Server Virtualization Platform Choices
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Very good description of the different enterprise platforms that exist. Is there any work on a write up about the possible use cases of each, and where one might fit better than another for any given set of reasons?
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Not too much for choosing between them. The biggest factors are things like existing expertise. But outside of that, here is some guidance:
For the majority of companies looking to install a new hypervisor without a preexisting environment or preexisting expertise, the two key choices are HyperV and XenServer. KVM is fine when in an appliance but running it on it own makes little sense unless an above factor is included. VMware is extremely crippled when free and pretty crippled when not; the cost and lack of benefits to VMware essentially rule it out (except for the cases above.)
So for the remaining two choices in a typical environment:
Xen
- When you have a mix of workloads as it is ideal for Linux or anytime that you want to leverage PV support. But HyperV is fine for most Linux too.
- When you are doing hybrid work with Amazon, Rackspace or Softlayer.
- When you want to avoid any need for third party tools.
HyperV
- When you have a Windows heavy shop. But Xen is fine for Windows too.
- When you plan to leverage free third party tools like those from Starwind, Unitrends or Veeam.
- When you are using Azure for hybrid cloud.
The two are well matched. Xen has more maturity and more hard core enterprise use and is generally quite a bit easier to use for the included functionality.
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What sort of backup tools do you see people using in XEN environments? Is there a Veeam \ Unitrends \ VDP equivalent?
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@Drew said:
What sort of backup tools do you see people using in XEN environments? Is there a Veeam \ Unitrends \ VDP equivalent?
Two big ones, that I see. For low cost environments people tend to use free tools that are more limited like NAUBackup. Or for those going into the space where they would be paying for backup tools, Unitrends is available (just not the free version.) So for most businesses, Unitrends is the big product of choice.
Of course that is only at the Xen layer. If you want traditional filesystem backups all of the usual tools like Shadow Protect will work just fine.
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@scottalanmiller said:
KVM is rarely seen used on its own and would be an odd choice for most businesses to deploy on its own. KVM's main places for use are as a research platform for new
I thought tools like ShadowProtect could restore images from "bare metal" back to production? If that is the case, what reasons would you have for using Both?
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@dafyre said:
@scottalanmiller said:
KVM is rarely seen used on its own and would be an odd choice for most businesses to deploy on its own. KVM's main places for use are as a research platform for new
I thought tools like ShadowProtect could restore images from "bare metal" back to production? If that is the case, what reasons would you have for using Both?
They can't even take images so....
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@scottalanmiller Ha ha ha. This is good to know!
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@Drew said:
What sort of backup tools do you see people using in XEN environments? Is there a Veeam \ Unitrends \ VDP equivalent?
I have a bash script that takes snapshots and exports them, then deletes the snapshot. It's based on custom fields for the VM. Here's a link: https://github.com/markround/XenServer-snapshot-backup
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We use NAUBackup and schedule it within Crontab for our XenServer.
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@scottalanmiller What do you think of using KVM as a replacement for VirtualBox? Do you gain anything by using VirtualBox on a Linux desktop other than it's possibly easier to configure? I would assume you get better performance from using KVM?
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@johnhooks said:
@scottalanmiller What do you think of using KVM as a replacement for VirtualBox? Do you gain anything by using VirtualBox on a Linux desktop other than it's possibly easier to configure? I would assume you get better performance from using KVM?
Why pick KVM? All of the examples Scott gives are type 1 hypervisors, including KVM. Assuming you're looking to move from a type 2 hypervisor (VirtualBox) to a type 1, from the original post it seems pretty clear that KVM seemed the least likely option that Scott would recommend.
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@johnhooks said:
@scottalanmiller What do you think of using KVM as a replacement for VirtualBox? Do you gain anything by using VirtualBox on a Linux desktop other than it's possibly easier to configure? I would assume you get better performance from using KVM?
VirtualBox is a type 2 hypervisor so you would "never" use it for server virtualization. It's for running things with consoles on a desktop or laptop. KVM is type 1 virtualization and the two would never come up in the same scenarios.
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@scottalanmiller said:
@johnhooks said:
@scottalanmiller What do you think of using KVM as a replacement for VirtualBox? Do you gain anything by using VirtualBox on a Linux desktop other than it's possibly easier to configure? I would assume you get better performance from using KVM?
VirtualBox is a type 2 hypervisor so you would "never" use it for server virtualization. It's for running things with consoles on a desktop or laptop. KVM is type 1 virtualization and the two would never come up in the same scenarios.
The reason I ask is because you can run say an Ubuntu desktop and install KVM. Then it's possible to run virtual machines and use the VirtManager console. You would have the performance of a type 1 and still have it on the same machine.
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Does that really matter on a workstation? And if this is on a server, do you need a gui console on the server?
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@Dashrender said:
Does that really matter on a workstation? And if this is on a server, do you need a gui console on the server?
Just workstation. What's the advantage to a type 2 if you can use a type 1?
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@johnhooks said:
@Dashrender said:
Does that really matter on a workstation? And if this is on a server, do you need a gui console on the server?
Just workstation. What's the advantage to a type 2 if you can use a type 1?
Dedicated resources to the OS and the ability to completely disable the VMs.
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@scottalanmiller said:
@johnhooks said:
@Dashrender said:
Does that really matter on a workstation? And if this is on a server, do you need a gui console on the server?
Just workstation. What's the advantage to a type 2 if you can use a type 1?
Dedicated resources to the OS and the ability to completely disable the VMs.
Good point.
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What do you hope to gain when using virtualization on a workstation by using a type 1 hypervisor?
Other than HyperV, do any of them allow you access to a GUI from the console? If not, your stuck using a second machine as a workspace machine. Using a type 2 on a workstation allows you to have your local machine GUI, etc and windowed or full screen VMs.
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If KVM gives you the local console features, I can see that being slightly beneficial. Definitely better performance of the VMs. The focus of the product is different, not sure it is worth the effort.
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Ya you can have a full desktop gui on the workstation and have KVM running. Then just use VirtManager to access the console for each virtual machine.
