The VirtualBox system service service terminated unexpectedly

The VirtualBox System Service relies on a constant, stable connection to the host machine’s USB controllers to manage devices passed through to the virtual machine. When Windows 11’s power management feature temporarily suspends a USB Root Hub to save energy, it effectively cuts the communication line between the physical USB port and the VirtualBox service. This unexpected disconnection forces the service to crash immediately, as it cannot handle the abrupt loss of the hardware resource it was actively managing. Disabling the power-saving setting ensures the USB controllers remain active and responsive at all times, preventing the service from being terminated. Follow the steps below to do the same.

• Right-click the Start button and select Device Manager.
• Expand Universal Serial Bus controllers.
• Right-click each entry named USB Root Hub (USB 3.0) and select Properties.
• Go to the Power Management tab.
• Uncheck the box labeled Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.
• Click OK and repeat for all Root Hubs.
• Restart your PC.

Finally, open your Virtual Machine and see if the issue persists.

2] Change the Service Logon Account

VirtualBox System Service typically runs under a restricted virtual account that may not have sufficient permissions for hardware access or the Windows graphical interface. Switching to the Local System account grants the service extensive privileges, allowing it to operate with the highest authority on your machine. Additionally, enabling Allow service to interact with the desktop lets the service communicate with the user interface, which is important for USB notifications and window integration. Increasing its permissions helps prevent access-denied errors that can cause the service to crash during higher authority tasks.

First of all, open Services.msc from the Start Menu. Look for VirtualBox System Service, right-click on it, and click on Properties.

Now, go to the Log On tab, select Local System account, and check the box for Allow service to interact with desktop. 

Click Apply > OK.

Finally, restart the service and check if your issue is resolved.

3] Disable Hyper-V and Core Isolation/Memory Integrity

Hyper-V and Core Isolation features lock the system’s virtualization hardware for their own exclusive use, preventing VirtualBox from accessing the CPU extensions it needs to run. When the VirtualBox System Service attempts to initialize a virtual machine but finds the virtualization technology already controlled by Windows, it triggers a fatal error and crashes. Disabling these features frees up the hardware virtualization capabilities, allowing VirtualBox to operate without conflict and the service to start successfully.

Follow the steps below to disable Hyper-V and Core Isolation/Memory Integrity.

• Open Windows Security from the Start Menu.
• Go to Device Security > Core Isolation details.
• Now, you need to turn Memory Integrity off.
• Reboot your system.
• Once your system opens, launch PowerShell as an administrator and run the following command.

bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype off

Finally, reboot your computer and see if that helps.

4] Run a Repair or Perform a Clean Reinstall of VirtualBox

Repairing VirtualBox reinstalls all core drivers and re-registers them with Windows, fixing any corruption caused by a system update. If the damage is extensive, a complete uninstall followed by a reboot ensures all traces of the broken drivers are erased before installing fresh, stable ones, preventing the service from crashing during startup.

Follow the steps mentioned below to do the same.

• Launch Settings by Win + I.
• Go to Apps > Installed apps.
• Look for VirtualBox, click on the three dots, and then on Modify.
• Click on Repair and follow the on-screen instructions.
• If the repair doesn’t work, you need to remove VirtualBox and install it again.

Finally, reboot your computer and see if the issue persists.

Read: Virtual Machine has terminated unexpectedly during startup [Fix]

How to enable verr_vmx_msr_all_vmx_disabled?

This error means that Intel’s VT-x hardware virtualization is disabled, which is needed for 64-bit VMs or for allocating over 3GB of RAM to a VM. To fix it, restart your computer and enter the BIOS/UEFI by pressing a key (commonly F2, F10, DEL, or ESC). Then, navigate to the Advanced, Security, or CPU Configuration section, find Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x), AMD-V, or SVM Mode, and enable it. After saving changes, boot into Windows and ensure that no conflicting features like Hyper-V are active.

Read: VMware NAT Service service terminated unexpectedly, Event ID 7031

Does VirtualBox use BIOS or UEFI?

VirtualBox defaults to legacy BIOS for maximum compatibility with various guest operating systems. It also offers experimental EFI support for modern systems like macOS, newer Linux distributions, and Windows Vista and later. To enable UEFI for a specific VM, go to Settings, select System > Motherboard, and check Enable EFI (or use the command VBoxManage modifyvm “VM Name” –firmware efi). However, BIOS remains the default and more stable option for most users.

Also Read: VirtualBox VM is not opening or starting in Windows.