Trying to DUMP Windows.... But

[Bart Silverstrim]

Derek Broughton wrote:
> Vincent Trouilliez wrote:
> 
>> To use virtual machines, there is mainly "VirtualBox" (free software),
>> and "VMware" (which is proprietary).
> 
> Not true.  I prefer VirtualBox, but vmware-server is Free (GPL, I believe)
> as is virtualbox-ose.  Anything beyond the barebones server, for either, is
> not open-source, but still generally free-as-in-beer.  Both companies are
> making their profits off the people who need commercial support for VM
> farms.

You're right, last I knew. They might have changed something, though.

Last I knew the bare-bones, wanna run on a system vmware server was free 
to use and worked like a champ (I stopped after the newest versions went 
to a crappy web interface for managing them, complete with a wonderful 
plugin that needed to add an extra step to using the web browser when 
*that* was upgraded). The converter util was also free to take a 
physical system and try turning it into a VM.

VMWare charged for their enterprise and business support stuff. I.e., 
managing clustering, dynamic migrations, system monitoring, installing 
their "operating system" setup where it boots to a dedicated VM server, 
actually getting their tech people to talk to you about issues, etc. I 
give kudos to the company for that attitude. For businesses that rely on 
virtualization, I'd not hesitate to seriously look at implementing 
VMWare for support and management tools if for no other reason than the 
good luck I've had running the free version.

For personal use, I've had very good luck with VirtualBox and don't 
hesitate to recommend that for most home user's needs. Server farms, 
vmware. light-duty, need for a couple applications or testing, virtualbox.

-Bart