'll see a screen that looks something like this:

Reads: "Welcome to VirtualBox!"; "The left part of application (sic) window contains global tools and lists all virtual machines and virtual machine groups on your computer. You can import, add and create new VMs using corresponding toolbar buttons. You can popup a tools of currently selected element using corresponding element button (sic)." "You can press the F1 key to get instant help, or visit www.virtualbox.org (link) for more information and latest news."

For the remainder of the tutorial, I'll be using my Linux Mint laptop. But your Windows version of VirtualBox should look and behave very similarly.

Step 2:

Click on the icon that says "New" in the upper right of the window. You can also click on [Machine] > [New...] or press Ctrl+N.

Buttons read: "Preferences"; "Import"; "Export"; "New"; "Add"

Step 3: 

This is where the magic happens! Take a look:

Reads: "Virtual machine Name and Operating System"; "Please choose a descriptive name and destination folder for the new virtual machine. The name you choose will be used throughout VirtualBox to identify this machine. Additionally, you can select an ISO image which may be used to install the guest operating system."; "Name (text field): Windows XP (I typed this)"; "Folder (dropdown menu field): /home/[redacted]/VirtualBox VMs"; "ISO Image (dropdown): <not selected>"; "Edition (dropdown, greyed out): (blank)"; "Type (dropdown): Microsoft Windows"; "Version (dropdown): Windows XP (32-bit)"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Skip Unattended Installation"; Information (text next to letter 'i' word ballon icon) reads: "No ISO image is selected, the guest OS will need to be installed manually." Buttons read: "Help"; "Expert Mode"; "Back (greyed out)"; "Next"; "Cancel"

You can see I've already typed "Windows XP" in the "Name" field. Virtualbox automatically changed what was in the "Version" field to match.

Step 4: 

Have your Windows XP ISO file ready. Click on the "ISO image" dropdown menu and select "Other" (It has this icon next to the text: ). You'll notice I'll have some ISOs listed already (since I've used VirtualBox before) but you probably won't have any listed yet:

Step 5: 

Navigate to wherever you've saved your ISO file and click "Open".

Information (text next to letter 'i' word ballon icon) now reads: "Detected OS type: Windows XP (32-bit). This OS type can be installed unattendedly. The install will start after this wizard is closed."

Your ISO file should be listed and your OS should be detected automatically. Go ahead and click "Next".

Step 6: 

You should now see the "Unattended Guest OS Install Setup" screen. By default, your screen should look something like this:

Reads: "Unattended Guest OS Install setup"; "You can configure the unattended guest OS install by modifying username, password, and hostname. Additionally you can enable guest additions install. For Microsoft Windows guests it is possible to provide a product key."; "Username and Password (header)"; "Username (text field): vboxuser [green checkmark]"; "Password (text field): •••••••• (changeme)"; "Repeat Password (text field): •••••••• (changeme)"; "Additional Options (header)"; "Product Key (text field): ####-##..."; "Hostname (text field): Windows (space) XP [red X]; "Domain Name (text field): myguest.virtualbox.org"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Install in Background"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Guest Additions (header)"; "Guest Additions ISO (directory pulldown menu): /usr/share/virtualbox/VBoxGuestAdditions.iso (greyed out)"; Buttons read: "Help"; "Back"; "Next (greyed out)"; "Cancel"

        A few things we need to do here:

        

• I would strongly recommend changing your password, because this is what you're going to use to sign in to Windows XP.
• I would enter your product key under "Additional Options".
• Your hostname is carried over from your Virtual Machine name. If your host name has any spaces or other unacceptable characters, you'll have to remove them.
• Make sure to check the "Guest Additions" box. Guest additions should be included with your version of VirtualBox and already listed.

 

 

Step 7: 

This is what my screen looks like now that I've made those changes: 

"Username: rosetta [green checkmark]"; "Password: •••••..."; "Repeat Password: •••••..."; "Product Key: [redacted]"; "Hostname: WindowsXP (no space) [green checkmark]; "Domain Name: myguest.virtualbox.org"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Install in Background"; "[Checkbox, checked] Guest Additions (header)"; "Guest Additions ISO: /usr/share/virtualbox/VBoxGuestAdditions.iso" Buttons read: "Help"; "Back"; "Next"; "Cancel"

When you're ready, click "Next".

