An Introduction to Virtualization

Posted by Scott Delap on Jul 02, 2008 11:18 AM

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The IT industry makes heavy use of buzzwords and ever changing terms to define itself. Sometimes the latest nomenclature the industry uses is a particular technology such as x86 or a concept such as green computing. Terms rise and fall out of favor as the industry evolves. In recent years the term virtualization has become the industry’s newest buzzword. This raises the question … just what is virtualization? The first concept that comes to the mind of the average industry professional is running one or more guest operating systems on a host. However, digging a little deeper reveals this definition is too narrow. There are a large number of services, hardware, and software that can be “virtualized”. This article will take a look at these different types of virtualization along with the pros and cons of each.

What is virtualization?

Before discussing the different categories of virtualization in detail, it is useful to define the term in the abstract sense. Wikipedia uses the following definition:  “In computing, virtualization is a broad term that refers to the abstraction of computer resources. Virtualization hides the physical characteristics of computing resources from their users, be they applications, or end users. This includes making a single physical resource (such as a server, an operating system, an application, or storage device) appear to function as multiple virtual resources; it can also include making multiple physical resources (such as storage devices or servers) appear as a single virtual resource...”

In layman’s terms virtualization is often:

1. The creation of many virtual resources from one physical resource.
2. The creation of one virtual resource from one or more physical resource.

The term is frequently used to convey one of these concepts in a variety of areas such as networking, storage, and hardware.

History

Virtualization is not a new concept. One of the early works in the field was a paper by Christopher Strachey entitled "Time Sharing in Large Fast Computers". IBM began exploring virtualization with its CP-40 and M44/44X research systems. These in turn lead to the commercial CP-67/CMS. The virtual machine concept kept users separated while simulating a full stand-alone computer for each.

In the 80’s and early 90’s the industry moved from leveraging singular mainframes to running collections of smaller and cheaper x86 servers. As a result the concept of virtualization become less prominent. That changed in 1999 with VMware’s introduction of VMware workstation. This was followed by VMware’s ESX Server, which runs on bare metal and does not require a host operating system.

Types of Virtualization

Today the term virtualization is widely applied to a number of concepts including:

• Server Virtualization
• Client / Desktop / Application Virtualization
• Network Virtualization
• Storage Virtualization
• Service / Application Infrastructure Virtualization

In most of these cases, either virtualizing one physical resource into many virtual resources or turning many physical resources into one virtual resource is occurring.

Server Virtualization

Server virtualization is the most active segment of the virtualization industry featuring established companies such as VMware, Microsoft, and Citrix. With server virtualization one physical machine is divided many virtual servers. At the core of such virtualization is the concept of a hypervisor (virtual machine monitor). A hypervisor is a thin software layer that intercepts operating system calls to hardware. Hypervisors typically provide a virtualized CPU and memory for the guests running on top of them. The term was first used in conjunction with the IBM CP-370.

Hypervisors are classified as one of two types:

Type 1 – This type of hypervisor is also known as native or bare-metal. They run directly on the hardware with guest operating systems running on top of them. Examples include VMware ESX, Citrix XenServer, and Microsoft’s Hyper-V.
Type 2 – This type of hypervisor runs on top of an existing operating system with guests running at a third level above hardware. Examples include VMware Workstation and SWSoft’s Parallels Desktop.

Related to type 1 hypervisors is the concept of paravirtualization. Paravirtualization is a technique in which a software interface that is similar but not identical to the underlying hardware is presented. Operating systems must be ported to run on top of a paravirtualized hypervisor. Modified operating systems use the "hypercalls" supported by the paravirtualized hypervisor to interface directly with the hardware. The popular Xen project makes use of this type of virtualization. Starting with version 3.0 however Xen is also able to make use of the hardware assisted virtualization technologies of Intel (VT-x) and AMD (AMD-V). These extensions allow Xen to run unmodified operating systems such as Microsoft Windows.

Server virtualization has a large number of benefits for the companies making use of the technology. Among those frequently listed:

• Increased Hardware Utilization – This results in hardware saving, reduced administration overhead, and energy savings.
• Security – Clean images can be used to restore compromised systems. Virtual machines can also provide sandboxing and isolation to limit attacks.
• Development – Debugging and performance monitoring scenarios can be easily setup in a repeatable fashion. Developers also have easy access to operating systems they might not otherwise be able to install on their desktops.

Correspondingly there are a number of potential downsides that must be considered:

• Security – There are now more entry points such as the hypervisor and virtual networking layer to monitor. A compromised image can also be propagated easily with virtualization technology.
• Administration – While there are less physical machines to maintain there may be more machines in aggregate. Such maintenance may require new skills and familiarity with software that administrators otherwise would not need.
• Licensing/Cost Accounting – Many software-licensing schemes do not take virtualization into account. For example running 4 copies of Windows on one box may require 4 separate licenses.
• Performance – Virtualization effectively partitions resources such as RAM and CPU on a physical machine. This combined with hypervisor overhead does not result in an environment that focuses on maximizing performance.

