Run Windows program on Linux in a secure way

Question

I am trying to find a way to achieve a secure execution of Windows programs inside a Linux installation.

I suppose that a Windows malware should not do any damage (infect the machine), if executed through a low privileged Wine instance; but I am afraid that it could mess up configurations and files of my user.

So, I thought to use a combination of Qemu and Wine (because I have read that Qemu could be more light than an entire VM), but I am not sure about the pros and cons.

Is there a real gain using that combination instead of simply the Virtual Box?

I appreciated Virtual Box in the past years, but I am tired of launching an entire OS when I need a simple program.

Are Qemu + Wine more easy to run? Can this combination provide the same security guarantees as the Virtual Box does?

Answer 1

I would go with VirtualBox. Using Wine + QEMU though in theory is a possibility, I think you'll find VirtualBox will give you:

• better performance
• be easier to setup and use
• better security
• etc.

Perhaps you should look into using the snapshot pausing features of VirtualBox. It's rare that I ever have to start a VM from scratch, rather I resume them, this is much faster then having to do a full on boot.