Step 8: 

Now we're on the hardware page, which looks like this:

Reads: "Hardware"; "You can modify virtual machine's hardware by changing amount of RAM and virtual CPU count. Enabling EFI is also possible." Fields read: "Base Memory (slider): (set at 192MB)"; "Processors (slider): (set at 1 CPU)"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Enable EFI (special OSes only)"

I've left everything as is. Click "Next".

Step 9: 

Now we're on the Virtual Hard Disk page:

Reads: "Virtual Hard Disk"; "If you wish you can add a virtual hard disk to the new machine. You can either create a new hard disk file or select an existing one. Alternatively you can create a virtual machine without a virtual hard disk."; "[radio button 1, selected] Create a Virtual Hard Disk Now"; "[suboption 1 of radio button 1] Disk size (slider): (set at 10.00 GB)"; "[suboption 2 of radio button 1, Checkbox, unchecked] Pre-allocate full size"; "[radio button 2, not selected] Use an Existing Virtual Hard Disk File"; "[suboption of radio button 2] Empty (dropdown field) (greyed out)"; "[radio button 3] Do Not Add a Virtual Hard Disk"

I've left everything as is, with "Create a Virtual Hard Disk Now" selected. If you want, you can change the size. When you're ready, click "Next".

Step 10: 

Now we're on the Summary page:

Reads: "Summary"; "The following table summarizes the configuration you have chosen for the new virtual machine. When you are happy with the configuration press Finish to create the virtual machine. Alternatively you can go back and modify the configuration." "Machine Name and OS Type (header)"; Fields read: "Machine Name"; "Machine Folder"; "ISO Image"; "Guest OS Type"; "Skip Unattended Install (true/false)"; "Unattended Install (header)"; Fields read: "Username"; "Product Key (true/false)"; "Hostname/Domain Name"; "Install in Background (true/false)"; "Install Guest Additions (true/false)"; "Guest Additions ISO"; "Hardware (header)"; (the rest of the table is cutoff); Buttons read: "Help"; "Back"; "Finish"; "Cancel"

When you're ready, click "Finish".

Now your VM is going to boot and run the Windows XP ISO. It's going to take a while and show several different screens doing different things. Just let it do its thing. When it's done, you'll be logged in to your Windows XP VM! Press Right Ctrl+F to enter/escape fullscreen mode.

All right!! 🙌️ Now we can get to the good stuff!! 👊️✨️

SETTING UP WINDOWS XP FOR UTAU

PART 1: ADDING JAPANESE LANGUAGE PACK

 

Step 1: 

In Windows XP, click [Start] > [Control Panel]. You should be here:

Reads: "Pick a Category (header)"; Column 1: "Appearance and Themes"; "Network and Internet Connections"; "Add or Remove Programs"; "Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices"; Column 2: "Printers and Other Hardware"; "User Accounts"; "Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options"; "Accessibility Options" (other options are cut off)

Click on "Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options".

Step 2: 

Click "Add other Languages".

Reads: "Pick a task... (header)"; "Change the date and time"; "Change the format of numbers, dates, and times"; "Add other languages (highlighted by mouse cursor)"

Step 3: 

A smaller window will pop up. Check the box that says "Install files for East Asian languages". Another window will pop up with a message. Click "OK" on that window.

Tabs read: "Regional Options"; "Languages (currently selected)"; "Advanced"; The Languages tab reads: "Text services and input languages (header)"; "To view or change the languages and methods you can use to enter text, click Details." "Details (button)"; "Supplemental language support (header)"; "Most languages are installed by default. To install additional languages, select the appropriate check box below." "[Checkbox, unchecked] Install files for complex script and right-to-left languages (including Thai)"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Install files for East Asian languages (highlighted by mouse cursor)"; "OK (button)"; "Cancel (button)"; "Apply (button)"

Reads: "Install Supplemental Language Support"; "You chose to install the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean language files. This will require 230 MB or more of available disk space. The files will be installed after you click OK or Apply on the Regional and Language Options dialog box." "OK (button) (highlighted by mouse cursor)"

After you click "OK", click "Apply" in the previous window for the files to install.

