# vboxmanage-startvm > Start a virtual machine. > More information: . - Start a virtual machine: `VBoxManage startvm {{vm_name|uuid}}` - Start a virtual machine with the specified UI mode: `VBoxManage startvm {{vm_name|uuid}} --type {{headless|gui|sdl|separate}}` - Specify a password file to start an encrypted virtual machine: `VBoxManage startvm {{vm_name|uuid}} --password {{path/to/password_file}}` - Specify a password ID to start an encrypted virtual machine: `VBoxManage startvm {{vm_name|uuid}} --password-id {{password_id}}` - Start a virtual machine with an environment variable pair name value: `VBoxManage startvm {{vm_name|uuid}} --put-env={{name}}={{value}}`