Application/Desktop Virtualization

Virtualization is not only a server domain technology. It is being put to a number of uses on the client side at both the desktop and application level. Such virtualization can be broken out into four categories:

• Local Application Virtualization/Streaming
• Hosted Application Virtualization
• Hosted Desktop Virtualization
• Local Desktop Virtualization

Wikipedia defines application virtualization as follows:

Application virtualization is an umbrella term that describes software technologies that improve manageability and compatibility of legacy applications by encapsulating applications from the underlying operating system on which they are executed. A fully virtualized application is not installed in the traditional sense, although it is still executed as if it is. Application virtualization differs from operating system virtualization in that in the latter case, the whole operating system is virtualized rather than only specific applications.

With streamed and local application virtualization an application can be installed on demand as needed. If streaming is enabled then the portions of the application needed for startup are sent first optimizing startup time. Locally virtualized applications also frequently make use of virtual registries and file systems to maintain separation and cleanness from the user’s physical machine. Examples of local application virtualization solutions include Citrix Presentation Server and Microsoft SoftGrid. One could also include virtual appliances into this category such as those frequently distributed via VMware’s VMware Player.

Hosted application virtualization allows the user to access applications from their local computer that are physically running on a server somewhere else on the network. Technologies such as Microsoft’s RemoteApp allow for the user experience to be relatively seamless include the ability for the remote application to be a file handler for local file types.

Benefits of application virtualization include:

• Security – Virtual applications often run in user mode isolating them from OS level functions.
• Management – Virtual applications can be managed and patched from a central location.
• Legacy Support – Through virtualization technologies legacy applications can be run on modern operating systems they were not originally designed for.
• Access – Virtual applications can be installed on demand from central locations that provide failover and replication.

Disadvantages include:

• Packaging – Applications must first be packaged before they can be used.
• Resources – Virtual applications may require more resources in terms of storage and CPU.
• Compatibility – Not all applications can be virtualized easily.

Wikipedia defines desktop virtualization as:

Desktop virtualization (or Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) is a server-centric computing model that borrows from the traditional thin-client model but is designed to give administrators and end users the best of both worlds: the ability to host and centrally manage desktop virtual machines in the data center while giving end users a full PC desktop experience.

Hosted desktop virtualization is similar to hosted application virtualization, expanding the user experience to be the entire desktop. Commercial products include Microsoft’s Terminal Services, Citrix’s XenDesktop, and VMware’s VDI.

Benefits of desktop virtualization include most of those with application virtualization as well as:

• High Availability – Downtime can be minimized with replication and fault tolerant hosted configurations.
• Extended Refresh Cycles – Larger capacity servers as well as limited demands on the client PCs can extend their lifespan.
• Multiple Desktops – Users can access multiple desktops suited for various tasks from the same client PC.

Disadvantages of desktop virtualization are similar to server virtualization. There is also the added disadvantage that clients must have network connectivity to access their virtual desktops. This is problematic for offline work and also increases network demands at the office.

The final segment of client virtualization is local desktop virtualization. It could be said that this is where the recent resurgence of virtualization began with VMware’s introduction of VMware Workstation in the late 90’s. Today the market includes competitors such as Microsoft Virtual PC and Parallels Desktop. Local desktop virtualization has also played a key part in the increasing success of Apple’s move to Intel processors since products like VMware Fusion and Parallels allow easy access to Windows applications. Some the benefits of local desktop virtualization include:

• Security – With local virtualization organizations can lock down and encrypt just the valuable contents of the virtual machine/disk. This can be more performant than encrypting a user’s entire disk or operating system.
• Isolation – Related to security is isolation. Virtual machines allow corporations to isolate corporate assets from third party machines they do not control. This allows employees to use personal computers for corporate use in some instances.
• Development/Legacy Support – Local virtualization allows a users computer to support many configurations and environments it would otherwise not be able to support without different hardware or host operating system. Examples of this include running Windows in a virtualized environment on OS X and legacy testing Windows 98 support on a machine that’s primary OS is Vista.

Network Virtualization

Up to this point the types of virtualization covered have centered on applications or entire machines. These are not the only granularity levels that can be virtualized however. Other computing concepts also lend themselves to being software virtualized as well. Network virtualization is one such concept. Wikipedia defines network virtualization as:

In computing, network virtualization is the process of combining hardware and software network resources and network functionality into a single, software-based administrative entity, a virtual network. Network virtualization involves platform virtualization, often combined with resource virtualization. Network virtualization is categorized as either external, combining many networks, or parts of networks, into a virtual unit, or internal, providing network-like functionality to the software containers on a single system…

Using the internal definition of the term, desktop and server virtualization solutions provide networking access between both the host and guest as well as between many guests. On the server side virtual switches are gaining acceptance as a part of the virtualization stack. The external definition of network virtualization is probably the more used version of the term however. Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) have been a common component of the network administrators’ toolbox for years with most companies allowing VPN use. Virtual LANs (VLANs) are another commonly used network virtualization concept. With network advances such as 10 gigabit Ethernet, networks no long need to be structured purely along geographical lines. Companies with products in the space include Cisco and 3Leaf.

In general benefits of network virtualization include:

• Customization of Access – Administrators can quickly customize access and network options such as bandwidth throttling and quality of service.
• Consolidation – Physical networks can be combined into one virtual network for overall simplification of management.