"Apply"

Step 4: 

Wait for it to install. Once it's done, click "Yes" to reboot.

Reads: "Change Regional Options"; "You must restart your computer before the new settings will take effect. Do you want to restart your computer now?" "Yes (button)"; "No (button)"

PART 2: ADDING JAPANESE INPUT KEYBOARD

Step 1: 

Once it reboots, navigate again to [Start] > [Control Panel] > [Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options] > [Add other Languages].

Near the top right of the Languages tab, click the "Details" button.

The "Install files for East Asian languages" box is now checked.

Step 2: 

It'll open the "Text Services and Input Languages" window. Click the "Add" button in the "Installed services" section:

"Text Services and Input Languages"; Tabs read: "Settings (currently selected)"; "Advanced"; The Settings tab reads: "Default input language (header)"; "Select one of the installed input languages to use when you start your computer."; "English (United States) - US (dropdown menu)"; "Installed services (header)"; "Select the services that you want for each input language shown in the list. Use the Add or Remove buttons to modify this list." Nested List Reads: "EN English (United States): Keyboard: US"; "Add (button) (highlighted by mouse cursor)"; "Remove (button) (greyed out)"; "Properties... (button) (greyed out)"; "Preferences (header)"; "Language Bar... (button) (greyed out)"; "Key Settings (button) (greyed out)"; "OK (button)"; "Cancel (button)"; "Apply (button) (greyed out)"

Step 3: 

You'll see a new window. Pick "Japanese" for the input language. Leave the bottom setting as is, and click "OK".

"Add Input language"; Fields read: "Input language: (dropdown menu) (Japanese selected)"; "Keyboard layout/IME: (dropdown menu) ('Microsoft IME Standard 2002 ver. 8.1' selected)"; "OK (button) (highlighted by mouse cursor)"; "Cancel (button)"

Once you're done, you can close the "Text Services and Input Languages" window.

PART 3: CHANGING SYSTEM LOCALE

Step 1: 

Now we should be back to the "Regional and Language Options" window. Click on the "Advanced" tab.

"Advanced"

Step 2: 

Under the "Language for non-Unicode programs" header, change the language to Japanese. Click "Apply".

Advanced tab reads: "Language for non-Unicode programs (header)"; "This system setting enables non-Unicode programs to display menus and dialogues in their native language. It does not affect Unicode programs, but it does apply to all users of this computer." "Select a language to match the language version of the non-Unicode programs you want to use:"; "(dropdown menu) Japanese (select this)"; "Code page conversion tables (header)"; "[Checkbox, checked] 10000 (MAC - Roman) (greyed out)"; "[Checkbox, checked] 10001 (MAC - Japanese)"; "[Checkbox, checked] 10002 (MAC - Traditional Chinese Big5)"; "[Checkbox, checked] 10003 (MAC - Korean)";  "[Checkbox, unchecked] 10004 (MAC - Arabic)"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] 10005 (MAC - Hebrew)"; (the rest of the list is cutoff); "Default user account settings (header)"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Apply all settings to the current user account and to the default user profile"; "OK (button)"; "Cancel (button)"; "Apply (button) (highlighted by mouse cursor)"

Step 3: 

You'll probably see a dialog window come up. If your version of Windows XP had Service Pack 3 already on it, it should look something like this:

Reads: "Advanced"; "The required files are already installed on your hard disk. Setup can use these existing files, or Setup can recopy them from your original Windows CD-ROM or from a network share."; "Would you like to skip file copying and use the existing files? (If you click No, you will be prompted to instert your Windows CD-ROM or to supply an alternate location where the needed files may be found.)"; "Yes (button)"; "No (button)"

If you see this message, make things easy on yourself and click "Yes". If you click "No" or don't have Service Pack 3, you'll need to insert an ISO with Service Pack 3 on it into your Virtual CD Drive before it'll install.

Step 4: 

You'll be prompted to reboot. Click "Yes".

