Many people love Linux but aren't able to commit to using it full time. Some folks use certain peripherals that Linux can't yet accommodate, while others need applications for which suitable open source options don't yet exist. Fortunately, virtualization makes it possible to put your favorite Linux distribution right on your Mac or Windows PC.
To virtualize a computer means to section off an area of the hard drive and put a second, fully-functional operating system on it, essentially turning one computer into two. Let's take a look at the various virtualization options to see which one might be right for you.
Mac users have a few different choices when it comes to putting Linux on an iMac or MacBook. Leopard, the most recent version of Mac OS X, comes with the Boot Camp virtualization tool built right in. Although Apple only officially supports its use for Windows, many people have successfully installed Linux. Once you set it up, you'll get a choice of which operating system to use each time you switch on your Mac. The biggest drawback to Boot Camp is that many people find it an annoyance to turn turn the machine on and off to access a different OS. Running Linux under Boot Camp is a little more complex than adding the Windows operating system, but don't hesitate to ask for help in your distro's community forums.
Another Mac virtualization option is VMware Fusion, and it gets my vote for the best virtualization product on the market. I've used Fusion for a long time to access both Linux and Windows on my Mac, and its stability and extra touches have always impressed me. I also appreciate the ability to access other operating systems without having to shut down and restart my system. In fact, Fusion lets users work with the secondary operating system via a window right on the Mac's desktop and switching between the two on the fly is simply a matter of a couple of keystrokes.
A third virtualization option for Mac users is Parallels, which also allows users to run Linux side-by-side with Mac OS X. As with Fusion, this option also allows for fast switching between operating systems and doesn't require a system restart.
Windows users can run Linux by installing Virtual PC from Microsoft. Like Boot Camp, Linux isn't officially supported as a virtualization option but many people run it with no issues whatsoever.
A second option for Windows users is the free, open source app Virtual Box. This business-grade solution has several features that make it popular for experienced computer users, but it's also useful as an easy way to virtualize their Windows desktop machine.
As the virtualization industry continues to grow and evolves, so will the tools that make it possible to easily run Linux alongside a second operating system. That's great news for anyone who wants to incorporate more open source tools into their workflow and see just how useful Linux really is.
Comments
Add CommentBy Archaeogeek on Apr. 11, 2008
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but surely if you have to reboot the machine to access your second operating system then you're talking about dual-booting rather than virtualisation?
Secondly, for people wishing to get a taste of linux but keep it integrated within their current working environment there's andlinux (http://www.andlinux.org/) which allows you to run linux programmes from a task bar within windows.
Archaeogeek is right - bootcamp is a dual-boot scenario, not a virtualization one, but it does give you the 'option' of running multiple OSes on the machine, though not simultaneously.
Parallels and Fusion, on the other hand, are true VM solutions.
Another advantage to virtualization and dual-boot solutions is that you can experiment with applications that aren't necessarily stable yet. For example, I run Firefox 3--still in beta--on a virtual machine. It's sometimes flaky, and doesn't work with my favorite extensions yet, but it's much faster than Firefox 2 so I like to use it even though it's pre-release.
Sam
One other interesting development on the virtualization front is Scale MP. This is for high-end virtualization, where instead of slicing one system up into virtualized environments, ScaleMP is taking multiple x86-based platforms interconnected with Infiniband and aggregating them into 1 unified system image. Interesting applications described at www.scalemp.com
By Kalle Persson on Apr. 11, 2008
Samdean: On the other hand, you can run Firefox 3 beta side by side with your current Firefox 2 installation.
By an anonymous user on Apr. 11, 2008
Good point, Kalle. You can do that. However, I often prefer to run pre-release software in an environment where I don't have to worry about anything it might do to my main configuration.
Sam
By lnxrks on Apr. 11, 2008
Guys like VMware Appliances (www.vmware.com) and CohesiveFT (www.cohesiveft.com) have prebuilt appliances, good to go, so you can just download and rock out.
By an anonymous user on Apr. 11, 2008
It must be remembered that when running a virtual machine there is a "host" OS and a "guest" OS. Both are in memory at the same time. Your memory requirements increase for good performance.
Vista is often provided on machines with with 1GB of memory. As such, it is already pokey. Now if you install a VM and allocate 256 MB of memory for a Linux distro, Vista is forced to run in 768 MB.
The result is an unimpressive, poorly performing Linux. Okay for an evaluation, but not something you would use everyday. The live-cd approach is a far better alternative,
Don
By an anonymous user on Apr. 11, 2008
One gig of memory is the bare minimum these days, though, especially if you're running Vista. If you have only a bit more, virtualizing won't cause performance problems.
By an anonymous user on Apr. 12, 2008
It's also a matter of performance. VirtualBox and VMware are a lot faster than parallels and VirtualPC.
By an anonymous user on Apr. 13, 2008
VMware allows you to run guest OSes without modifying the kernel. However, until recently, Xen-based virtualizations required a modified kernel and restricted the choice to Linux-based guests. Not sure how good the performance is with un-modified guest OSes (full virtualization).
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