Boot Ubuntu in VirtualBox from a partition in Hard Drive

From the Virtual Box install folder, run the command

VBoxManage.exe internalcommands listpartitions –rawdisk \\.\PhysicalDrive0

This will list all the partitions on hard disk. Locate the partitions for Ubuntu.

Then run the command to create a vmdk,

VBoxManage.exe internalcommands createrawvmdk –filename {Path to vmdk} –rawdisk \\.\PhysicalDrive0 -partitions {Comma Separated Partition List}

Then, in Ubuntu, copy /boot/grub/grub.cfg to a folder in home, say GRUB/boot/grub. Then execute to create a bootable grub disk,

grub-mkrescue -o grub.iso GRUB

Copy the iso file created to a windows drive. After this, while creating a new VirtualBox VM (run VirtualBox with admin permission), use the vmdk file created as your hard drive, and choose grub.iso file as CDROM drive. Enable UEFI in VirtualBox.

IITJEE Tips for Physics

Personally, I found physics to be the most interesting subject when studying for IITJEE. Physics is about understanding the world around you and does not depend on remembering a lot of things.

In perspective of IITJEE, the first few chapters in physics i.e. Kinematics, Laws of Motion, Work and Energy are particularly important as applications of them can be found in almost every other chapter. If you have trouble in these chapters, you will find later chapters more difficult. Never rote learn a formula or problem in physics, without understanding it. Try to practice different kind of problems, so you know beforehand the methods used for particular type of problems and that will help save time in IIT-JEE.

If you love physics, you can try solving books like I.E.Irodov as the questions in such books expand your understanding of physics. Note that most of the questions in such books are outside the syllabus and level of IITJEE exam, and thus you don’t need to do them. But if you have solved a book for IITJEE physics, try to solve Irodov. It might be fun and will definitely enrich your knowledge of physics.

One of the important thing to take care about is whether your answer makes sense or not. Based on everyday experience, you could have a have a pretty good idea of the range in which the answer can lie in most questions. So if you get outrageous answers, (like a very large distance for a question in kinematics with normal inputs) take a look at your solution again, there might be  a mistake. Also, take care of the units in the answer. After all, a physical quantity can’t be just represented by number without any units. Make a habit of putting the units with the values at every step of the solution, as it avoids errors when changing between units. Also, use dimensional analysis as much as you can to verify your answer. If length is asked, your answer must have dimensions of length.

IITJEE Tips for Chemistry

Chemistry is the subject which majority of students find difficult to master. Unlike physics and mathematics, it requires a lot of remembering.

Here are a few things, which I followed for studying chemistry

Physical Chemistry requires a good understanding of concepts. Try to understand all the formulae used in physical chemistry, instead of just applying them blindly, as a particular formula may not be applicable to the question. (Example, instead of a dilute solution, the given solution may be concentrated, making most formulae invalid, in that case understanding of the basic principles will help.) Try to solve various types of problems for perfection in physical chemistry, but don’t try to solve various books, as problems tend to repeat a lot among books. Just pick one good book, and stick to it.

Remembering all the chemical reactions in Inorganic Chemistry can be a bit difficult, unless they are revised periodically. Reading from the book every time wastes a lot of time, so I noted down all the important reactions and important points from inorganic chemistry in a notebook and used to revise it periodically. This way, it took me only an hour to go over all the major points of inorganic chemistry and so I could do that frequently.

To score well in Organic Chemistry, you must be comfortable with the initial chapters of organic chemistry i.e. inductive and resonance effects, stability of carbocations etc. as these are referenced in almost all further chapters in organic chemistry. Organic chemistry requires both understanding and some remembering reactions. Make sure that you know all the major reactions, their mechanisms (at least for those in NCERT books) and effect of external factors on the reaction, if applicable.




  • Study regularly and sincerely.


  • Study the NCERT books carefully. Don’t underestimate them.

Before the exam:


During the exam:

  • Remain calm while attempting the paper.


For subject wise tips: Physics, Chemistry

