The latest 64-bit version of Ubuntu (ubuntu-12.04-desktop-amd64.iso) can be installed/booted in a VM with the UEFI boot method (as opposed to the venerable BIOS). This is how you do it:
- Create New, Continue without disc; and Create a custom virtual machine.
- Specify Linux and Ubuntu 64-bit for the OS, and Customize Settings to your heart's content.
- Start the VM, which of course fails since you have not yet specified a bootable OS; so Stop the VM.
- Edit the .vmx file for the newly-created VM by adding the line: firmware = "efi".
- Select the VM again and link the CD/DVD drive to the above noted .iso; then start the VM.
- The Ubuntu Installer starts, gives the virtual HD a GPT partition table, installs /dev/sda1 as the EFI Systems Partition and installs the grubx64.efi bootloader on it, and loads this boot option in UEFI NVRAM.
- Upon reboot, everything works fine.
For the Debian-adepts: the latest Wheezy AMD64 installer cannot do this directly. In this case, you can first boot the installer in BIOS mode, and then fix the UEFI-bit in a shell -- see my HOWTO in the Debian User Forum (by my alter ego hkoster1).
Enjoy!
