[ncolug] VM
- From: "Larry D" <larry@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: ncolug@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2006 14:22:48 -0400 (EDT)
VMware and Xen clash over Linux virtualization patch
Kernel quarrel proves that you don't have to be proprietary to be petty
By Neil McAllister
August 07, 2006
Things don't always go smoothly when you try to mix the world of open
source with the world of proprietary commercial software. Sometimes those
worlds collide. All too often, proprietary vendors are all too willing to
ride roughshod over open source to further their own interests. And then
again, sometimes it works the other way around.
Case in point: the current hubbub over virtualization support in the Linux
kernel. Virtual servers are all the rage, and the current technology
darling in the Linux world is a project called Xen, an open source
hypervisor that lets you run multiple instances of Linux on a single
machine. Support for Xen is a much-touted feature of Novell's new Suse
Linux Enterprise Server 10. But not every vendor is so bullish.
According to an executive at Novell rival Red Hat, Xen is "not ready for
the enterprise" -- so don't expect to see it in Red Hat Enterprise Linux
anytime soon. Meanwhile, Xen's efforts to further integrate into the Linux
kernel have run into opposition from a predictable source: proprietary
virtualization software leader VMware.
It seems VMware has been working on a hypervisor-based virtualization
technology, similar to Xen's, for an upcoming release of its commercial
virtualization product line. Like Xen, VMware's technology will work
better on Linux if the Linux kernel gives it a little help and so, like
Xen, VMware has been submitting long lists of patches to the kernel
developers for review and possible inclusion in the kernel. And wouldn't
you know it, the Xen group's patches and VMware's patches are totally
incompatible with each other.
Both approaches will work. Both groups have an established history with
Linux kernel development. And so, only naturally, the kernel developers
prefer not to take sides. They're not going to accept either set of
patches until VMware and Xen hash out their differences and come to a
compromise -- something that, so far, neither seems willing to do.
All this squabbling is bad for business, of course, especially for vendors
such as Red Hat that are waiting for Xen to mature before they green-light
it for enterprise use. In fact, Oracle is "losing patience" with the
situation, according to one executive, and may start putting pressure on
the various players to step up negotiations.
Isn't that always the way? Perfectly good open source projects are minding
their own business, when all of a sudden a proprietary software vendor
such as VMware comes along and spoils it for everybody. Then even bigger
proprietary companies step in and start pushing everyone around, and the
whole thing's a mess.
But hold on. Not everything is as it seems here.
As it turns out, VMware's proposal to the Linux kernel developers is not
proprietary software at all. It's a fully open standard called VMI
(Virtual Machine Interface) that provides a generic interface that can
support multiple forms of hypervisor-based virtualization -- including,
potentially, Xen.
The Xen developers' proposal, on the other hand, is 100 percent specific
to Xen -- so much so that it's completely unsuitable for VMware's needs
(or those of anyone else who might come along). Xen could do things
VMware's way, but its developers prefer not to. Period.
Ironic, isn't it? Xen is open source, but it is VMware's proposal that
best matches the spirit of open source software. Meanwhile, XenSource, a
key sponsor of the Xen project, has been busy inking a deal with Microsoft
to run Xen on Windows, even as it resists negotiations over its Linux
kernel interface. Et tu, Brute?
It just goes to show, there's more to open source than source code. The
spirit of participation and collaboration is what lends open source its
strength, and what makes it a win for customers. Commercial software
vendors can have that spirit too; and just because your code is open
doesn't automatically make you the good guy.
--
"Life is too short, to spend it waiting for slow hardware to do
something..." -Dev
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