Virtualization

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In computing, virtualization is a broad term that refers to the abstraction of computer resources:

• Platform virtualization, which separates an operating system from the underlying platform resources^{[citation needed]}
  • Full virtualization
  • Hardware-assisted virtualization
  • Partial virtualization
  • Paravirtualization
  • Operating system-level virtualization
  • Hosted environment^{[citation needed]} (e.g. User-mode Linux)

• Resource virtualization, the virtualization of specific system resources, such as storage volumes, name spaces, and network resources
  • Encapsulation, the hiding of resource complexity by the creation of a simplified interface
  • Virtual memory, which allows uniform, contiguous addressing of physically separate and non-contiguous memory and disk areas
  • Storage virtualization, the process of completely abstracting logical storage from physical storage
    • RAID - redundant array of independent disks
    • Disk partitioning, is the splitting of a single resource (usually large), such as disk space or network bandwidth, into a number of smaller, more easily utilized resources of the same type
    • Logical volume management, which combines many disks into one large pool and then divides it into logical disks.
  • Network virtualization, creation of a virtualized network addressing space within or across network subnets
  • Channel bonding, the use multiple links combined to work as though they offered a single, higher-bandwidth link

• Computer clusters and grid computing, the combination of multiple discrete computers into larger metacomputers

• Application virtualization, the hosting of individual applications on alien hardware/software
  • Portable application
  • Cross-platform virtualization
  • Emulation or simulation

• Virtualization Development, further work in this area

• Desktop virtualization, the remote manipulation of a computer desktop

Virtualization can also refer to:

• a fictional use of this term, in Scanners (Code Lyoko)

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