Reads: "Change Regional Options"; "You must restart your computer before the new settings will take effect. Do you want to restart your computer now?"; "Yes (button) (highlighted by mouse cursor)"; "No (button)"

Whew! Are you still with me? 😅️

There's just one more teensy thing we have to do, and then we can install UTAU in Windows XP!! 💜️🎶️

ADDING A SHARED FOLDER TO THE WINDOWS XP VIRTUAL MACHINE

Step 1: 

We need to shut down the Windows XP VM for a second. Make sure you do that, like this:

[Start] > [Turn Off Computer] ("Provides options for turning off or restarting your computer, or for activating Stand By or Hibernate modes.")

Options read: "Standby (greyed out)"; "Turn Off (highlighted by mouse cursor; 'Shuts down Windows so that you can safely turn off the computer.')"; "Restart"

Step 2:

 Go back to the VirtualBox window. Click on the "Settings" Icon.

The window now displays your Windows XP Virtual Machine on the right (it should be powered off). In the center, the Welcome message is replaced with specifications for the selected Virtual Machine. Headers read: "General"; "System"; "Display"; "Storage"; (the rest is cutoff)

Step 3: 

When the Windows XP Settings window comes up, click the "Shared Folders" settings.

Left side panel options read: "General (currently selected)"; "System"; "Display"; "Storage"; "Audio"; "Network"; "Serial Ports"; "USB"; "Shared Folders (highlighted by mouse cursor)"; "User Interface"

Step 4: 

 Now we are here:

"Shared Folders" page reads: "Shared Folders (header)"; Table with a header row and 5 columns. Header row reads (from column 1 to 5): "Name"; "Path"; "Access"; "Auto Mount"; "At"; Beneath this, a label reads "Machine Folders"; (there is no other text for the table); Buttons read: "Help"; "Cancel"; "OK"

Please note that if you see a label for "Transient Folders" underneath "Machine Folders" then your VM is still running. You don't want to put your shared folder there because it'll disappear when you close out! Take it from somebody who's learned the hard way. 🥲️

If you only have "Machine Folders" listed, then great! Click on this icon in the far right:

Step 5: 

You should see another tiny window, labeled "Add Share":

"Add Share"; Fields read: "Folder Path (dropdown menu)"; "Folder Name"; "Mount point"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Read-only"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Auto-mount"; "Cancel (button)"; "OK (button) (greyed out)"

On the folder path dropdown menu, click "Other" (it has this icon: )

Step 6: 

You should now see a "Finding Directory" window. Mine looks like this:

Here, we start in my User directory, which has the following folders: "Desktop"; "Documents"; "Downloads"; "Music"; "Pictures"; "Public"; "Templates"; "Videos"; "VirtualBox VMs"; Two bottom fields read: "Directory: (lists path of chosen directory)"; "Files of type: Directories (greyed out)"; Two buttons read: "Choose"; "Cancel"

If you're using Windows yours probably looks a bit different.

You can put your shared folder wherever you want. You can make new folders if you need to. Me personally, I like to start in my Documents folder and make a few sub folders after that. But put it somewhere that works best for you! 👍️ Once you've got your directory picked out, go ahead and click "Choose". 

Step 7: 

Now we're back at our previous window. Notice that the "Add Share" window title has changed to "Edit Share". You'll see it now lists the chosen folder and its directory. Make sure to check the box that says "Auto Mount":

"Edit Share"; Fields read: "Folder Path: ...assets/win_xp_shared_folder"; "Folder Name: win_xp_shared_folder"; "Mount point: (blank)"; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Read-only"; "[Checkbox, checked] Auto-mount"; "Cancel (button)"; "OK (button)"

When that's done, click "OK".

Step 8: 

Now the Settings window should look something like this:

"Shared Folders" page reads: "Shared Folders (header)"; Table with a header row and 5 columns. Header row reads (from column 1 to 5): "Name"; "Path"; "Access"; "Auto Mount"; "At"; Beneath this, a label reads "Machine Folders"; A second row now exists for the table, nested under the "Machine Folders" label. It reads (from column 1 to 5): "win_x...lder (under 'Name')"; "/home/[redacted]...M_assets/win_xp_shared_folder (under 'Path')"; "Full (under 'Access')"; "Yes (under 'Auto-Mount')"; "(blank) (under 'At')"; Buttons read: "Help"; "Cancel"; "OK"

You're all set now! Go ahead and click "OK".

