VIRTUALIZATION

Date: 7-3-2014

Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtualization

Virtualization, in computing, refers to the act of creating a virtual (rather than actual) version of something, including but not limited to a virtual computer hardware platform, operating system (OS), storage device, or computer network resources.

Virtual Machine

A virtual machine (VM) is a software-based emulation of a computer. Virtual machines operate based on the computer architecture and functions of a real or hypothetical computer.

To see the a list of virtual machine software, go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_machine

Hardware virtualization

Hardware virtualization or platform virtualization refers to the creation of a virtual machine that acts like a real computer with an operating system. Software executed on these virtual machines is separated from the underlying hardware resources. For example, a computer that is running Microsoft Windows may host a virtual machine that looks like a computer with the Ubuntu Linux operating system; Ubuntu-based software can be run on the virtual machine.

In hardware virtualization, the host machine is the actual machine on which the virtualization takes place, and the guest machine is the virtual machine. The words host and guest are used to distinguish the software that runs on the physical machine from the software that runs on the virtual machine. The software or firmware that creates a virtual machine on the host hardware is called a hypervisor or Virtual Machine Manager.

Different types of hardware virtualization include:

Full virtualization: Almost complete simulation of the actual hardware to allow software, which typically consists of a guest operating system, to run unmodified. Examples: VirtualBox, VMWare, Qemu, …
Partial virtualization: Some but not all of the target environment is simulated. Some guest programs, therefore, may need modifications to run in this virtual environment.
Paravirtualization: A hardware environment is not simulated; however, the guest programs are executed in their own isolated domains, as if they are running on a separate system. Guest programs need to be specifically modified to run in this environment. Example: Xen.

Desktop virtualization

Desktop virtualization is the concept of separating the logical desktop from the physical machine.

Selected client environments move workloads from PCs and other devices to data center servers, creating well-managed virtual clients, with applications and client operating environments hosted on servers and storage in the data center. For users, this means they can access their desktop from any location, without being tied to a single client device. Since the resources are centralized, users moving between work locations can still access the same client environment with their applications and data. For IT administrators, this means a more centralized, efficient client environment that is easier to maintain and able to more quickly respond to the changing needs of the user and business.

Thin clients are simple and/or cheap computers that are primarily designed to connect to the network. They may lack significant hard disk storage space, RAM or even processing power, but many organizations are beginning to look at the cost benefits of eliminating “thick client” desktops that are packed with software (and require software licensing fees) and making more strategic investments. Desktop virtualization simplifies software versioning and patch management, where the new image is simply updated on the server, and the desktop gets the updated version when it reboots. It also enables centralized control over what applications the user is allowed to have access to on the workstation.

GNS3

GNS3 is an open source software that simulate complex networks while being as close as possible to the way real networks perform. All of this without having dedicated network hardware such as routers and switches.

It runs on traditional PC hardware and may be used on multiple operating systems, including Windows, Linux, and MacOS X.

GNS3 is primarily used to emulate networks of Cisco routers. GNS3 supports Cisco router software images running on the Dynamips hardware emulation program. GNS3 also supports other hardware emulation and virtualization technologies that can run Linux virtual machines: Qemu and VirtualBox.

In order to provide complete and accurate simulations, GNS3 actually uses the following emulators to run the very same operating systems as in real networks:

Dynamips, the well known Cisco IOS emulator.
VirtualBox, runs desktop and server operating systems as well as Juniper JunOS.
Qemu, a generic open source machine emulator, it runs Linux Servers, Cisco ASA, PIX, Junos and IPS.

Here is a complete list of what hardware is emulated by GNS3: http://www.gns3.net/hardware-emulated/

VMWare

VMware is a software that provides cloud and virtualization software and services, and was the first to successfully virtualize the x86 architecture. VMware is based in Palo Alto.

VMware's desktop software runs on Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X, while its enterprise software hypervisors for servers, VMware ESX and VMware ESXi, are bare-metal hypervisors that run directly on server hardware without requiring an additional underlying operating system.

VMware Workstation, Server, and ESX take a more optimized path to running target operating systems on the host than emulators (such as Bochs) which simulate the function of each CPU instruction on the target machine one-by-one, or dynamic recompilation which compiles blocks of machine-instructions the first time they execute, and then uses the translated code directly when the code runs subsequently.

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