Virtualization, in computing, is the creation of a virtual (rather than actual) version of something,

such as a hardware platform, operating system, a storage device or network resources.

Virtualization can be viewed as part of an overall trend in enterprise IT that includes

autonomic computing, a scenario in which the IT environment will be able to manage itself
based on perceived activity, and utility computing, in which computer processing power is
seen as a utility that clients can pay for only as needed. The usual goal of virtualization is to
centralize administrative tasks while improving scalability and work loads.[1]

Contents
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 1 Types of virtualization
o 1.1 Hardware
o 1.2 Software
o 1.3 Memory
o 1.4 Storage
o 1.5 Data
o 1.6 Network
 2 See also
 3 References

Types of virtualization
Hardware

Main article: Hardware virtualization

Hardware virtualization or platform virtualization refers to the creation of a virtual machines

that acts like a real computer with an operating system. Software executed on these virtual
machines are 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 Mac OS X operating system. Subsequently, Mac OS X-based software can be run on
that virtual machine.[1][2]

In hardware virtualization, the term host machine refers to the actual machine on which the
virtualization takes place; the term guest machine, however, refers to the virtual machine.
Likewise, the adjectives host and guest are used to help distinguish the software that run on
the actual machine from those that run on the virtual machine. The software or firmware that
creates a virtual machine on the host hardware is called Hypervisor or Virtual Machine
Monitor.

Different types of hardware virtualization include:

1. Full virtualization: Almost complete simulation of the actual hardware to allow

software, typically a guest operating system, to run unmodified
 2. Partial virtualization: Some but not all of the target environment is simulated. Some
guest software, therefore, may need modifications to run in this virtual environment.
3. Paravirtualization: A hardware environment is not simulated; however, the guest
software are executed in their own isolated domains, as if they are running on a
separate system. Guest software need to be specifically modified to run in this
environment.

Hardware-assisted virtualization is a way of improving the efficiency of hardware

virtualization. It involves employing specially-designed CPUs and hardware components that
help improve the performance of a guest environment.

Hardware virtualization must not be mistaken with hardware emulation: In hardware

emulation, a piece of hardware imitates another, while in hardware virtualization, a
hypervisor (a piece of software) imitates a computer hardware. Furthermore, a hypervisor
must not be mistaken with an emulator. These two are defined similarly: Both are computer
programs that imitate hardware. However, their domain of use in language differs.

See also: Mobile Virtualization

[edit] Software

 Operating system-level virtualization, hosting of multiple virtualized environments

within a single OS instance

Operating System-level Virtualization is a server virtualization technology which virtualizes

servers on an operating system (kernel) layer. It can be thought of as partitioning: a single
physical server is sliced into multiple small partitions (otherwise called virtual environments
(VE), virtual private servers (VPS), guests, zones, etc.); each such partition looks and feels like
a real server, from the point of view of its users.

 Application virtualization and Workspace virtualization, the hosting of individual

applications in an environment separated from the underlying OS

[edit] Memory

 Memory virtualization, aggregating RAM resources from networked systems into a

single memory pool

 Virtual memory, giving an application program the impression that it has contiguous
working memory, isolating it from the underlying physical memory implementation

[edit] Storage

 Storage virtualization, the process of completely abstracting logical storage from

physical storage
 Distributed file system
[edit] Data

 Data virtualization, the presentation of data as an abstract layer, independent of

underlying database systems, structures and storage
 Database virtualization, the decoupling of the database layer, which lies between the
storage and application layers within the application stack

[edit] Network

 Desktop virtualization, the remote display, hosting or manipulation of a graphical

computer environment (desktop)
 Network virtualization, creation of a virtualized network addressing space within or
across network subnets

Some of the virtual machine simulators are :- Microsoft virtual pc,Qlinux, HP-UX Virtual
Partitions, simos, vmware,

virtualization is a framework or methodology of dividing the resources of a computer into multiple

execution environments, by applying one or more concepts or technologies such as hardware and
software partitioning, time-sharing, partial or complete machine simulation, emulation, quality of
service, and many others.

What is virtualization?
Nontechnical definition-Virtualization word comes from virtual means not real.Anything which
appears real but not actually can be termed as virtual.The process of getting that real thing into
virtual is called virtualization.