Step 9: 

Reboot your Windows XP VM. Inside your VM, click [Start] > [My Computer]:

("Gives access to, and information about, the disk drives, cameras, scanners, and other hardware connected to your computer.")

 

Check it out! At the bottom of the window, you should see your very own shared folder under "Network Drives":

Headers read: "Files stored on this computer"; "Hard disk drives"; "Devices with Removable Storage"; "Network Drives"; Under "Network Drives": "win_xp_shared_folder on 'VBoxSvr' (Z:)"

 

You did it! You really did it! Now we can actually install UTAU! 🥳️🎉️

INSTALLING UTAU IN YOUR WINDOWS XP VM

The first thing we need to do is download the setup exe file. We're going to do this in our host machine and not in the Virtual Machine. You technically could do it in the VM if you wanted to, but it's probably safer for your VM if you don't surf the web on it—Windows XP has known security vulnerabilities and Internet Explorer is incredibly out of date.

Plus, if you've got a shared folder that's linked to your host machine, it could be dangerous for your actual computer if your VM gets some kind of virus or malware. So we're gonna play it safe!! 👏️

Step 1: 

In your host machine, go to this link and download the latest version:

Highlighted link reads: "v0.4.19(c) インストーラー" under bullet point that reads: "2024/5/24 v0.4.19のインストーラー修正版"

You might notice that UTAU was updated this year! Can you believe it? 😮️ It was patched to fix a security exploit, which is why all older links for UTAU have been removed. But don't worry—the most recent version will still run just fine on Windows XP.

Step 2: 

Cut and paste the exe file into a nice place in your shared directory. Here you'll see I've made a subfolder for it, but you don't have to do that.

"utau419cInstaller.exe"

Step 3: 

Go back to your Windows XP VM window. If you're not still at "My Computer", head back by clicking [Start] > [My Computer]. Open your VirtualBox network drive and take a look:

Directory: "Z:\"; Folder listed: "utau"

Look! There's my subfolder!! Open it and we'll see:

Directory: "Z:\utau\"; File listed: "utau419cInstaller"

It's the UTAU executable file!!! Now we're really cooking!!! 🔥️

Step 4: 

Double-click the file to run it. You should see this screen:

Reads: "歌声合成ツール"; "歌声合成ツール　セットアップ　ウィザードへようこそ (header)"; "インストーラは UTAU 歌声合成ツール をインストールするために必要な手順を示します。"; "この製品は、著作権に関する法律および国際条約により保護されています。この製品全部または一部を無断で複製したり、無断で複製物を頒布すると、著作権の侵害となりますのでご注意ください。"; Buttons read: "キャンセル"; "戻る(B) (greyed out)"; "次へ(N)"

Click on the "次へ" ("Next") button.

Step 5: 

Now you should be here:

Reads: "インストール フォルダの選択 (header)"; "インストーラは次のフォルダへ UTAU 歌声合成ツール をインストールします。"; "このフォルダにインストールするには[次へ]をクリックしてください。別のフォルダにインストールするには、アドレスを入力するか[参照]をクリックしてください。"; Field reads: "フォルダ(F): C:\Program Files\UTAU\"; "参照(R) (button)"; "ディスク領域(D)... (button)"; Text reads: "UTAU 歌声合成ツール 現在のユーザー用か、またはすべてのユーザー用にインストールします："; "[radio button, not selected] すべてのユーザー(E)"; "[radio button, selected] このユーザーのみ(M)"; Buttons read: "キャンセル"; "戻る(B)"; "次へ(N)"

You can leave everything as is and click the "次へ" ("Next") button again.

Step 6: 

Now you should be here:

Reads: "インストールの確認 (header)"; "UTAU 歌声合成ツール をインストールする準備ができました。"; "[次へ]をクリックしてインストールを開始してください。"; Buttons read: "キャンセル"; "戻る(B)"; "次へ(N)"

If you click "次へ" ("Next"), the installation will start. So go ahead and do that.

Step 7: 

If you see this screen...

Reads: "インストールが完了しました。 (header)"; "UTAU 歌声合成ツール は正しくインストールされました。"; "終了するには、[閉じる]をクリックしてください。"; Buttons read: "キャンセル"; "戻る(B)"; "閉じる(C)"

...then you're done! Click the "閉じる" ("Close") button.

