Hello, I have been using KVM on debian 4.1 lenny with several virtual machines (debian 4.0 etch, fedora 7, centos4) every day for work for the past two weeks. The machine is a Dell Optiplex 745 with an Intel Core Duo 2.
What I like the most is the simplicity of the set up. The wiki page on debian is short, super clear and correct. (kvm.qumranet.com/kvmwiki/Debian) Compared to Xen, I like the fact that I keep my debian kernel and drivers. It is less invasive: 'modprobe kvm-intel' is really convenient. Also, compared to Xen it works 'out of the box'. VM configuration with command line options also helps to get a VM running in a few seconds. Compared to VMware, the creation of a new VM is easier: less mandatory parameters. Except maybe for the '-net' parameters which are not cristal clear to me. So far, the host and VMs have never crashed which is a great confort when you want it to 'just work' and focus on your job. Also, there are few things that I find not easy to do : - I can't mount the logical volume where the VM sits, I guess it is the qcow format not 'recognised' by mount. It is cool to be able to do that with Xen or Vserver, you do not have to boot the machine or read the docs on the qcow format to check out a file. - I can't launch kvm from a console and still see the kernel boot message (i'll dig into the qemu options someday) - the VM will almost pause when you're not watching! It is quite obvious on a VM boot: when you're working on another virtual desktop ! Does it have something to do with the debian kernel being maybe optimized for 'desktop usage' and the active window getting most of the responsiveness? I tried to 'nice' kvm without much noticeable effect. - I don't understand the output of ifconfig when there is a bridge involved. The bridge is said transparent but it is the only interface carrying with the real IP address. It is a bit confusing and does not help network troubleshootings. I know it is standard linux bridging but if you can put a super clear wiki page on bridging designed on use cases that would help numerous VM users. We work in the Telco field and see the virtualization tools mainly for development and tests purpose. Production architecture based on virtualization are in the roadmap though. I guess the company will go VMWare as it has an ecosystem of third party companies offering expertise on VMWare deployment architectures. If the techies have a say, we will propose Xen or Vserver as these two technologies have several years of experience and user feedback. Thank you for your work, have a good day, ------------------------------------------------------------------------- This SF.net email is sponsored by: Splunk Inc. Still grepping through log files to find problems? Stop. Now Search log events and configuration files using AJAX and a browser. Download your FREE copy of Splunk now >> http://get.splunk.com/ _______________________________________________ kvm-devel mailing list kvm-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/kvm-devel
