MyDreams Hosting offers highly performant VPS servers using full hardware virtualization with KVM, as well as cost-effective VPS servers using container-based virtualization with OpenVZ. This brief article provides an overview of both technologies.
When to Use KVM Virtualization:
KVM virtualization is designed for demanding customers who need complete control over their virtual environment. The virtualized operating system requires no modifications, and users have full access to virtual hardware. This allows them to modify the kernel, load modules, and more. KVM is known for its high stability, security, and performance. The overhead of KVM technology is typically in the single digits of percent. It supports virtual servers with substantial system resources, including virtual machines with numerous processors, hundreds of GBs of RAM, and very large disks. KVM is suitable for running demanding applications (e.g., LAMP, Terminal Server, Forex, ISPconfig, Webmin, game servers, web hosting, etc.). It supports virtually all commonly used operating systems, including MS Windows 2003, 2008, 2012, most GNU/Linux distributions, and also UNIX operating systems.
When to Use OpenVZ Virtualization:
OpenVZ container virtualization is ideal for customers who need quick deployment of a virtual server and are satisfied with a lower amount of system resources with the option to expand. Typically, this includes startups, student projects, and non-profit projects where cost is a significant factor. Technically, OpenVZ can run virtually everything that a standard Linux server can (except applications that directly access hardware). It supports a wide range of GNU/Linux distributions (CentOS, Debian, Ubuntu, etc.). However, MS Windows is not supported.