What are differences between VirtualBox, VMWare Workstation, Hyper-V, Virtual PC, Parallels Desktop, and Boot Camp

Introduction:

Many virtualization options are available in the market for running different operating systems on a single computer. The main distinctions between VirtualBox, VMWare Workstation, Hyper-V, Virtual PC, Parallels Desktop, and Boot Camp are discussed in this article. we can choose wisely based on our individual needs and requirements by comprehending their distinctive characteristics and functionalities.

VirtualBox: 

VirtualBox is an open-source virtualization tool with cross-platform interoperability that was created by Oracle. On a variety of operating systems, including Windows, macOS, Linux, and Solaris, it enables users to build and execute virtual machines. A variety of capabilities are available with VirtualBox, including support for USB devices, virtual networking, and snapshot management. It is suitable for individual users and businesses because of its user-friendly interface and wide range of customization options.

Software and Hardware Prerequisites:

depends on the demands of the guest OS, sufficient RAM, and CPU resources.

enough capacity to accommodate virtual machine files.

Primary Qualities:

1. Compatibility across platforms.

2. Management of snapshots for preserving and regaining machine states.

3. Using virtual networking, host and guest computers can communicate without interruption.

4. Support for USB devices for peripheral connection to virtual computers.

Advantages:

1. Both open-source and free.

2. Wide support for operating systems.

3. Numerous opportunities for customization.

4. Community activity and frequent updates.

Disadvantages:

1. More difficult for beginners to use.

2 Guest additions must be manually installed for improved operation.

Benefits:

1. A virtualization solution that is economical.

2. Suitable for both private and professional use.

3. Versatile for sandboxing, running several OSs, and testing applications.

Performance:

1. Provides adequate performance for the majority of virtualized activities.

2. With applications that need a lot of resources, performance may suffer.

What is Server Virtualization

New state-of-the-art and powerful technology was conceptualized in the late 1960s and early 1970s by IBM. It provides the facility to utilize server resources as much as possible or we can say, maximum utilization of server resources. Using this concept, we can create multiple virtual servers on one server.    

There are mainly four types of server virtualization: 

1. Full-Virtualization:- Full virtualization is the most common type of server virtualization and is also known as hardware virtualization. This virtualization provides the facility to create & run multiple virtual machines (VMs) on a single server. Each and every VM works individually & runs on its own operating system (OS) and required software.

In this virtualization, the system uses a hypervisor to manage and allocate physical resources between virtual machines. Physical resources mean CPU, memory, storage, etc. Hypervisor communicates between the virtual machines.

Using full virtualization, we can get very good isolation between Virtual Machines. This helps each VMs to run independently and securely. We can use this type of virtualization in complex applications and different operating systems.

Advantages of Full-Virtualization

1. Complete OS and Application Isolation - provides strong isolation between VMs.

2. It supports a wide range of operating systems. 

3. Hardware Independence

4. Resource Optimization

5. Easy Scalability

Disadvantages of Full-Virtualization

1. Performance Overhead

2. Limited Performance for Certain Workloads

Applications of Full-Virtualization

1. Widely used for server consolidation. Allows to run multiple virtual servers on a single machine.

2. Development and Testing Environments.

3. To run legacy applications on modern infrastructure.

4. Use at the time of Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity.