Choosing tools for effective virtualization
Going Virtual

Good tools are half the battle – even if you are just managing virtual machines. This month we take a practical look at virtualization, and we show you a new threat to watch for in the virtual future.
Servers are not human. They don't live and breathe. They just consume power and take up space. Do we really need so many? The virtualization revolution is about saving money, time, and floor space. Today's virtualization tools provide an efficient environment for testing, running, and managing applications – with lower electric bills and fewer hardware headaches. But is virtualization all good, or does it also open the door to new kinds of threats?
In this month's cover story, we examine the practical side of virtualization. We start with an introduction to some of the virtualization tools available for Linux. Then we take a closer look at a pair of popular open source virtualization alternatives: Xen and VirtualBox. Finally, we settle in for a look at the dark side of virtualization: the mysterious world of virtualizing rootkits.
Practical Virtualization
The virtualization paradigm has come down to Earth, leaving the lofty heights of Mount Olympus for real-world concerns like stability, performance, and ease of management. A virtualization system that wants to fulfill all of these requirements must be ready for:
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Blender App Makes it to the Big Screen
The animated film "Flow" won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the 97th Academy Awards held on March 2, 2025 and Blender was a part of it.
-
Linux Mint Retools the Cinnamon App Launcher
The developers of Linux Mint are working on an improved Cinnamon App Launcher with a better, more accessible UI.
-
New Linux Tool for Security Issues
Seal Security is launching a new solution to automate fixing Linux vulnerabilities.
-
Ubuntu 25.04 Coming Soon
Ubuntu 25.04 (Plucky Puffin) has been given an April release date with many notable updates.
-
Gnome Developers Consider Dropping RPM Support
In a move that might shock a lot of users, the Gnome development team has proposed the idea of going straight up Flatpak.
-
openSUSE Tumbleweed Ditches AppArmor for SELinux
If you're an openSUSE Tumbleweed user, you can expect a major change to the distribution.
-
Plasma 6.3 Now Available
Plasma desktop v6.3 has a couple of pretty nifty tricks up its sleeve.
-
LibreOffice 25.2 Has Arrived
If you've been hoping for a release that offers more UI customizations, you're in for a treat.
-
TuxCare Has a Big AlmaLinux 9 Announcement in Store
TuxCare announced it has successfully completed a Security Technical Implementation Guide for AlmaLinux OS 9.
-
First Release Candidate for Linux Kernel 6.14 Now Available
Linus Torvalds has officially released the first release candidate for kernel 6.14 and it includes over 500,000 lines of modified code, making for a small release.