Whonix for Windows, macOS, Linux inside VirtualBox

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Getting started with Whonix in 4 simple steps.

Symbol representing GUI

GUI

Symbol GUI preview
Whonix Xfce in VirtualBox

  • Whonix with Xfce graphical user interface (GUI).
  • This version of Whonix is designed to run inside VirtualBox.
  • Beginner-friendly and easy to use.
  • It is the right choice for most users.

Please follow these steps to install Whonix Xfce for VirtualBox.

NoScript Logo This page is fully functional without JavaScript, but enabling JavaScript significantly enhances the user experience.

1 Download Whonix Xfce

Whonix Xfce is available for Windows, MacOS and Linux.

Optional: Digital signature verification.

Version: 17.2.8.1

  • Digital signatures are a tool enhancing download security. They are commonly used across the internet and nothing special to worry about.
  • Optional, not required: Digital signatures are optional and not mandatory for using Whonix, but an extra security measure for advanced users. If you've never used them before, it might be overwhelming to look into them at this stage. Just ignore them for now.
  • Learn more: Curious? If you are interested in becoming more familiar with advanced computer security concepts, you can learn more about digital signatures here digital software signatures.

Choose your verification method below. This step requires that you have already downloaded Whonix Xfce .

How to verify the Whonix Images : Whonix virtual machine images are signed by Whonix developer Patrick Schleizer using OpenPGP and signify.

Do you already know how to perform digital software verification using an OpenPGP and/or signify key?

YES Then acquire the Whonix Signing Key and the Whonix signatures straight away and proceed.

NO Then consider the following instructions:

For Linux

For Windows

For macOS

2 Install VirtualBox

Download and install VirtualBox for your operating system.

Logo Windows

Windows

Download VirtualBox for Windows (FREE!) WINDOWS

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package

If you see the following error message:

Figure: Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package Error

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package Error

Oracle VM VirtualBox needs Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable package installed first. Please install and restart the installation of Oracle VM VirtualBox.

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package must be installed. [1]

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package (FREE!) WINDOWS

Optional: Digital signature verification.

VirtualBox for Windows is not signed with OpenPGP / gpg. It is signed with authenticode.

After downloading the VirtualBox installer exe and starting it, the user should verify that sure that Verified publisher: is Oracle Corporation.

Figure: Windows signature signature verification window for VirtualBox

Advanced users might wish to learn more about Kicksecure logo Authenticode (Windows Digital Software Signatures) Onion Version to perform a deeper verification.

Logo Apple

macOS

Download VirtualBox for macOS (FREE!) OSX

Optional: Digital signature verification.

VirtualBox for macOS is not signed with OpenPGP / gpg. It is notarized for macOS's gatekeeper.

See also Apple's official documentation Safely open apps on your Macarchive.org.

Logo Ubuntu

Ubuntu

For Ubuntu host operating systems Choose an option from the following table. Choose either Option (A) OR Option (B).

A Automated VirtualBox Installation : Ubuntu users could alternatively use the Whonix Linux Installer for VirtualBox. In this case, this wiki page can be completely ignored. No other steps from this wiki page need to be applied because the automated installer will handle everything.

B Manual VirtualBox Installation : Follow the instructions below.

Tested on October 2022 using Ubuntu version 22.04. Older versions are not recommended.

Command Line (All Users)

1 On the host : Open a terminal.

2 Update the package lists.

sudo apt update

3 Install VirtualBox and Linux kernel headers.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt linux-headers-generic

4 Add your current user to group vboxusers. [2]

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

5 Done.

The procedure of installing the VirtualBox host software is complete.

Logo Ubuntu Software Center

Software Center (only if not using SecureBoot)

Ubuntu Software Center can be used to install VirtualBox. The process is similar to installation of most other applications.

This only works for users with computers that do not have "SecureBoot" enabled. If the user's computer is using "SecureBoot" the user need to either disable "SecureBoot" in the BIOS or use the command line based instructions. [3]

1 Open the start menu.

2 Click on the Ubuntu Software Center icon.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center icon

Ubuntu Software icon

3 Click on the magnifying glass to search. → Type virtualbox. → Press enter. → In the search results, click on VirtualBox.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center - Search For VirtualBox

search for virtualbox

4 Click on Install and wait.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center Search Result

Install Virtualbox

5 Installation of VirtualBox has been completed.

When the installation has completed, the install icon changes to the uninstall icon. Do not click the uninstall button.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center - VirtualBox has been installed

Uninstall Virtualbox

6 Click on Show Applications. → Click on Virtual Box start the VirtualBox graphical user interface (GUI).

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center #4

Show Applications

7 Done.

The procedure of installing and starting VirtualBox is complete.

