Run Virtual Machines on Windows with Sandbox and Hyper-V

Want to test suspicious software, run a clean copy of Windows, or spin up multiple systems for development without touching your real machine? Windows ships two free tools for this: Windows Sandbox and Hyper-V. This guide explains what they are, how to turn them on, how to use them, and how they compare with VMware, VirtualBox, and WSL.

Three kinds of isolation, explained

The terms get mixed up, so here is a quick table.

Home users have neither Sandbox nor Hyper-V, but they do have WSL2. For a full virtual machine on Home, use the alternatives at the end.

Windows Sandbox: the easiest temporary isolation

Turn it on

1. Press Win + R, type optionalfeatures, and press Enter to open Windows Features.
2. Check Windows Sandbox, click OK, and reboot when prompted.
3. Open it from the Start menu; a clean Windows desktop window appears.

How it behaves

• Ready to use. It has networking and you can copy files into it.
• Disposable. Anything you install or change inside vanishes when you close the window; your real machine is untouched. Ideal for opening installers from unknown sources.
• Fresh every time. Reopen it and you get a clean state again.
• No persistence. You cannot save the sandbox state, which is where it trails Hyper-V.

The November 2026 update (KB5127936) fixed a prior Windows Sandbox crash, so the current build is more stable.

Hyper-V: a real hypervisor for persistent VMs

Turn it on

1. Win + R > optionalfeatures > check Hyper-V (both Hyper-V Management Tools and Hyper-V Platform), OK, reboot. Or in an admin PowerShell run Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Microsoft-Hyper-V -All.
2. Open Hyper-V Manager from the Start menu.
3. On the right, Action > New > Virtual Machine, then follow the wizard.
   • Name it and pick a location (prefer D or E, not C).
   • Choose Generation 2.
   • Assign memory (2 to 4 GB for testing; check Dynamic Memory to save).
   • Connect to Default Switch for internet.
   • Connect a virtual hard disk and create a .vhdx.
   • For installation, choose Install from ISO and point to your image.
4. Start the VM and install the OS.

Useful Hyper-V tips

• Checkpoints (snapshots). Capture a VM state any time and roll back with one click; safer than a real machine.
• Enhanced session mode. Enables copy-paste and resolution scaling between host and VM.
• Conflict with VirtualBox. With Hyper-V on, older VirtualBox or VMware Workstation builds may not run; use each tool's newer build (with Hyper-V backend) or turn Hyper-V off. Pick one.
• Resource use. VMs eat memory and CPU; free up resources before starting one.

How to choose among VMware, VirtualBox, and WSL

In short, Sandbox is a disposable glove, Hyper-V is your own server room, and WSL is a Linux terminal inside Windows. They do not conflict and can run together.

Common errors

• "Virtual Machine Platform" greyed out or Sandbox will not check. Usually the BIOS virtualization (VT-x/AMD-V, SVM) is off. Reboot into BIOS, enable Intel Virtualization Technology or SVM Mode, then return to Windows.
• Sandbox fails to start with 0x80070002 or a black screen. Run sfc /scannow to repair system files and confirm the November 2026 cumulative update is installed.
• Hyper-V holds a port so VMware will not start. They fight over the virtualization backend; turn one off.
• Blue screen or freeze. Over-provisioned VM or driver conflict; start with Windows Blue Screen Error Codes Explained and reboot if needed.

Home edition alternatives

1. VirtualBox (free from Oracle). Works on every Windows edition, full featured, good for long-lived VMs.
2. WSL2 (Microsoft, works on Home). A Linux dev environment.
3. Third-party sandboxes such as Sandboxie-Plus, which can isolate any program persistently or temporarily.

Download software only from official sites or trusted channels to avoid bundled modified builds.

Customize the sandbox with a wsb file

The default sandbox is always blank, but you can write a .wsb config file so it starts with networking, shared folders, or preinstalled software already set up.

Create a text file, give it a .wsb extension, and use content like this.

<Configuration>
  <VGpu>Enable</VGpu>
  <Networking>Enable</Networking>
  <MappedFolders>
    <MappedFolder>
      <HostFolder>C:\Temp\Sandbox</HostFolder>
      <ReadOnly>true</ReadOnly>
    </MappedFolder>
  </MappedFolders>
  <LogonCommand>
    <Command>explorer.exe C:\Temp\Sandbox</Command>
  </LogonCommand>
</Configuration>

Double-click the file to open a sandbox built to that config. Common switches.

• VGpu. Set to Disable to turn off GPU virtualization, only if a rare app conflicts.
• Networking. Set to Disable to cut the sandbox off the network, for isolation with no internet.
• MappedFolders. Map a host folder into the sandbox; ReadOnly true is safer because changes inside cannot touch the host file.
• LogonCommand. Runs a command the moment the sandbox opens, such as opening a folder.

Note this only simplifies startup. When the sandbox closes, its changes still disappear; it is still not persistent.