Why should I use Linux virtualization?

Virtualization first appeared in Linux in the form of User-mode Linux (UML) and it started the revolution required to bring Linux into the virtualization race. Today, there is a wide array of virtualization options available in Linux to convert a single computer into multiple ones. Popular Linux virtualization solutions include KVM, Xen, QEMU, and VirtualBox. In this book, we will be focusing on KVM virtualization.

Openness, flexibility, and performance are some of the major factors that attract users to Linux virtualization. Just like any other open source software, virtualization software in Linux is developed in a collaborative manner; this indirectly brings users the advantages of the open source model. For example, compared to closed source, open source receives wider input from the community and indirectly helps reduce research and development costs, improves efficiency, and performance and productivity. The open source model always encourages innovation. The following are some of the other features that open source provides:

• User-driven solutions for real problems
• Support from the community and a user base who help fellow users to solve problems
• Provides choice of infrastructure
• Control of data and security, as the code is freely available to read, understand, and modify when required
• Avoid lock-in flexibility to migrate the entire load with comparable product and stay free from vendor lock-in