Virtualization for everyone

As computer processor vendors start to move from single processing to multi processing, one technology is also starting to gain popularity.  Virtualization technology is now starting to be used widely not only in the technology niche but in the mainstream computing public as well.

Virtualization allows multiple operating systems to co-exist and run at the same time on one host computer.   These operating systems are usually called guest operating systems and the platform where they are installed are called virtual machines.  For the guest operating systems to be able to access the actual hardware installed on the computer, virtual devices are created to represent these actual devices to the guest operating system.

Though this technology has been available since the 60′s, only with the advent of the Intel VT or AMD-V technologies did it become available to consumer hardware platforms.  Previously, support for virtualization on the PC was limited to software implementations which only allowed the guest operating systems to see virtual devices in the created virtual machine.  With virtualization now being available through hardware, it is now possible to create virtual machines that can provide performance similar to running the operating system directly on the hardware.

Some of the striking results of virtualization that is available in the market now is that of Mac OS X 10.5.  Now, it is possible to have both Mac OS X and Windows installed on a Mac computer.  So if you are a Mac user but you really have no choice but to use a Windows application, you no longer had to have two machines.  You can have the best of both worlds with your Mac computer.  Another good example is that of Ubuntu Linux allowing the user to install Ubuntu as a virtual machine instead of creating separate partitions for it on your hard drive before installation.  Ubuntu can now be installed just like a common Windows application all thanks to the new Wubi installer included with Ubuntu 8.04 and above.  Now, there is no risk to find out what Linux is all about while still having the ease of mind knowing that you can always go back to Windows if you need to.

Hardware OEMs are also starting to get into virtualization.  Asus recently implemented Splashtop features in some of its laptop and PC machines.  Splashtop, created by DeviceVM, allows the user to quickly boot up the computer in 4 to 5 seconds and immediately connect to the Internet while waiting for Windows to load in the background.  It is no longer required that the user wait for Windows to finish loading before they can enjoy going online.  It is really fast because the software needed for that feature is installed directly on the motherboard of the computer.

No doubt, power users of virtualization technology would still purchase separate software to allow them to create multiple virtual machines at will. But for most consumers, the added ability to run a whole separate operating system in their current machine or one that just allows them to use the computer quickly while waiting for their main operating system to boot up is already a great boon, and all that is possible thanks to virtualization.

Be Sociable, Share!
  • Tweet
This entry was posted in Hardware, Software and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. Post a comment or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

Post a Comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.