Which OS base system for VM PC

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FnuckNut

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I would like to dab in Virtual Machine systems.
The system must be a virtual server base with OS and virtual network holding VM PC’s.
The base OS system/server to connect to internet as interface for VM hosts.
The base is the server for common devices, printers, scanners, SQL.
Other PC's on network must be part of the VM structure rather than the base server if possible

Is this at all possible?
Where to start?
What is best and fastest base OS system/server for such beast
Which is the best feasible structure?
Any examples available?
What hardware?
What expected performance?
Which VM software?
 
By OS base system are you asking Windows, Mac or Linux?
 
Ok here is my take on things. I gather that by base you mean the host OS running on the hardware supporting the VMs.

Typically I would suggest linux for this purpose but I suppose that you can use windows as well. I have seen several commercial installations using linux as a base with various windows VMs running on it.

Insofar as the networking is concerned you can have various network configs for the VMs.
A - VMs are networked but self contained on the host and have limited interaction with the host OS and other network resources. Nice to test software that could cause havoc such as worms, etc.

B - VMs use a tap on the host network interface and are capable of communicating with the host and other network resources using NAT. However the VM is not a network node as that can be seen by the host OS

C - Host OS (if required) and the VMs are all on the same network again using taps and bridging but VMs are not distinguishable from the host OS in a network sense. This is typical if you are building a server setup or just want a nice and simple way to move files between the various VMs and the host OS.

Hope this helps,
Slayer
 
I run quite a few VMware productions setups

I recommend Vmware server v2 (just released)
Host OS: Vista x64 (server 2008 x64 also works very well)
Guest: any 32 or 64bit OS

I recommend VMware since its a mature product and guest compatibility is the best (sorry open source guys, same goes for you MS boys)
Remember lots and lots of RAM. (4GB min)
 
... What the hell is a OS base system?

Dude, VM ware Server edition is pretty powerfull, if you just want to try the stuff out, Microsoft Virtual PC isnt a bad idea, otherwise id say go the VM ware route.

Yea RAM is a good idea, plop 4 gigs down if you are running an "os base system" that supports more than 3.2 :) More RAM = more emulated OS base systems! :D

You can look into linux as well, i remembered emulating Server 2003 just fine with a VM emulator on Ubuntu, the name just escapes me right now, but its in the local repositories just cant put my finger on the bloody name, I remember I was really impressed with it, considering it was Open source and all!

As for perfomrance, you will actually be pleasantly surprised with OS emulation in general, it all comes down to how much RAM you can afford to dedicate per "machine" running on your computer, but with a nice supply of ram you shouldnt have any issues performance wise, im not sure about the X64 architecture jobs performance wise, but as for X32, its styling :)
 
Last edited:
saffakanera said:
... What the hell is a OS base system? :)
Click to expand...

I presume that's what you would call the host system. :)

Thank for the info and Inputs. It helps a lot.

Now what about some hardware suggestions
Is Q'core better than D'core? Why Not?

What about drive structure for speed? Raid system?
Which are the better Brand/Model drives for speed gains?

So far it seems Vista64/Server 2008 with 8 GB RAM with VMware is the price winner?
 
Ubuntu + Virtualbox = Pure Win.

I am running Fedora Core 7, Mint 5, GOS, Win XP all in virtual machines :D

Often all at the same time!
 
In terms of the hardware requirements each VM can be assigned host resources and this goes for RAM and CPU cores alike. For VM use a quad is better than a dual simply because you can assign a single core per VM (or other combinations) and leave the host OS with a dedicated core.

This improves the performance as the host CPU (core) does not get bogged down with the VMs. RAM is simply a case of more is better, exactly how much will depend on the number of VMs you plan to run as well as the amount of RAM per VM.

For the VM engine to use I also support VMware server for commercial applications, but if you only want to play around try virtualbox (FOSS, linux and windows)
 
slayerza said:
In terms of the hardware requirements each VM can be assigned host resources and this goes for RAM and CPU cores alike. For VM use a quad is better than a dual simply because you can assign a single core per VM (or other combinations) and leave the host OS with a dedicated core.

This improves the performance as the host CPU (core) does not get bogged down with the VMs. RAM is simply a case of more is better, exactly how much will depend on the number of VMs you plan to run as well as the amount of RAM per VM.

For the VM engine to use I also support VMware server for commercial applications, but if you only want to play around try virtualbox (FOSS, linux and windows)
Click to expand...

Thanks, that’s the exact info I am looking for. Can Virtual box also be allocated a specific core or is the function unique to only VMware?

Can anybody offer any advice or idea on the best and fastest yet cost effective drive structure?
Which drives? Brand and model (For speed)
SCSCI is too expensive thus other suggestions for options in raid system will be appreciated or is SCSCI the only real speedy option?
 
FnuckNut said:
Thanks, that’s the exact info I am looking for. Can Virtual box also be allocated a specific core or is the function unique to only VMware?

Can anybody offer any advice or idea on the best and fastest yet cost effective drive structure?
Which drives? Brand and model (For speed)
SCSCI is too expensive thus other suggestions for options in raid system will be appreciated or is SCSCI the only real speedy option?
Click to expand...

Anyone, Ideas on the drive structure?
 
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