machine emulation & developer workstation environment – microsoft’s virtualpc dan dyer...
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Machine Emulation & Developer Workstation Environment –
Microsoft’s VirtualPC
Dan Dyer
Metrolist, Inc.
Examples of what Virtual PC can do:
• Enable installation of a refrigerator in your workspace
• Increase quality of life by 2% per year
• Allow you to build a trebuchet
How a VPC works
• Simulates generic Intel hardware and drivers
• Emulation begins with the BIOS
• Shares hardware with host machine– Optical Drives/ISO image mounting
Features• Most x86 OSs supported
Features• Multiple VPCs on one machine
– Limited only by RAM and disk space
Results: More machines & space
Multiple VPCs per computer = more floor space
Increased floor space +
lower heat output =
refrigerator* in your workspace
*Not provided by Virtual PC
Configurability
• CPU prioritizing
Configurability
• RAM allocation
Features
• Dynamic/Fixed virtual hard drives– Expand/contract
• Linked hard drives– Link directly to physical disk
• Differencing hard drives– Users all share one network drive– Differences saved in local file
Features
• Saved states– Fast startup/shutdown
• Undo disks– Restore system to previous state
Results: Efficient machine mgmt
VPC State management and restoration =
7.63% reduction in stress*
Average stress reduction per week = 3.6 hours
Additional stress-free days per year = 7.8
Approximate yearly happiness increase = 2.1%
*Individual results may vary
Benefits
• Portability– Copy virtual machines to any location
• Stability– Crashes only affect specific virtual machine
• Archivability– Preserve legacy/reference sites
• Compartmentalizationability– Conflicting products run on same machine
Benefits
• Test installations– Reset OS environment between tests– Test automated OS deployment
• Networking– Test remote deployment– Simulate production network– Honeypots
Results: More Time
Portability + Stability + Compartmentalizationability =
extra time to build one of these:
Image courtesy of www.cathares.org
Coming: Virtual Server 2005
• Release date: November 2005
• Web-based Administrative Interface
• Migration Toolkit– Transfer physical installations to virtual
• Supports Windows Server 2003 64-bit
• Expanded Linux support
• 180 day trial now available
Additional Link
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtualpc/evaluation/evalguide.mspx