What is a Virtual Machine?

Introduction

To run your website or application efficiently, you must have the right technology. This blog will discuss a strong and flexible setup – Virtual machines – that can get the most out of your hosting. It does not depend on a single physical server and the hosting becomes powerful due to its efficient resource management and security. It is a smart technology to maximize computing power. Want to discuss ‘what is a virtual machine’ further?

This blog will explain the meaning, the process behind virtual machines, and the types of virtual machines and virtualisation. We will also discuss the pros and cons of using virtual machines. Further, know the practical tips on setting them up. 

What is a Virtual Machine?

A Virtual Machine (VM) is to run multiple operating systems like Windows, Linux, macOS, etc. all together on a single physical machine (host machine). However, each VM runs in an isolated manner and every VM can run its own set of software and configurations.

Advantages of Virtual Machines

Let us know the benefits of virtual machines –

• Multiple VMs running on a single physical machine eliminates the need for additional hardware. This saves you various costs for hardware, maintenance, etc. This is one of the top advantages of VM.
  
• Multiple OS on one machine also minimizes the physical footprint. Therefore, companies can run various services from a limited number of physical machines.
  
• The VM provisioning is fast as it can be quickly deployed and replicated. You can set up a new environment in no time effortlessly. Resultantly, software testing, development, and other processes speed up.
  
• Isolation boosts reliability. The failure of one VM does not affect others’ operation.
  
• Add more VMs and easily scale up to distribute load for the best performance of your increased workload.
  
• Strong isolation of VMs also ensures security. A virus or malware in one VM does not affect others. Moreover, they are highly used in security testing. Also, its controlled environment is the best for sandboxing applications.
  
• You can move VMs to a different host or even a cloud due to its easy portability. There won’t be any compatibility issues too.

Disadvantages of Virtual Machines

VMs have some drawbacks that are discussed below –

• Multiple VMs can degrade the performance of a single host. Thus, the host machine needs to be powerful enough.
  
• VMs boot slower than containers as they need to load the entire operating system.
  
• The resource usage for each VM is significant. This can cause issues if resources are limited.
  
• VM set-up and management with different OS and configurations can be complex.

Types of Virtual Machines

Different types of virtual machines serve various purposes. They are discussed below –

Process Virtual Machine (Application VM)

When a VM is used to run just one application or process and exists only while it is running, it is called a process VM or application VM. So, it is destroyed once the application closes. This way, applications can run on different platforms and become platform-independent.

System Virtual Machine

A system VM is a common type of VM. It is to run multiple VMs on a single machine. Every VM can run its own operating system. 

Cloud VM

This is a modern type of VM that is deployed and managed in a cloud environment. Businesses use Cloud provider platforms like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud to create and run VMs on their infrastructure.

What is Virtualization?

Virtualization technology is used to create virtual versions that share physical resources (CPU, storage, networks, etc). It enables you to maximize resource usage through a hardware layer abstraction using a hypervisor to run multiple environments on a single host machine.

How Does a Hypervisor Work?

Hypervisor manages virtual machines. It is a layer of software that allocates resources to VMs. Thus, it ensures each VM has access to the resources it needs without affecting others.

There are two types of Hypervisors – 

• Type 1 Hypervisor (Bare-Metal Hypervisor) runs directly on the physical hardware. Also, the resource allocation does not need a host operating system. KVM and Xen are the type 1 examples.
  
• Type 2 Hypervisor (Hosted) runs on top of a host operating system. VMware Workstation and Oracle VirtualBox are examples.

Types of Virtualization

Hardware Virtualization – To virtualise physical servers and create virtual machines using a hypervisor

Multiple operating systems can run on a physical machine.

Software Virtualization – To create virtual environments for OS and applications both 

Example – Running an Android OS on a Windows machine

Storage Virtualization – Multiple storage devices combined into one virtualized storage pool 

This type enables better resource management and higher performance. Also, you can easily handle data backups, disaster recovery, and more.

Network Virtualization – Virtualisation of physical network resources to create multiple virtual networks

Each of these VMs will have dedicated bandwidth. So, this setup enables more efficient data traffic management and better security.

Desktop Virtualization – To access their virtual desktop from any device

The complete desktop environment is hosted on a remote server. It is separated from the physical device to make it easier to manage, update, and secure.

Container vs Virtual Machine – The Differences

Containers and virtual machines run applications in isolation. They provide the same function but their working is different. Let us have an overview on Container vs VMs–

Setting Up a Virtual Machine

Setting up a virtual machine includes the below basic steps. However, they may differ based on the technology you use –

1. Choosing and installing a hypervisor such as KVM, VMware, VirtualBox, etc. 
2. Using the hypervisor to manage your virtual machine and allocate resources. 
3. Installation of operating systems on the virtual machine such as Linux, Windows, etc.
4. Network configurations are set up so that the VM can communicate with other local or remote machines over the internet.
5. Start using the VMs

Cantech’s Windows and Linux VPS Hosting

Cantech offers reliable and efficient VPS hosting services. Our affordable and flexible plans offer dedicated virtual resources and advanced features that deliver high performance and full control. We use state-of-the-art KVM virtualisation technology and offer robust security features. 

Our Windows virtual machines are optimized for running Windows OS with pre-configured setups to make deployment easy and quick. Whereas, Linux Virtual machines support a wide range of Linux distributions such as Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, etc.

Conclusion

This blog explains ‘What is a Virtual machine?’ Well, it is an isolated and dedicated environment that provides the flexibility to run various operating systems. If you are looking for virtual dedicated server (VDS) resources, get in touch with Cantech hosting experts and discuss your requirements!

FAQs

What is a virtualization machine? What is a virtual machine?

Virtualization is the process of creating isolated virtual versions that share physical resources like servers, storage, and networking. On the other hand, a virtual machine (VM) is the result of this process that runs the operating system and application just like a real computer.

What is an operating system?

An operating system (OS) is a software. It manages a computer’s hardware and software and helps you interact with the system, run applications, and manage files. Windows, macOS, and Linux are the operating systems.

How Does a Virtual Machine Work?

VMs use virtualization technology to create an isolated virtual version (VM) of a physical machine (host). Each virtual version is called a Guest and uses the host’s resources such as CPU, memory, and storage. 

Well, a Hypervisor is used for resource allocation tasks. Also, the VM runs in an isolated environment with its own operating system and applications like a computer.