Choosing tools for effective virtualization

Xen Source

Xen Source Server used to be a Linux virtualization solution that was very close to the VMware concept. Citrix recently acquired Xen Source. The server product, which is now know as Citrix Xen Server, is still a Linux system at its core. Unfortunately, the Citrix Xen Server command bridge, which is known as Xen Center, has been transformed into a Windows-only application (Figure 2). One point worthy of notice is that Xen now has a live migration feature, XenMotion, which resembles VMware's VMotion.

Conclusions

Linux virtualization has entered the real world, and the choice of tools comes down to real-world questions of stability, efficiency, and management. The commercial vendors, with their well-integrated, graphical controls, are currently the major contenders. On the other hand, a single host is easily managed through less sophisticated alternatives.

Before choosing a virtualization system, take a careful look at your needs and build a comprehensive solution that is easy to manage, monitor, and deploy. Also, leave yourself room to grow, because you're no longer limited by the size of your server room.

Infos

  1. VMware: http://http://www.vmware.com
  2. Virtual Iron: http://www.virtualiron.com
  3. Novell: http://www.novell.com
  4. Red Hat: http://www.redhat.com/
  5. Xen: http://www.xen.org/
  6. Citrix: http://www.citrix.com/
  7. VServer: http://linux-vserver.org/
  8. Qumranet: http://www.qumranet.com/
  9. KVM: http://kvm.qumranet.com/
  10. Solid ICE: http://web1.qumranet.com/
  11. QEMU: http://fabrice.bellard.free.fr/qemu/
  12. VirtualBox: http://www.virtualbox.org
  13. S3: http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html?node=16427261
  14. Parallels: http://www.parallels.com/
  15. Ganeti: http://code.google.com/p/ganeti/
  16. SWsoft: http://www.swsoft.com
  17. OpenVZ: http://openvz.org/
  18. openQRM: http://www.openqrm.com
  19. xen-tools: http://xen-tools.org

« Previous 1 2 3

Buy this article as PDF

Express-Checkout as PDF
Price $2.95
(incl. VAT)

Buy Linux Magazine

SINGLE ISSUES
Print Issues
Digital Issues
 
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Print Subs
Digisubs
 
TABLET & SMARTPHONE APPS
Get it on Google Play

US / Canada

Get it on Google Play

UK / Australia

Related content

  • Ganeti: GPL Virtualization Tool by Google

    Ganeti is a software tool from Google's Zurich branch that manages virtual machines running on Xen. Developers working for the search engine enterprise have now released Ganeti under GPLv2.

    more »
  • Virtual Machines Intro

    Virtualization can save you time, money, and effort, but you’ll need to find the right tool for the task.

    more »
  • Virtual Performance

    Virtual performance tuning is a lot like ordinary performance tuning – but not exactly.

    more »
  • Virtualization Tools

    Running server systems in virtual environments is a popular approach, but the technology offers benefits to desktop users. In this article, we investigate some virtual desktop alternatives.

    more »
  • QEMU and Qemu Manager

    Carry a virtual Linux machine with you wherever you go.

    more »
comments powered by Disqus

Visit Our Shop

Trial Subscription

Digital Subscription

Subscribe

Direct Download

Read full article as PDF:

Going_Virtual_Intro.pdf  (1.81 MB)

Linux Administration

News

Tag Cloud

Administration Community Events Hardware Linux Linux New Media Linux Pro Magazine Mobile Programming Software Ubuntu Web Development Windows free software open source