Types of Virtualization
In computer technology, virtualization is the formulation something not real, or a virtual version of something that is real or the representation of an idea. Some examples of this creation would be a hardware platform, network resources, or some type of a storage device. Ordinarily, the goal of this process is to centralize and consolidate administrative and IT tasks while improving scalability, balance, and general utilization of hardware resources.
One way this formulation can be used is as a trend in the IT world, particularly in enterprise IT, wherein an IT department could managed itself based on its perception of activity. This process can also be used in utility computing where computer processing is seen in an as-needed type of process and clients can pay for the service as they need it.
In hardware virtualization, also referred to as platform visualization, and is the construction of a virtual machine that acts as a real computer that has an actual operating system. The software from these virtual machines is different from the actual machine’s underlying software. The firmware, or software, that creates a a virtual machine is referred to as a hypervisor or a virtual machine monitor.
There are also desktop virtualization situations where the logical desktop is divided from the physical, or actual, machine. One type of this creation is virtual desktop infrastructure, or VDI, and is somewhat related to hardware virtual creations. Instead of connecting with hardware such as keyboard, mouse, and monitor, connection is made through a wireless connection. In this case, the host computer serves as a server for the process and can be a host for several computers at one time.
Other processes that can be virtualized include software at the operating level as well as in applications and in workspace, memory, storage, data, and network.
