[SOLVED] Do you choose virtualization or container?
Linux - ServerThis forum is for the discussion of Linux Software used in a server related context.
Notices
Welcome to LinuxQuestions.org, a friendly and active Linux Community.
You are currently viewing LQ as a guest. By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics, receive our newsletter, use the advanced search, subscribe to threads and access many other special features. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today!
Note that registered members see fewer ads, and ContentLink is completely disabled once you log in.
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you need to reset your password, click here.
Having a problem logging in? Please visit this page to clear all LQ-related cookies.
Get a virtual cloud desktop with the Linux distro that you want in less than five minutes with Shells! With over 10 pre-installed distros to choose from, the worry-free installation life is here! Whether you are a digital nomad or just looking for flexibility, Shells can put your Linux machine on the device that you want to use.
Exclusive for LQ members, get up to 45% off per month. Click here for more info.
Hello,
On a Linux server, you want to run a number of services such as Apache, Nginx, Redis, etc. Do you use virtualization like Xen hypervisor or container like Docker?
I work at a really huge company, like Microsoft or IBM. We produce software and we install our software into VMs.
But actually we use containers to produce those software.
At home, if I want to try something usually I do it in VM or in a container, it depends on the complexity and size of it.
In general both have advantages and disadvantages and there in no short answer to the question why. Each case is different https://www.atlassian.com/microservi...tainers-vs-vms https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/differ...nd-containers/
I once renovated a company's "several hundred websites" that were all actually run by one piece of software, moving it from a dying Apple server to "the cloud." They wanted me to use virtual machines, and I consented. But I later regretted that I did not, instead, push harder for containers.
All of the various systems ran on a single version of Linux. But, because I used VMs, I had to do things like "NFS filesystems" and a lot of redundant duplication between each of the (about a dozen, in the end) VMs. I also had to maintain Linux installations separately on each of them. Furthermore, I ran into the issue that the original vendor wasn't actually able to deliver on their original service contracts.
Containers, then, would have been much simpler – providing the necessary "isolation," which was all that this configuration actually needed. Looking back, I could have created a single, "honkin' big," virtual machine and then used containers for all the rest. I wouldn't have had to "pretend," nearly so much, that the equipment was actually "real." When, of course, none of it was.
(The lesson that I didn't push hard enough ...): If your deployment does not actually require "multiple OS-distinct environments," then: "virtualization" turns out to be "overkill."
[Do you need virtual 'Windows' servers, and virtual 'Linux,' and virtual '(!?!)' servers, all at the same time?] (If so, God help ye ...)
Usually – as in my case – what you actually need is simply: "isolation." And, to these ends, "containers" are a clever illusion.
If your singleserver-type configuration simply consists of: "various environments that each need to be 'isolated,'" as is usually the case, then "containers" can effectively fill the bill at minimal cost.
Containers provide each client what they need to see, and each one (happily!) is none the wiser. None of them see "reality," and none of them care.
"Containerization" also gives rise to commercial services such as "Rackspace," which can "spin-up" and then "spin-down" container instances on moment-by-moment demand.
Last edited by sundialsvcs; 03-12-2024 at 09:51 PM.
Obviously you can try anything you want. What is the goal of this thread?
Hello,
Suppose you want to create a separate virtual machine for each service such as Nginx and PHP. How can you tell Nginx virtual machine to use another virtual machine to compile .php files? is this possible?
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing
Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute
content, let us know.