Logo Debian

Debian

For Debian host operating systems Choose an option from the following table. Choose either Option (A) OR Option (B).

A Automated VirtualBox Installation : Debian users could alternatively use the Whonix Linux Installer for VirtualBox. In this case, this wiki page can be completely ignored. No other steps from this wiki page need to be applied because the automated installer will handle everything.

B Manual VirtualBox Installation : Follow the instructions below.

Select your Debian release below to get the matching instructions.

Debian bookworm (stable) or bullseye (oldstable)

To acquire the Recommended VirtualBox version tested with Whonix, package virtualbox-qt should be installed from Debian fasttrack repositoryarchive.org according to the following instructions. [4]

1 On the host : Open a terminal.

2 Update the package lists.

sudo apt update

3 Install the Debian fasttrack signing key.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends fasttrack-archive-keyring

4 Add the Debian fasttrack repository.

echo 'deb https://fasttrack.debian.net/debian/ bookworm-fasttrack main contrib non-free' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/fasttrack.list

5 Add Debian the backports repository. [5]

echo 'deb https://deb.debian.org/debian bookworm-backports main contrib non-free' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/backports.list

6 Update the package lists again. [6]

sudo apt update

7 Install VirtualBox and Linux kernel headers.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt linux-headers-$(dpkg --print-architecture)

8 Add your current user to group vboxusers. [2]

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

9 Done.

The procedure of installing the VirtualBox host software is complete.

Debian Testing

VirtualBox can be installed by adding the Debian unstable (sid) repository and APT pinning. The details of this are unspecific to Whonix and undocumented.

Debian Unstable

VirtualBox can be installed by adding the Debian unstable (sid) repository.

sudo apt update

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt linux-headers-$(dpkg --print-architecture)

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

The details of this are unspecific to Whonix and undocumented.

Other Debian Releases

Other Debian releases might work, but this is untested. In case of other Debian release:
See also "Linux host operating systems" below.
See also "Linux" on the right.
Logo Kicksecure

Kicksecure

Kicksecure host operating systems Choose an option from the following table. Choose either Option (A) OR Option (B).

A Automated VirtualBox Installation : Kicksecure users could alternatively use the Whonix Linux Installer for VirtualBox. In this case, this wiki page can be completely ignored. No other steps from this wiki page need to be applied because the automated installer will handle everything.

B Manual VirtualBox Installation : Follow the instructions below.

Instructions for Kicksecure are simpler than instructions for Debian. [7]

1 On the host: Open a terminal.

2 Update package lists.

sudo apt update

3 Install VirtualBox and Linux kernel headers.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt

4 Add your current user to group vboxusers. [2]

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

5 Done.

The procedure of installing the VirtualBox host software is complete.

Logo Linux

Linux

Hosts using a non-Debian operating system:

  • Install VirtualBox as per the normal mechanism for your Linux distribution. No special instructions for Whonix are required. The installation of a recent VirtualBox host software is unspecific to Whonix. Consult the documentation of your Linux distribution.
  • Whonix has has been tested with, expects VirtualBox version latest.
  • For example the outdated VirtualBox version 5.2.18 is incompatible.

info General recommendations for users using Linux as a host operating system:

Linux kernel version:

  • The recommended host Linux kernel version is the same version that Debian bookworm is using, see linux-image-amd64archive.org.
  • Newer host Linux kernel versions are likely to break VirtualBox VMs in many ways since these are unsupported by VirtualBox. [8]

Host operating system. The recommended host Linux distributions are:

  • preferably the stable version of Kicksecure 17, or
  • Debian Linuxarchive.org version bookworm.

3 Import Whonix into VirtualBox

For Whonix VirtualBox import instructions, please press the learn more button on the right.

Follow these steps to import Whonix into VirtualBox. Click images to enlarge

Miscellaneous

There are also Video Tutorials.

If you still need help, please check the Support page.

For command line import instructions, see footnote. [9]

4 Start Whonix

Starting Whonix is simple:

  1. Start VirtualBox.
  2. Double-click the Whonix-Gateway and Whonix-Workstation.

5 Support the Future of Whonix

Whonix is made possible thanks to the donation of people like you.

