A Quick Introduction To Virtual Machine Software?

Answer 1

As more computer users require the capabilities of programs and utilities that aren’t native to their own specific operating systems, Virtual Machines continue to grow in popularity. What exactly is a Virtual Machine, you ask? It’s simple, really. A Virtual Machine is a software implementation of a physical computer that uses some of the RAM and CPU power of the host PC on which it is running. For example, let’s say you have a Windows PC but you need to use a program which only runs on a Mac. You could run Mac OS X on the Virtual Machine within Windows to accomplish any tasks needed.

If that sounds complicated, it’s really much easier than it may seem at first. There are a number of options available to regular users to accomplish this. The main Virtual Machine software makers are VMware, VirtualBox, QEMUand Parallels. They all do roughly the same thing. Installing any of these virtualization software programs is generally straightforward and simple. On Linux, most distributions carry them within their repositories. With Windows, it’s usually as easy as downloading the executable file and running it to set up the Virtual Machine software with one click.

To prepare a Virtual Machine for use, all that you would need to do is start the Virtual Machine program and click on the “New Machine” button. On a desktop or laptop PC, you’ll typically also need a Java Runtime Environment installed for the software to work. From there, you’ll make a Virtual Machine by creating a virtual hard disk. Then, you’ll need to copy a Virtual Disk Image or ISO file of the operating system you wish to run to the virtual hard disk. The Virtual Machine software walks you through the whole process and it typically only takes a few minutes at most. After your guest operating system is loaded on the Virtual Machine, you can run the programs you want, copying files back to the host operating system as needed.

We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible using Virtual Machine software, but hopefully you’ve gotten an idea of the power and versatility that these programs offer. Virtual Machines are used on everything from web servers to home computers to extend the capabilities of the underlying hardware. Ultimately, Virtual Machine software will play an increasingly important role in the future of computing.