initCommon(); $template->displayHeader(); ?>

18. Virtualization

[Tip]Latest Release Notes on the Web

These release notes may be updated. Visit http://docs.fedoraproject.org/release-notes/ to view the latest release notes for Fedora.

Virtualization in Fedora 7 supports both Xen and KVM virtualization platforms. The libvirt API and its corresponding tools, virt-manager and virsh, have been updated to support both KVM and Xen. Users can choose which virtualization platform to install, and use the same tools without regard to that choice.

Xen in Fedora 7 is based on version 3.0.4.

KVM in Fedora 7 is based on version 19-1.

For more information on the differences between Xen and KVM, refer to http://virt.kernelnewbies.org/TechComparison. For more information on installing and using virtualization in Fedora 7, refer to http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Docs/Fedora7VirtQuickStart.

18.1. Types of Virtualization

Using Xen 3.0.4, both paravirtualization and full virtualization can be implemented. Under KVM, only full virtualization is supported. Full virtualization requires a VT-capable processor. Paravirtualization does not require special hardware, but does require the guest OS to be modified.

18.2. Guest Operating Systems

The Fedora 7 development team has tested Xen with Fedora 6, Fedora 7, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.5 and 5.0 guests. Other guests have not been tested. With full virtualization, users can expect reasonable success with a larger variety of operating systems, including some proprietary operating systems.

18.3. Changes to the Virtualization Packages

The following improvements have been made in the virtualization packages in Fedora 7:

  • The applications virt-manager and virsh can now work with inactive domains. Previously, only xm could handle inactive domains.

  • The mouse cursor problems with the virtual frame buffer have been fixed, for a better user experience in GUI modes.

  • Miscellaneous other small improvements and fixes have been made.

displayFooter('$Date: 2007/05/31 03:35:07 $'); ?>