What is an XML-PREV file? An XML-PREV file is a backup settings file created and used by Oracle VM VirtualBox. It contains a copy of the application-wide settings stored in VirtualBox.xml . If your copy of VirtualBox.xml goes missing or becomes corrupted, you can replace it with VirtualBox.xml-prev .

More Information VM VirtualBox is a virtualization app that allows users to create and run virtual machines. For example, a Linux user might use VM VirtualBox to run a Windows virtual machine within Linux. At startup, VM VirtualBox loads application-wide settings from an .XML file named VirtualBox.xml . If VM VirtualBox cannot find or load settings from VirtualBox.xml , it will not launch. For this reason, VM VirtualBox maintains a backup copy of your most-recent application settings in a file named VirtualBox.xml-prev . This file is stored alongside VirtualBox.xml , in the VirtualBox directory. How to replace VirtualBox.xml with VirtualBox.xml-prev If your copy of VirtualBox.xml goes missing or becomes corrupted, you can replace the file with your copy of VirtualBox.xml-prev , to attempt to restore your VM VirtualBox settings. To do so: Go to the VirtualBox directory. If you still possess VirtualBox.xml , rename it to VirtualBox.xml-bad (or any other new filename). Rename your copy of VirtualBox.xml-prev to VirtualBox.xml . Attempt to open VM VirtualBox as you would normally. If your new VirtualBox.xml file contains valid settings, VM VirtualBox should run as normal. NOTE: XML-PREV files are similar to the .VBOX-PREV files VM VirtualBox uses to back up individual virtual machine settings.