Virtualization

Virtualization is a technique of replacing an existing interface with independent or
separated virtual interfaces that resemble the current system’s behavior and functioning. Another
definition of virtualization is bringing together resources or applications that create a virtual
interface from the real interface (Lombropoulos et al., 2021). Virtualization enables the
installation of more than one operating system in computer hardware or making resources such
as a server, a storage device, or an application to operate as multiple virtual components.
Virtualization can also be done on processors, networks, desktops, services, and applications.
With virtualization, the physical attributes of the resources are hidden.
Three requirements are needed in order to accomplish virtualization. The first one is
having an environment for operating the program equivalent to the underlying system. The
second requirement is having complete control of the virtual resources to safeguard the data and
resources that run on each virtualized resource from interference when the physical resources are
shared. The third requirement relates to performance since sharing the physical resource comes
with performance degradation; hence, good performance is needed for the virtualized resources
to work smoothly. Good performance is achieved by providing support for the hardware and
software in prioritizing the instructions’ handling (Popek & Goldberg, 1974).

Justification for Virtualization

Organizations can benefit immensely by virtualizing computing resources. Cost saving is
one factor that motivates organizations to consider investing in virtualization. With
virtualization, cost saving is achieved in several ways, including reducing costs associated with
acquiring and installing physical resources like servers since virtualized applications operate
from a communal server, eliminating the need to purchase servers to run the different operating

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systems. Virtualization also helps reduce the time and costs associated with deploying resources
and support, which also helps in minimizing downtime. Virtualization also helps in cutting
energy costs as well as reduction of the space requirement for computing resources. Lastly, the
spending on license fees is reduced given that licenses are available for multiple virtual
machines, which are lower than the fees for the dedicated devices (Lombropoulos et al., 2021).
Another benefit of virtualization is enabling faster information recovery in the event of a
mishap. It is easier to recover information from a single storage device than when multiple
devices are involved. Virtualization helps reduce downtime in a disaster since the recovery of
information can take terse times compared to the hours or days it may take to recover data and
recover physical systems. Besides providing opportunities for faster disaster recovery,
visualization also helps in business continuity; the segmented virtual machines enable developers
to clone a virtual machine and undertake tasks like testing applications without interrupting
production. For example, when updating software with a new patch, it is possible to create a new
virtual machine, undertake the update and testing, and then apply it to the production application
(Porgacic et al., 2017).

Evaluating Virtual Technologies/Solutions

The hypervisor is one of the most common virtualization applications. It is software that
is installed in one host computer and allows the installation of multiple operating systems. This
means that the operating systems share the same host and run alongside each other. The
operating systems are delivered as a virtual machine, a virtual replica of a real computer. The
hypervisor assigns each virtual machine a portion of the computing power of the physical
computer, preventing the virtual machines from interfering with one another (Aalam et al.,
2021).

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Microsoft App-V is another example of a virtualization application. The application
allows applications to stream on a computer without requiring the installation of the application
on the computer. Microsoft App-V converts executable files into virtual components, links with
all the layers of the computer infrastructure, and enables the application to run without
interfering with other parts of the computer infrastructure (Hoppe & Seeling, 2019).
Containerization as an Alternative to Virtualization

One of the alternatives to virtualization is containerization. Unlike virtualization, which
entails replicating an entire machine, containerization entails encapsulating a single or multiple
applications and their associated files into a container that can run on top of an existing operating
system. With containerization, only one operating system is needed rather than installing
different operating systems (Alshalamah & Camara, 2018).

Challenges Associated with Virtualization

One of the challenges associated with virtualization is security risks. Virtual systems are
prone to security threats since they are shared systems, and they can become easily compromised
when users fail to ensure best practices with authorization and passwords. A security threat
targeting the host computer can disrupt an organization’s operations. Security threats come from
data breaches, loss, denial of services, malware, etc. This problem can be countered by isolating
the virtual machine management interfaces, linking the hypervisor only to the application that
requires access, avoiding running untrusted codes on the operating systems, and incorporating
robust security features (Alshalamah & Camara, 2018).
Other challenges associated with virtualization include challenges with backward
compatibility and virtual machine sprawl, which is the creation of unwanted virtual machines.

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Other challenges include resource distribution, which can lead to some systems functioning
better than others, and the inability to monitor the performance of virtualized systems.

References

Aalam, Z. Kumar, V.& Gour, S. (2021). A review paper on hypervisor and virtual machine
security. Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1950 (2021), 1-9.
Ahmed, A. (2021). Virtualization benefits for education. 10.1016/b978-1-59749-557-.
Alshalamah, A. & Camara, J. (2018). Applying virtualization and containerization techniques in
cybersecurity education. Proceedings of the Information Systems Education Conference
San Antonio, Texas USA.
Hoppe, M.& Seeling, P. (2019). Security of virtualized applications: Microsoft App-V and
VMware ThinApp. Conference Paper, DOI: 10.1007/978-90-481-9112-3_49
Lombropoulos. G. Mitropoulos, S. & Souligereris, C. (2021). Improving business performance
by employing virtualization technology: A case study in the financial sector. Computers
10(52), 1-20.
Postolache, F., Bumbaru, S. & Constantin, F. (2010). Framework on virtualization applications
and benefits. 10.1109/SOFA.2010.5565620.
Porgacic, I. Krnjak, D. & Ozanic, D.(2017). Business Benefits from the Virtualization of an ICT
Infrastructure. International Journal of Engineering Business Management, 4(42), 1-8.