by Eileen Grace

Created on: March 25, 2009

Virtualization is the method by which "guest" operating systems can run within another "host" operating system, with little or no modification of either the host or guest operating system.

For home users this means that one computer can run Windows, Linux and/or
OSX simultaneously, each operating system in its own sandbox, with no interaction between them. Want to experiment with a new application? Just fire up a virtual instance of your operating system and test away. Worried about the effects of viruses or other malware when on the internet? Again, launch a virtual system and keep your main operating system safe. Considering changing operating systems? Here too, virtual systems make trying out a variety of options simple. Need to occasionally work from home and your company uses requires a different operating system or set of applications than you prefer? Another case of a virtualization being a good solution.

In
internet hosting environments this means that hosting companies can offer accounts with root/admin access at a lower cost than the traditional dedicated machine. With a virtual private server (VPS), the user doesn't control the physical machine, but does have control of a fixed share of its resources. With a VPS, the user can install whatever software they want and configure the system however they like. For example, most shared plans come with MySQL, PHP and Perl. If the user would prefer something else, they're out of luck. In a VPS
environment, the user can install PostgreSQL or Python or Ruby on Rails if they choose. A VPS can be used as a mail server, application server or for storage or anything else the user wants to use it for, just like with a dedicated or co-located server.

Where
virtualization really shines is in the corporate IT environment. One mainframe can host an entire data center's worth of individual microcomputer systems. For example, instead of needing separate hardware for a mail server or corporate directory server, these can be run as virtual machines each dedicated to providing a different service. Need to run both Windows and Unix services? Virtualization
allows this without requiring duplication of hardware. Laptops that travel with end users can have a locked-down, sandboxed corporate environment as well as a conventional desktop, protecting corporate assets from interference from malware and user manipulation.

Virtualization is a solution to many situations involving security or hardware issues. It's also a great way to shrink anyone's hardware budget, from home users to the largest corporate IT departments.

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