Why we use Virtualization…

Since computer virtualization allows a variety of operating systems and software configuration
settings to be used on a single machine, application virtualization provides a much more flexible way
for companies to run applications. Without virtualization, for example, a company might need to
bear the cost of running five separate servers with different operating systems, or different
configurations in order to run all of the applications needed for the operation of business. The
flexibility benefits of virtualization mean that all those operating systems and applications could
potentially be run on a single piece of hardware. As such, efficiently using hardware is one of the
biggest benefits of virtualization.

In computing, the benefits of virtualization are usually primarily cost savings. For many
companies, the largest benefit of server virtualization, which allows multiple operating
systems to be installed on a single server, is in reducing the amount of hardware that is
required to run all the software needed by the business. Consolidating servers using a
virtualization process not only provides savings in terms of how many physical machines
must be bought and maintained, but also potentially reduces the amount of physical space
that a company needs for its servers or data center

Virtual is a term that originally came from optics, to understand objects in a mirror. Objects in a
mirror are reflections of an actual physical object but mirrors are not actually that object. This means
that the image looks exactly like the actual object and looks to be in the same location

The need for virtualization

Storage is a facility that computer users want to access at any time, from any location, with a
minimum amount of management.

Users expect the storage devices to provide enough capacity and to be reliable. The amount
of storage that users require, however, is increasing quickly. Internet users use large amounts
of storage daily. Many users are mobile, access patterns cannot be predicted, and the content
of the data becomes more and more interactive. Because the amount of data that is processed
is large, it can no longer be managed manually. Automatic management is required, as are
new levels of bandwidth and load balancing. Also, it is important that all this data can be
shared between different types of operating systems, because the communication networks
cannot process the large replication, download, and copying operations that would otherwise
be required.

Storage area networks (SANs) are high-speed switched networks that let multiple computers
share access to many storage devices. SANs allow for the use of advanced software that
automatically manages the storage of data. With such advanced software, the computers that
are connected to a particular network can, therefore, access storage wherever that storage is
available in the network. The user is no longer aware of, and no longer needs to know, which
physical devices contain which data. The storage has become virtualized. In a similar way to
how virtual memory has solved the problems of the management of a limited resource in
application programs, the virtualization of storage has provided a more intuitive use of
storage, while software quietly manages the storage network in the background.

Disadvantages of virtualization

Single point of failure, powerful machines, lower performance, and specific applications, which can't
be virtualized, are among the disadvantages of virtualization.
Virtualization Solutions Have a Single Point of Failure

One of the greatest drawbacks of virtualization is that there is a single point of failure. When
the machine, on which all the virtualized solutions run, fails or when the virtualization
solution itself fails, this crashes everything.

Virtualization Demands Powerful Machines

Virtualization might save money because thanks to it less hardware is required and this
allows to decrease the physical number of machines in an enterprise but this does not mean
that it is possible to use archaic computers to run top-notch virtualization solutions.

Virtualization solutions are hardware monsters and they require a really powerful machine. If
the machines used are not powerful, it is still possible to deploy virtualization solutions but
when there is no enough RAM and CPU power for them, this will seriously disrupt their
work. Anyway, it is still cheaper to add 4GB of RAM to a machine to make it more powerful
than to buy a new machine

Virtualization Might Lead to Lower Performance

Even if the machines on which virtualized operating systems and virtualized applications are
run are powerful enough, performance issues are still possible. What is more, one of the most
unpleasant facts is that very often there is no problem with a particular application when it is
not virtualized but when it is deployed in a virtualized environment,

Application Virtualization Is not Always Possible

While in most cases it is not possible to predict if a particular application will misbehave
when virtualized or not, there are also many applications, which are known to experience
performance degradation when virtualized. Databases are one of the most common examples
of such applications. Databases require frequent disk operations and when there is a delay in
reading from or writing to the disk because of virtualization, this might render the whole
application useless.

Still, nobody says that it is impossible to virtualize a database application - even real-time
financial applications successfully run on virtualized environments. However, if given the
chance, it is much safer to avoid virtualizing such critical and demanding applications.