Similar to server virtualization, network virtualization can bring increased complexity, some performance overhead, and the need for administrators to have a larger skill set.

Storage Virtualization

Another computing concept that is frequently virtualized is storage. Unlike the definitions we have seen up to this point that have been complex at times, Wikipedia defines storage virtualization simply as:

Storage virtualization refers to the process of abstracting logical storage from physical storage.

While RAID at the basic level provides this functionality, the term storage virtualization typically includes additional concepts such as data migration and caching. Storage virtualization is hard to define in a fixed manner due to the variety of ways that the functionality can be provided. Typically, it is provided as a feature of:

• Host Based with Special Device Drivers
• Array Controllers
• Network Switchs
• Stand Alone Network Appliances

Each vendor has a different approach in this regard. Another primary way that storage virtualization is classified is whether it is in-band or out-of-band. In-band (often called symmetric) virtualization sits between the host and the storage device allowing caching. Out-of-band (often called asymmetric) virtualization makes use of special host based device drivers that first lookup the meta data (indicating where a file resides) and then allows the host to directly retrieve the file from the storage location. Caching at the virtualization level is not possible with this approach.

General benefits of storage virtualization include:

• Migration – Data can be easily migrated between storage locations without interrupting live access to the virtual partition with most technologies.
• Utilization – Similar to server virtualization, utilization of storage devices can be balanced to address over and under utilitization.
• Management – Many hosts can leverage storage on one physical device that can be centrally managed.

Some of the disadvantages include:

• Lack of Standards and Interoperability – Storage virtualization is a concept and not a standard. As a result vendors frequently do not easily interoperate.
• Metadata – Since there is a mapping between logical and physical location, the storage metadata and its management becomes key to a working reliable system.
• Backout – The mapping between local and physical locations also makes the backout of virtualization technology from a system a less than trivial process.

Service / Application Infrastructure Virtualization

Enterprise application providers have also taken note of the benefits of virtualization an begun offering solutions that allow the virtualization of commonly used applications such as Apache as well as application fabric platforms that allow software to easily be developed with virtualization capabilities from the ground up.

Application infrastructure virtualization (sometimes referred to as application fabrics) unbundle an application from a physical OS and hardware. Application developers can then write to a virtualization layer.  The fabric can then handle features such as deployment and scaling.  In essence this process is the evolution of grid computing into a fabric form that provides virtualization level features. Companies such as Appistry and DataSynapse provides features including:

• Virtualized Distribution
• Virtualized Processing
• Dynamic Resource Discovery

IBM has also embraced the virtualization concept at the application infrastructure level with the rebranding and continued of enhancement of Websphere XD as Websphere Virtual Enterprise. The product provides features such as service level management, performance monitoring, and fault tolerance. The software runs on a variety of Windows, Unix, and Linux based operating systems and works with popular application servers such as WebSphere, Apache, BEA, JBoss, and PHP application servers.   This lets administrators deploy and move application servers at a virtualization layer level instead of at the physical machine level.

Final Thoughts

In summary it should now be apparent that virtualization is not just a server-based concept. The technique can be applied across a broad range of computing including the virtualization of:

• Entire Machines on Both the Server and Desktop
• Applications/Desktops
• Storage
• Networking
• Application Infrastructure

The technology is evolving in a number of different ways but the central themes revolve around increased stability in existing areas and accelerating adoption by segments of the industry that have yet to embrace virtualization. The recent entry of Microsoft into the bare-metal hypervisor space with Hyper-V is a sign of the technology’s maturity in the industry.

Beyond these core elements the future of virtualization is still being written. A central dividing line is feature or product. For some companies such as RedHat and many of the storage vendors, virtualization is being pushed as a feature to complement their existing offerings. Other companies such as VMware have built entire businesses with virtualization as product. InfoQ will continue to cover the technology and companies involved as the space evolves.

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   Nice breakdown!

   Jun 30, 2008 10:30 AM by Kurt Christensen

   If an IT manager was not hip to virtualization, I'd send her or him to this article before reading anything else. Very nice.

   Reply

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   Re: Nice breakdown!

   Jul 1, 2008 2:56 AM by Vikrant Choudhary

   Really interesting and a basic stuff for one who wants to understand virtualization

   Reply

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   Cloud computing?

   Jul 8, 2008 6:49 AM by Afkham Azeez

   Cloud computing is also an area of virtualization which is gaining a lot of popularity. Several key players such as Amazon, Google & Microsoft have entered into this field, which some experts predict to be the next major change or paradigm shift in the industry.
   
   Afkham Azeez

   Reply

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   Re: Cloud computing?

   Jul 9, 2008 10:51 AM by Edward Savage

   Besides the software mentioned in the article, I would recommend everyone check into the open source VirtualBox application.

   Reply

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   Simple Inroduction for the Management Folks

   Jul 17, 2008 1:39 AM by Chirag Chamoli

   Thanks for the Introduction. Here is another one I like. Very simple and to the point http://thetoptenme.wordpress.com/2008/07/17/virtualization-everything/

   Reply

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