Overview

This tutorial will outline different types of virtualization in cloud computing. Let’s first understand the term virtualization.

Virtualization is creating and using a virtual instance of the resource rather than an actual physical resource, like an operating system, a server, a storage device, etc. Virtualization allows sharing of a single physical resource or an application among multiple customers.

Types of Virtualization

Some types of virtualization are as follows:

• Hardware Virtualization(HardV)
• Software Virtualization(SoftV)
• Storage Virtualization(StorageV)
• OS Virtualization
• Server Virtualization(SerV)

Hardware Virtualization

When the virtual machine software is directly installed on the hardware system is known as hardware virtualization. The main job of the hypervisor is to control and monitor the hardware resources.

Software Virtualization

Software Virtualization is the process that allows one computer to run multiple virtual environments.

Storage Virtualization

Storage virtualization is the process of grouping physical storage from multiple network storage devices to form a single virtual storage device.

OS Virtualization

In operating system virtualization, the VM (Virtual machine) software is installed on the Host Operating System rather than a physical hardware system. We can use this type of virtualization technique to compatibility test software applications on different operating systems and platforms.

Server Virtualization

Server virtualization is the process of installing the virtual machine software directly on the server system. The main advantage is that the single physical server can be divided into multiple servers on demand for balancing the traffic load.