Please support the Whonix development with a donation.

Donate to Whonix

Symbol representing CLI

CLI

Symbol CLI preview
Whonix CLI in VirtualBox

  • Whonix with command line interface (CLI).
  • This version of Whonix is designed to run inside VirtualBox.
  • Whonix with CLI is a version suited for advanced users -- those who want Whonix without a graphical user interface (GUI). Everyone else should install the user-friendly Whonix VirtualBox with GUI Xfce.

Please follow these steps to install Whonix CLI for VirtualBox.

NoScript Logo This page is fully functional without JavaScript, but enabling JavaScript significantly enhances the user experience.

1 Download Whonix CLI

Whonix CLI is available for Windows, MacOS and Linux.

Optional: Digital signature verification.

Version: 17.2.8.1

  • Digital signatures are a tool enhancing download security. They are commonly used across the internet and nothing special to worry about.
  • Optional, not required: Digital signatures are optional and not mandatory for using Whonix, but an extra security measure for advanced users. If you've never used them before, it might be overwhelming to look into them at this stage. Just ignore them for now.
  • Learn more: Curious? If you are interested in becoming more familiar with advanced computer security concepts, you can learn more about digital signatures here digital software signatures.

Choose your verification method below. This step requires that you have already downloaded Whonix CLI .

How to verify the Whonix Images : Whonix virtual machine images are signed by Whonix developer Patrick Schleizer using OpenPGP and signify.

Do you already know how to perform digital software verification using an OpenPGP and/or signify key?

YES Then acquire the Whonix Signing Key and the Whonix signatures straight away and proceed.

NO Then consider the following instructions:

For Linux

For Windows

For macOS

2 Install VirtualBox

Download and install VirtualBox for your operating system.

Logo Windows

Windows

Download VirtualBox for Windows (FREE!) WINDOWS

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package

If you see the following error message:

Figure: Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package Error

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package Error

Oracle VM VirtualBox needs Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable package installed first. Please install and restart the installation of Oracle VM VirtualBox.

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package must be installed. [10]

Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package (FREE!) WINDOWS

Optional: Digital signature verification.

VirtualBox for Windows is not signed with OpenPGP / gpg. It is signed with authenticode.

After downloading the VirtualBox installer exe and starting it, the user should verify that sure that Verified publisher: is Oracle Corporation.

Figure: Windows signature signature verification window for VirtualBox

Advanced users might wish to learn more about Kicksecure logo Authenticode (Windows Digital Software Signatures) Onion Version to perform a deeper verification.

Logo Apple

macOS

Download VirtualBox for macOS (FREE!) OSX

Optional: Digital signature verification.

VirtualBox for macOS is not signed with OpenPGP / gpg. It is notarized for macOS's gatekeeper.

See also Apple's official documentation Safely open apps on your Macarchive.org.

Logo Ubuntu

Ubuntu

For Ubuntu host operating systems Choose an option from the following table. Choose either Option (A) OR Option (B).

A Automated VirtualBox Installation : Ubuntu users could alternatively use the Whonix Linux Installer for VirtualBox. In this case, this wiki page can be completely ignored. No other steps from this wiki page need to be applied because the automated installer will handle everything.

B Manual VirtualBox Installation : Follow the instructions below.

Tested on October 2022 using Ubuntu version 22.04. Older versions are not recommended.

Command Line (All Users)

1 On the host : Open a terminal.

2 Update the package lists.

sudo apt update

3 Install VirtualBox and Linux kernel headers.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt linux-headers-generic

4 Add your current user to group vboxusers. [2]

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

5 Done.

The procedure of installing the VirtualBox host software is complete.

Logo Ubuntu Software Center

Software Center (only if not using SecureBoot)

Ubuntu Software Center can be used to install VirtualBox. The process is similar to installation of most other applications.

This only works for users with computers that do not have "SecureBoot" enabled. If the user's computer is using "SecureBoot" the user need to either disable "SecureBoot" in the BIOS or use the command line based instructions. [11]

1 Open the start menu.

2 Click on the Ubuntu Software Center icon.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center icon

Ubuntu Software icon

3 Click on the magnifying glass to search. → Type virtualbox. → Press enter. → In the search results, click on VirtualBox.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center - Search For VirtualBox

search for virtualbox

4 Click on Install and wait.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center Search Result

Install Virtualbox

5 Installation of VirtualBox has been completed.

When the installation has completed, the install icon changes to the uninstall icon. Do not click the uninstall button.

