Virtuozzo (ранее Parallels Cloud Server)

Virtuozzo (before Parallels Cloud Server) is a platform hybrid for virtualization (hypervisors + containers) with the distributed cloud storage.

"Hybridization" promotes decrease in a downtime because of hardware failures, simplifies support and administration of servers, helps to create effective and high-available virtual servers with very good indicators of continuity of work.

Interaction of Parallels Cloud Server, 2013

Virtuozzo helps the small companies hosters to unroll elastic, scalable storage on the operative equipment, to increase efficiency of use of hard drives of servers. The distributed system of storage provides performance, the closest to local HDD/SSD. Hot swap of disks is supported, at the same time "cloud" carries out automatic balancing again.

Virtuozzo automatically determines the nodes which failed, and the user can set any level of redundancy.

Virtuozzo Storage is a part of Virtuozzo (before Parallels Cloud Storage), the product connects not used disk space on servers and creates a full-fledged cloud storage system.

Virtuozzo supports both gipervizorny, and container virtualizations and incorporates the high-performance cloud storage. Virtuozzo allows service providers to provide the managed virtual environment for calculations and data storage to clients from the sphere of small and medium business for which it is necessary more, than lease of normal VPS for development and support of the business.

Advantages

Carry to advantages of container virtualization:

• big density of servers,
• performance,
• isolation,
• flexible scaling.

Availability

Virtuozzo is provided according to the leasing scheme.

The Virtuozzo platform provides by 2-3 times more high density of virtual environments on the server in comparison with hypervisors. These characteristics do it by the ideal solution in the large and superlarge organizations in which implementation is planned.

The software of virtualization based on containers. As a result of optimization old and developments of new features given software it is very convenient in use at management of the data processing centers (DPC) and ensuring continuity of business processes.

Virtuozzo Containers differs from the traditional systems of hardware virtualization in the fact that performs dynamic splitting one copy of OS Windows or Linux into highly effective and scalable virtual environments or "containers".

Thanks to Virtuozzo the initial capacity of the physical server when splitting into virtual containers is provided. Software can be used with the annexes critical to the volume of computing resources, for example, with Microsoft SQL Server databases and Oracle for which other systems of virtualization because of high overheads and performance penalty are not suitable.

Besides, Virtuozzo provides density three times big, than other solutions thanks to what DPCs can maximize quantity of virtual containers on one physical server. Actually Virtuozzo is the only system of virtualization which allows tens and hundreds of containers to receive instantly and automatically access to use of resources of a hardware platform that results in exclusive efficiency of DPC as in terms of administrative costs, an investment payback, and energy consumption.

In addition to a possibility of increase in capacity of servers, IT administrators can also reduce a problem of growth of hardware infrastructure in DPC thanks to Virtuozzo.

2015

OpenStack supports Parallels Cloud Server

On March 11, 2015 the Parallels company announced the beginning of official support of the solution of server virtualization of Parallels Cloud Server by community OpenStack (Kilo release).

Official recognition serves as some kind of guarantee that the service providers using OpenStack as the platform for creation of the cloud infrastructure can unroll at themselves Parallels Cloud Server, and these are more than 150 companies - participants of development of the global project open source.

Approval of PCS for OpenStack will provide users of community with unique functionality for the products of server virtualization supported by this platform.

For March 11, 2015 in OpenStack the Parallels Cloud Server components are officially supported:

• Parallels Containers
• Parallels Hypervisor.

Using the Parallels Automation platform it is possible to develop and manage the "clouds" started using Mirantis OpenStack.

"We closely work year together with Parallels on process of deployment of services on the basis of OpenStack using a packet of Mirantis OpenStack APS Package for the Parallels Automation platform, - Boris Rensky, the co-founder and the marketing director of Mirantis company noted. - The OpenStack platform helps to create the future of the software. Thanks to it service providers have more freedom now: she guarantees that their clients can develop and manage the clouds let in Mirantis OpenStack with ease and high efficiency".

Virtuozzo Containers opens the code

On April 27, 2015 the Parallels company announced change of the status of a system - it becomes open source solution and the beginning of its development also openly. The purposes – to simplify to users of the open version of OpenVZ transition to the commercial version of Virtuozzo and to open for everyone a possibility of joint project development of virtualization.

Till April 27, 2015 the company developed both projects of server virtualization – open (OpenVZ) and proprietary (Virtuozzo) – in parallel: different development teams worked on them. The open version was not compatible to commercial, had the functionality which is cut down in comparison with it and performance, however, around it the active open community of users and developers was created.

The company made the decision to turn this community into the full-fledged project participant and at the expense of it to get rid of double work when developing the components operating in a user space. In the new version of Virtuozzo the compatibility issue of the opened and closed versions will be completely solved. Users of open OpenVZ will have an opportunity of simple updating to the commercial version (for what it was required to buy the separate product Virtuozzo earlier) with qualitatively tested code and additional opportunities and functions, including technical support.

"Often our potential buyers at first look Virtuozzo at the open project and even begin to start on it commercial services. Having reached a certain understanding, they decide to upgrade to the commercial version and face that updating with OpenVZ on Virtuozzo is inconvenient, and sometimes transition to it is even more difficult, than from other commercial solutions of virtualization, – Alexey Kobets, the vice president of department of server virtualization of Virtuozzo business division noted. - In view of requests of clients and interest in ours technologies from community, we decided to open development process and a part of the Virtuozzo components, providing access to their source code. This step will allow all, interested in our technologies, to freely use them and to take part in development of the new version of Virtuozzo".

At the first stage Virtuozzo opens for joint developments the source code of the modified kernel of Linux 3.10 based on a packet with a core from RHEL7 and including additional patches for ensuring container virtualization. The updated and simplified GIT repository in which the company will conduct further development is open, and the public access to the internal mailing list in which discussion of the developments of the company connected with Linux kernel is conducted is provided. The last will allow enthusiasts to monitor quickly all trends in development and to be in it directly involved.

The next step planned in this process - opening of the source code of the user utilities for work with containers, creations of templates, etc., access to a new control system over errors (now both projects use for this purpose different tools).

2014

Parallels created more than one million virtual containers

On November 7, 2014 the Parallels company announced more than one million virtual containers unrolled on physical servers with the participation of the Parallels Cloud Server and Prallels Virtuozzo Containers systems creation.

According to developers, at lease of the corporate Web server in a cloud, in 99% of cases for data protection and providing services to consumers containers will be used. Containers support different scenarios of use: from personal Web servers to crucial environments for business support.

2013

Development joint from the IBS solution based on Parallels Virtuozzo Containers

In March, 2013 IBS and Parallels announced joint development of replicated solution for creation of corporate systems of virtual work places (VDI – Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) which IBS is going to advance in projects in the Russian public sector and the corporate sector.

The solution will include already existing platform of container virtualization Parallels Virtuozzo Containers finished under application in similar projects for Windows and the solution Parallels Virtual Automation. The new component - Parallels Connection Broker which is responsible for management of virtual desktops (creation, setup, etc.) and processing requests of users for receiving desktops will become a part of the solution also.

Will invest in joint development of the company in total $1.2 million in equal shares and both will acquire intellectual property rights for the created solution.