Dell to run Windows and Linux together

Birmingham Post ^ | 14 August 2007 | Staff

[ShadowAce]

[TChris]

Virtualization has nothing to do with Dell, per se. Everyone is doing virtualization, or rather, can, since it's a software thing.

This piece is a Dell ad masquerading as a news story.

[DB]

I purchased a new two dual core processor Dell workstation with Vista recently. I’m finding out the hard way there’s a number of important engineering software tools that don’t work with Vista... I’ve made a number of my own tools using Visual Basic and so far none of them work right with Vista. In addition, VB6 won’t install on Vista correctly...

So it’s a mess...

Having something that would simulate XP or Win2k environment would be a big help. Especially if it really operates within Vista and not a dual boot OS type arrangement.

[Red Badger]

And other companies computers cannot do this? Seems unlikely.......

[dayglored]

> Virtualization has nothing to do with Dell, per se. Everyone is doing virtualization, or rather, can, since it's a software thing. This piece is a Dell ad masquerading as a news story.

Yep.

But if it gets VMware into the public eye more, fine.

I run VMware's Fusion on my MacBook, and Workstation on both Windows and Linux hosts, with about half a dozen different guest OSes. It rocks.

The article's idle speculation about Apple allowing OSX as a guest OS is stupid though. Apple will never allow that on anyone else's hardware.

[DB]

If Dell is developing (or is a major force in developing) the software to do this it is more than just an ad. It’s a press release...

[Spktyr]

Microsoft may not like this much - remember, most versions of Vista can’t be legally used in a virtualization environment because of MS’s licensing terms.

[dayglored]

> And other companies computers cannot do this? Seems unlikely.......

Correct -- this is a Dell ad, as pointed out elsewhere. Any modern x86 hardware can run VMware, and it hosts on dozens of OSes, too.

[Constantine XIII]

Bump. Welcome to the future.

[Reeses]

You can create a Linux-like environment running as an application on a Windows system by installing Cygwin. You can set up telnet access, use most Linux commands, etc.

Cygwin: don't leave /home without it.

[dayglored]

> Microsoft may not like this much - remember, most versions of Vista can’t be legally used in a virtualization environment because of MS’s licensing terms.

That's not true any more. MS had to allow the other versions to run as guests also. They changed a couple of weeks ago.

[dayglored]

> You can create a Linux-like environment running as an application on a Windows system by installing Cygwin. You can set up telnet access, use most Linux commands, etc. Cygwin: don't leave /home without it.

Cygwin's cool, I use it daily on my Windows boxes. But it ain't the same as a virtual machine, by any stretch of the imagination.

[Constantine XIII]

Well, the remarkable thing is that it will come with VMs preinstalled and ready to go.

This will bring VMs to Mom and Dad, which is a big deal if your Mom and Dad LOVE to go to shady sites using IE 5 and fill up their computer with spybots, then call you every couple of weeks complaining about the performance.

Just use a preconstructed Linux sandbox and let em go. PROBLEM SOLVED!

Brilliant move on Dell’s part, IMHO.

[dayglored]

> If Dell is developing (or is a major force in developing) the software to do this it is more than just an ad. It’s a press release...

Nah, Dell's just piggybacking on the popularity of VMware. There's nothing special that has to be done to make VMs work, other than install the host software, which in many cases is free (e.g. VMware player for Windows and Linux).

I doubt the contribution from Dell is anything but consumer packaging.

[dayglored]

> Brilliant move on Dell’s part, IMHO.

Yes it is. Mostly marketing, and a little visionary thinking. But a great move.

[awaken2spirit]

Check out Microsoft Virtual PC 2007. (a Microsoft freebie). You can run multiple vitrtual OS’s under this including W2K, XP, W2k Server, W2K3 Server, Vista, various flavors of Linix, etc. Only limited by amount of memory and disk on your physical cpu. I use this product alot. Two thums up on this one.

[taxcontrol]

I work for the largest software integration company doing virutalization and optimization. You are not alone in your plight.

[Chode]

VMS...

[taxcontrol]

VMWare is not the only virtualization software. Xen / Virtuozzo etc are other titles. Each with it’s own set of strengths and weaknesses.