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center - VirtualBox has been installed

Uninstall Virtualbox

6 Click on Show Applications. → Click on Virtual Box start the VirtualBox graphical user interface (GUI).

Figure: Ubuntu Software Center #4

Show Applications

7 Done.

The procedure of installing and starting VirtualBox is complete.

Logo Debian

Debian

For Debian host operating systems Choose an option from the following table. Choose either Option (A) OR Option (B).

A Automated VirtualBox Installation : Debian users could alternatively use the Whonix Linux Installer for VirtualBox. In this case, this wiki page can be completely ignored. No other steps from this wiki page need to be applied because the automated installer will handle everything.

B Manual VirtualBox Installation : Follow the instructions below.

Select your Debian release below to get the matching instructions.

Debian bookworm (stable) or bullseye (oldstable)

To acquire the Recommended VirtualBox version tested with Whonix, package virtualbox-qt should be installed from Debian fasttrack repositoryarchive.org according to the following instructions. [12]

1 On the host : Open a terminal.

2 Update the package lists.

sudo apt update

3 Install the Debian fasttrack signing key.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends fasttrack-archive-keyring

4 Add the Debian fasttrack repository.

echo 'deb https://fasttrack.debian.net/debian/ bookworm-fasttrack main contrib non-free' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/fasttrack.list

5 Add Debian the backports repository. [13]

echo 'deb https://deb.debian.org/debian bookworm-backports main contrib non-free' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/backports.list

6 Update the package lists again. [14]

sudo apt update

7 Install VirtualBox and Linux kernel headers.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt linux-headers-$(dpkg --print-architecture)

8 Add your current user to group vboxusers. [2]

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

9 Done.

The procedure of installing the VirtualBox host software is complete.

Debian Testing

VirtualBox can be installed by adding the Debian unstable (sid) repository and APT pinning. The details of this are unspecific to Whonix and undocumented.

Debian Unstable

VirtualBox can be installed by adding the Debian unstable (sid) repository.

sudo apt update

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt linux-headers-$(dpkg --print-architecture)

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

The details of this are unspecific to Whonix and undocumented.

Other Debian Releases

Other Debian releases might work, but this is untested. In case of other Debian release:
See also "Linux host operating systems" below.
See also "Linux" on the right.
Logo Kicksecure

Kicksecure

Kicksecure host operating systems Choose an option from the following table. Choose either Option (A) OR Option (B).

A Automated VirtualBox Installation : Kicksecure users could alternatively use the Whonix Linux Installer for VirtualBox. In this case, this wiki page can be completely ignored. No other steps from this wiki page need to be applied because the automated installer will handle everything.

B Manual VirtualBox Installation : Follow the instructions below.

Instructions for Kicksecure are simpler than instructions for Debian. [15]

1 On the host: Open a terminal.

2 Update package lists.

sudo apt update

3 Install VirtualBox and Linux kernel headers.

sudo apt install --no-install-recommends virtualbox-qt

4 Add your current user to group vboxusers. [2]

sudo adduser $(whoami) vboxusers

5 Done.

The procedure of installing the VirtualBox host software is complete.

Logo Linux

Linux

Hosts using a non-Debian operating system:

  • Install VirtualBox as per the normal mechanism for your Linux distribution. No special instructions for Whonix are required. The installation of a recent VirtualBox host software is unspecific to Whonix. Consult the documentation of your Linux distribution.
  • Whonix has has been tested with, expects VirtualBox version latest.
  • For example the outdated VirtualBox version 5.2.18 is incompatible.

info General recommendations for users using Linux as a host operating system:

Linux kernel version:

  • The recommended host Linux kernel version is the same version that Debian bookworm is using, see linux-image-amd64archive.org.
  • Newer host Linux kernel versions are likely to break VirtualBox VMs in many ways since these are unsupported by VirtualBox. [16]

Host operating system. The recommended host Linux distributions are:

  • preferably the stable version of Kicksecure 17, or
  • Debian Linuxarchive.org version bookworm.

3 Import Whonix into VirtualBox

For Whonix VirtualBox import instructions, please press the learn more button on the right.

Follow these steps to import Whonix into VirtualBox. Click images to enlarge

Miscellaneous

There are also Video Tutorials.

If you still need help, please check the Support page.

