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Can someone explain (simply) server virtualization?
I sort of understand the concept of virtualization, but how exactly does server virtualization work? Can someone explain it to me in layman's terms?
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3 Answers
John,
At a basic level, server virtualization is the means by which a single physical computer simulates a larger number of computers -- all through software.
This "host" server will carve off sections of memory and disk that will be essentially fashioned into their own computer instances, called "guests". To most applications, as well as remote network devices and systems, virtual machines (VMs) look just like their physical counterparts, but they are easier to deploy, easier to backup and restore, and can be changed in configuration with far less difficulty than physical boxes.
Some other info can be found here: http://www.focus.com/questions/information-technology/where-can-find-basic-vi...
Hope this helps!
-ASB: http://xeesm.com/AndrewBaker
John,
Server virtualization allows you to change the 1 to 1 ratio of hardware to operating system. On a traditional server you will install the operating system onto the hardware and that operating system will see and controll all of the server resources such as disk space, memory, and processor. When you put virtualization software on a server it allows you to carve up the physical resources into smaller pools. One of these pools is where you would install the operating system and it would only see and control the resources that you gave to that pool.
For example if you had a server with 2 processors and 8GB of RAM in it, you could virtualize this into 2 pools. Each pool would see 1 processor and 4GB of RAM. You could then install 2 operating systems on this, one in each of the pools. The 2 operating systems would work independently of eachother even though they are running on the same physical hardware since they are virtually seperate.
A rough analogy would be the renting of storage space. The storage company builds 1 large building but places partitions in it so you only get access to the square footage you pay for. There are other people you share the physical building with but only you have access to your area. This is more economical to build one large building and divide it up in to 100 units that it would be to build 100 smaller buildings.
Take a look at this explanation:
http://www.atum.com/what_is_vps_hosting.php
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