Glossary of terms

Virtual Machine (VM)

VM, or Virtual Machine, is a software-based emulation of a computer system, allowing for the creation of virtualized computing environments within a single physical machine. Here’s a detailed definition, main features, and scope of a VM:

Definition

A Virtual Machine (VM) is a software-based computer system that emulates the hardware and operating system of a physical computer. It runs as a virtual environment within the host operating system, sharing the hardware resources of the underlying physical machine.

Main Features

1. Hardware Virtualization: VMs simulate the complete hardware environment of a physical computer, including CPU, memory, storage, and networking components. This allows multiple VMs to run concurrently on a single physical machine, each with its own isolated hardware environment.

2. Operating System Isolation: Each VM can run its own operating system, independent of the host operating system and other VMs running on the same physical machine. This isolation ensures that issues or crashes within one VM do not affect the others or the host system.

3. Resource Sharing: The host machine’s hardware resources (CPU, RAM, storage, and network) are shared among the VMs, with each VM allocated a portion of these resources based on its configuration and requirements.

4. Portability: VMs can be easily migrated or moved between different physical hosts, providing flexibility and enabling disaster recovery scenarios or load balancing across multiple hosts.

5. Snapshots and Cloning: VMs can be easily cloned or have their state captured as snapshots, enabling rapid deployment, testing, and rollback capabilities.

Scope of VM

VMs have a wide range of applications and use cases, including:

1. Server Consolidation: Multiple server workloads can be consolidated onto a single physical machine, reducing hardware costs and improving resource utilization.

2. Software Development and Testing: VMs provide isolated environments for software development, testing, and experimentation without affecting the host system or other applications.

3. Legacy Application Support: VMs can run legacy operating systems or applications that may no longer be compatible with modern hardware or software environments.

4. Cloud Computing: Cloud providers offer virtualized computing resources in the form of VMs, enabling scalable and on-demand access to computing power.

5. Desktop Virtualization: VMs can be used to create virtualized desktop environments, allowing remote access and centralized management of user desktops.

6. Security and Isolation: VMs provide a secure and isolated environment for running untrusted applications or software, reducing the risk of compromising the host system.

7. Education and Training: VMs offer a safe and cost-effective way to set up lab environments for learning and hands-on training without the need for dedicated physical hardware.

VMs have become an essential technology in modern computing environments, enabling efficient resource utilization, flexibility, and isolation for various applications and use cases.

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