For command line import instructions, see footnote. [17]

4 Start Whonix

Starting Whonix is simple:

  1. Start VirtualBox.
  2. Double-click the Whonix-Gateway and Whonix-Workstation.

5 Support the Future of Whonix

Whonix is made possible thanks to the donation of people like you.

Please support the Whonix development with a donation.

Donate to Whonix

First Time User / Questions and Answers

First Time User / Questions and Answers[edit]

Whonix default admin password is: No password required. (Passwordless login.)

  • Default username: user
  • Default password: No password required. (Passwordless login.) [18]

Whonix first time users warning Warning:

  • If you do not know what metadata or a man-in-the-middle attack is.
  • If you think nobody can eavesdrop on your communications because you are using Tor.
  • If you have no idea how Whonix works.

Then read the Design and Goals, Whonix and Tor Limitations and Tips on Remaining Anonymous pages to decide whether Whonix is the right tool for you based on its limitations.

Footnotes

Footnotes[edit]

  1. This link has been found on the microsoft.com website: Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable latest supported downloadsarchive.org
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Optional: See: https://www.virtualbox.org/manual/ch02.html#install-linux-vboxusersarchive.org Also spams ~/.config/VirtualBox/VBoxSVC.log log if not done.
  3. This is unspecific to Whonix. This is because during package installation of a package that requires kernel modules when "SecureBoot" is enabled, Ubuntu's dkms is prompting the user for a password to encrypt the key which will be used to enroll the kernel module signing key. This is Ubuntu usability issue. It is unknown if any bug report / feature request for this exists. Please contribute, research, report this issue on Ubuntu's issue tracker.
  4. This is Kicksecure logo non-ideal Onion Version but required since VirtualBox in unavailable in official Debian bookworm repository and difficult to install due to VirtualBox Installation Challenges. Alternatively you could install VirtualBox from the Oracle (virtualbox.org) Repository, but this comes with different risks. VirtualBox might be updated by VirtualBox developers before being tested with Whonix which could then lead to issues. (Described in footnote Recommended Version.)
  5. This is required because the Debian fasttrack repository depends on the Debian the backports repository.
  6. This is to acquire the Debian fasttrack repository package sources.
  7. This is because by Kicksecure default:
  8. https://www.virtualbox.org/ticket/17055#comment:3archive.org
  9. On the Linux platform.
    1. Read License Agreement: vboxmanage import Whonix-Xfce-17.2.8.1.ova --vsys 0 --eula show --vsys 1 --eula show 2. Import Whonix-Gateway and Whonix-Workstation. vboxmanage import Whonix-Xfce-17.2.8.1.ova --vsys 0 --eula accept --vsys 1 --eula accept 3. Done.
  10. This link has been found on the microsoft.com website: Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable latest supported downloadsarchive.org
  11. This is unspecific to Whonix. This is because during package installation of a package that requires kernel modules when "SecureBoot" is enabled, Ubuntu's dkms is prompting the user for a password to encrypt the key which will be used to enroll the kernel module signing key. This is Ubuntu usability issue. It is unknown if any bug report / feature request for this exists. Please contribute, research, report this issue on Ubuntu's issue tracker.
  12. This is Kicksecure logo non-ideal Onion Version but required since VirtualBox in unavailable in official Debian bookworm repository and difficult to install due to VirtualBox Installation Challenges. Alternatively you could install VirtualBox from the Oracle (virtualbox.org) Repository, but this comes with different risks. VirtualBox might be updated by VirtualBox developers before being tested with Whonix which could then lead to issues. (Described in footnote Recommended Version.)
  13. This is required because the Debian fasttrack repository depends on the Debian the backports repository.
  14. This is to acquire the Debian fasttrack repository package sources.
  15. This is because by Kicksecure default:
  16. https://www.virtualbox.org/ticket/17055#comment:3archive.org
  17. On the Linux platform.
    1. Read License Agreement: vboxmanage import Whonix-Xfce-17.2.8.1.ova --vsys 0 --eula show --vsys 1 --eula show 2. Import Whonix-Gateway and Whonix-Workstation. vboxmanage import Whonix-Xfce-17.2.8.1.ova --vsys 0 --eula accept --vsys 1 --eula accept 3. Done.
  18. Kicksecure logo Rationale for Change from Default Password changeme to Empty Default Password Onion Version

We believe security software like Whonix needs to remain open source and independent. Would you help sustain and grow the project? Learn more about our 12 year success story and maybe DONATE!