| Sun virtualization technology adds VM exports |
Apr. 08, 2009
 Sun has added support for the Open Virtualization Format (OVF) to the latest version of its "open source" desktop virtualization software. Other enhancements to VirtualBox 2.2 (left) include greater hypervisor optimization and 3D graphics acceleration for Linux and Solaris applications, says an eWEEK story.
(Click for a larger version of VirtualBox 2.2 running a Windows XP session on Apple's OS X)
The new release of VirtualBox comes in the midst of turmoil at Sun Microsystems as negotiations to be acquired by IBM have broken down, at least temporarily. Sun executives are now meeting to consider the next steps, according to reports.
With the OVF support, VirtualBox 2.2 lets users build virtual machines, and then export them from development to production environments, explains Jeffrey Burt in our sister publication, eWEEK. Part of the DMTF (Distributed Management Task Force) initiative, the OVF was released in beta form last month. The standardized technology enables virtual machines or appliances to be imported and exported.
Other new features are said to include support for Apple’s upcoming 64-bit Snow Leopard platform, an increase in maximum memory size for guests to 16GB, and a new host-interface networking mode, says the story.
Virtuality in a box
VirtualBox lets users run their favorite software, Sun says, while enabling developers convenience when building, testing, and running "cross-platform, multi-tier applications." It does this by enabling development and target systems to share a single physical host. Supported target "platforms" include Linux, OpenSolaris, Solaris, Windows, and Mac OS X.
Much of VirtualBox was released under the GPL in 2007, and project developers continue to offer VirtualBox OSE (open source edition) as a source-code distribution. This code is subsequently built and distributed by many downstream distributors, such as Debian. VirtualBox 2.1, released in December, offered improved 64-bit support, 3D acceleration, easier Windows and Linux networking, hardware virtualization on Macs, and "full" VMDK/VHD support, including snapshots.
Availability
VirtualBox 2.2 can be found here. Sun's enterprise versions start at $30 per user per year, including "premium" (any time) support.
The eWEEK story on VirtualBox 2.2 and OVF may be found here.
More on the Open Virtualization Format may be found in this PDF.
-- Eric Brown
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