Virtualization

Wow, being a guest on The Linux Link Tech Show... with fantastic hosts Dann, Linc, Allan, and Pat... was great. I had a lot of fun. Yes, there were some technical problems at the beginning of the show that caused it to start a little late... and unfortunately I didn't have a way to boost my volume... and I don't know how it sounded live because I wasn't tuned into the live stream... but the archive recording isn't too bad. I'm guessing Dann cranked up the volume whenever I was talking.

For those who missed the live show, here are links to the .ogg and .mp3 archives:

tllts_278-12-17-08.ogg
tllts_278-12-17-08.mp3

The first "Introduction to OpenVZ" screencast that I did was over 1.5 years ago and it has become somewhat outdated... so I decided to make a new one.

If desired, you may download the full-quality Ogg Theora video:
openvz-brief-intro.ogv (114MB) (Right-click, Save Link As...)

Proxmox VE is an example of the end product being greater than the sum of parts. All the technologies used to build Proxmox VE are not unique however putting them all together and adding a nice interface is. Overall I am very impressed with the ease of use and quality of the software. The flexibility that is provided by virtualization plus the ease of administration provided by Proxmox VE is a great combination for anybody looking to use virtualization.

Slides PDFI'm all done with making the slides for my presentation on OS Virtualization vs. Hardware Virtualization for the Linuxfest Northwest 2008 conference.

Check out photos in the photo gallery. Thanks goes to Warren for letting me borrow his camera. All photos are licensed under a Creative Commons license so do with them what you will.

Update: Ok, here's the video of my presentation.

The Linuxfest Northwest 2008 show is quickly approaching - April 26 & 27 in Bellingham, Washington. It happens to be the closest Linux show to Montana that I'm aware of. Last year Warren, Donnie, Ken and I went. It was a blast. Check out my report from last year if you missed it.

Anyhoo... several of us are going and I've even signed up for a presentation entitled OS Virtualization vs. Hardware Virtualization. I haven't put together the presentation yet but I have done about a half dozen related presentations over the last two years. I think with this one though, I'm going to concentrate less on specific products and more on how OS Virtualization has been making its way into the mainline Linux kernel (called CGroups or control groups).

If anyone is interested in attending the conference, please let me know ASAP. We currently have one vehicle going and one room... but we could easily expand that if need be.

Warren and I have attended three different Linux conferences in the past: Linux World Conference and Expo (once last year), Colorado Linux User Expo (twice back in the 90s - now defunct), and the Linuxfest Northwest (last year). Of the three LFNW, is the only completely free one and as such it has the strongest community feel to it. The schedule has been finalized... so check it out to see just how many things interest you... and don't forget about the exhibits either. There is a LOT there!

Did you hear? A while back SWsoft decided to change its name to that of its partner company, Parallels. Parallels makes a commercial product very similar to VMware Server... but it seems to be most popular on the Mac. With SWsoft's Virtuozzo and their sponsoring of the OpenVZ project, is it any wonder that there would be a hybrid product that tries to compete with VMware ESX?

I haven't had a chance to watch the full video yet, and although it is mostly of a commercial nature, it advances discussion about Virtualization so I'm sharing it. They had it as a Windows Media file on their site and I've converted it to Flash so Linux users will have an easier viewing time.

Herbert PötzlI use both Linux-VServer and OpenVZ at work for server virtualization and they both work fantastically. Since I've already done an interview with the head of the OpenVZ project, I thought it was time for an interview with the head of the Linux-VServer project. I ran across Herbert Pötzl on the Linux-VServer IRC channel (#vserver on irc.oftc.net) and he was kind enough to grant me this interview. Herbert is hereafter referred to by his IRC nick, Bertl.

About the Linux-VServer

ML: Please tell me a little bit about yourself... education, hobbies, family, employment, etc?

Bertl: After finishing the Secondary School (focus on Natural Sciences). I started studying Physics and, once available, Computer Sciences. Finished with a DIPL.-ING. in CS (equivalent of M.S. degree). I'm still working on my PhD Thesis.

My hobbies include, but are not limited to (besides coding): Juggling, Billiards, The Movies, Electronics.

I'm currently self employed as IT Consultant, and lucky me, my beautiful wife is an artist and IT expert.

ML: For those unfamiliar with Linux-VServer, could you please provide a brief description of what it is?

Bertl: Linux-VServer is an isolation technique in concept very similar to BSD Jails or Solaris Containers, which allows multiple Linux environments to run on a single kernel side by side, with no measurable overhead.