 

Now you'll see a cool desktop icon in the corner:

And you're all done!! 🎊️ Now you can freely use UTAU in Windows XP. Let's go ahead and test it and see if we can put a WAV file in our shared folder.

TESTING THE PROGRAM

Step 1: 

Open UTAU. You'll see a readme.txt file open and a "voice set report". The voice set report is just talking about the configuration settings for Defoko, the default UTAU voicebank. You can check the "Do not show" box if you want, but you don't have to. Click "close" and the UTAU window will open (you might want to fullscreen it).

Reads: "Voice set report"; "Info: The preutterance of '* あ' is longer than the overlap."; "Info: The preutterance of '* い' is longer than the overlap."; "Info: The preutterance of '* う' is longer than the overlap."; "Info: The preutterance of '* え' is longer than the overlap."; "Info: The preutterance of '* お' is longer than the overlap."; "[Checkbox, unchecked] Do not show"; "Close (button)"

Step 2: 

Let's make a simple UST. Draw a couple of notes. Go crazy if you want to. Or just keep it simple. Whatever you want, as long as it can be played. Here's what I made:

♪  "|ど | れ | み | ふぁ | そ | ら | てぃ | ど|" ♪

Step 3: 

We'll need to save the project as a UST file before we can export. So let's do that. Click [File(F)] > [Save as...]. You should see this screen:

Reads: "Save as..."; "Save in: My Documents (selected directory)"; "File name: New Project"; "Save as type: UTAU形式(*.ust)"; "Save (button)"; "Cancel (button)"

Step 4: 

Save the file wherever you want. If you want to put it somewhere in your shared folder you can. Personally I don't need to, so I'm just going to put it in my Documents folder in my VM (which is where it is by default). When you're ready, click "Save".

Step 5: 

Now that our project is saved, we can export. In the menu bar click [Project(P)] > [Render wav File(R)...]. You should see something like this:

Reads: "Output File Name"; "Save in: My Documents (currently selected directory)"; "File name: (blank)"; "Save as type: wav file"; "Save (button)"; "Cancel (button)"

This time I am going to save it in my shared folder. That way I don't have to move the file later. If you're not in your shared folder yet, go ahead and navigate there. Click on "My Computer" on the left, then your shared folder name. It should end with "on 'VBoxSvr' (Z:)".

Side panel options read (top to bottom): "My Recent Documents"; "Desktop"; "My Documents"; "My Computer (selected)"; "My Network Places"

 

"Save in: win_xp_shared_folder on 'VBoxSvr' (Z:)" (selected directory)"; "File name: (blank)"; "Save as type: wav file"; "Save (button)"; "Cancel (button)"

Step 6: 

Type whatever you want as the name and click "Save". When you're done, you should see something like this:

Reads: "Created Z:\test.wav."; "OK (button)"

Success! You can close out of UTAU now.

Step 7: 

Let's check out our file in our VM. Click [Start] > [My Computer] > [{your shared folder's name} on 'VBoxSvr' (Z:)]. If you exported the file in a subfolder, keep going until you find it.

Directory: "Z:\"; Folder listed: "utau"; File listed: "test (highlighted by mouse cursor: 'Type: Wave Sound; Size: 349 KB; Date Modified: 7/26/2024 1:37 AM')"

There's our file! Isn't that cool? 🤩️ Let's check it out on our host computer.

Step 8:

Open your computer's file explorer and navigate to where you created your shared folder. When you get there, you should see the file!

Directory: "[...]Documents/VM_assets/win_xp_shared_folder"; Folder listed: "utau"; File listed: "test.wav"

There it is! The same file!! Now you can play it and bask in its magnificence. 😌️

From here you can move it, delete it, rename it, whatever. The changes will be reflected in your Virtual Machine as well. Likewise, you could delete it, rename it, whatever in your Virtual Machine. Then the changes would be reflected in your host machine. It's like they're connected or something!!! 😉️

Well, there you have it! It was a long road to get here, but now you have UTAU set up in a Windows XP Virtual Machine! How cool is that? 😎️✨️

I hope you found this useful! Let me know in the comments!

Until next time. 🫡