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how to run programs without altering the host pc

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40hz:
Just my 2 based on my experiences...

Sandboxie works very well as long as your machine has enough 'oomph!' to run it effectively. Any dual-core (or better) chip with a gigabyte+ of RAM should do fine.

But as Renegade pointed out, VMs are an even better alternative if your PC has the power to run one. Sandboxes and sandbox techniques are a bit of a hack. VMs are a much cleaner and don't play weird shell games with your operating system in order to work their magic.

If you can do VM - definitely go that route. :)

mouser:
Another vote here in favor of virtual machines.

PhilB66:
Well sandboxie will do it if it's already installed on the host PC. Portable apps should work too, that is the basic idea of them, but they don't necessarily provide guarantees to that effect.
-Eóin (December 08, 2011, 06:05 AM)
--- End quote ---

There is a portable sandboxie.

40hz:
Well sandboxie will do it if it's already installed on the host PC. Portable apps should work too, that is the basic idea of them, but they don't necessarily provide guarantees to that effect.
-Eóin (December 08, 2011, 06:05 AM)
--- End quote ---

There is a portable sandboxie.
-PhilB66 (December 08, 2011, 09:48 AM)
--- End quote ---

AFAIK the only problem is it's an old version (V2.2.2.3) last released in late 2007. The current release is 3.62 which just came out last month.

This is what the developers currently have to say about portability and how Sandboxie (sort of) addresses it:

Portable Sandbox

The revised layout of the sandbox that is introduced in version 2.80 allows for greater portability of the sandbox across computers. By redirecting programs to create sandboxed objects which have a nonspecific path, it is possible to populate a sandbox on one computer, then carry this sandbox to another computer and keep using it.

For example, consider installing a game program to a portable device such as a USB memory stick which is mounted as drive P. The game may install its files to a folder on drive P, but any menu shortcuts it creates will be installed in the Windows Start menu of the local computer, outside drive P. And any registry keys it creates will also be created in the Windows registry, also outside the USB device.

By contrast, if you set the container folder to drive P (for instance P:\Sandbox), then install the game into the (sandboxed) drive C, then all objects created by the installation will be redirected to drive P.

You can then carry the USB drive to another computer where Sandboxie is installed, and set the container folder on that other computer to drive P. Through the Sandboxie Start menu, you will see the menu shortcuts installed by the game, and when you start it, the game will find its settings as they were recorded in the sandboxed registry.

Note that Sandboxie itself is not portable software, but it facilitates the portability of a large number of applications.
--- End quote ---

 :)

kalos:
thanks for your replies

which would be the most lightweight VM? if portable, it would be best

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