[SGVLUG] 'x86 boxes with hardware virtualization

[John E. Kreznar]

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In a posting purporting to be from Michael Proctor-Smith
<mproctor13 at gmail.com> but lacking a digital signature, it is written:

> So the reason it is confusing is that there are about 3 levels of
> hardware virtualization support and five virtualization technologies
> that support different feature sets.

> 2.) CPU supports software virtualization [paravirt(faster), or
> unmodified OS(slower)].

This is what I've been using with xen, but I've been using only
paravirtual OSes.

> 3.) CPU support second level of virtualization, but now chipset must
> support IO-MMU(Allows you to give hardware to guess OSs even
> unmodified OSs).

This is what I have in mind.  When xen boots, it should detect that
the CPU has hardware virtual (Intel VT-x "Vanderpool" or AMD AMD-V
"Pacifica") and come up Xen's HVM mode (Hardware Virtual Machine)
rather than PV.

> Sense it is you John I am guessing that you do not want to run
> windows, so almost anything will work for you sense most the the
> Free OSs have paravirt support.

Example of what I want to be able to do: Boot a virtual machine from a
hard disk image of an unmodified bootable CDROM, such as a Ubuntu ISO
image, or even from just an unmodified bootable partition on a hard
drive, and get near-native performance.  Can this be done with just
paravirtual?

> Other then that there is always the Dell outlet store for
> used/refurbed "new" hardware.

I've been watching the Dell spam that arrives here, and the only
mention I've seen of "virtual" is in connection with seminars for IT
managers on how good it is.  Besides, I fear Dell's gratuitous
incompatibilities designed to make the user dependent on Dell for
every little upgrade.

Thanks, Mike, for your thoughtful mail.

- -- 
 John E. Kreznar jek at ininx.com 9F1148454619A5F08550 705961A47CC541AFEF13

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