VirtualBox 3.1 with Improved Management.
Ever since Sun bought the virtualization smith Innotek in 2008, the development of its VirtualBox has taken giant strides.
Although VirtualBox 3.1 is designated a minor release, the changelog shows some important updates in snapshot management apart from numerous bugfixes. The new release also allows migrating a live VM session from host to host.
Sun has been satisfying what looks to be the steady growth of users with almost monthly versions of VirtualBox. Whereas the changes to the last major release 3.0 update were less than spectacular, the current version provides some important and for users quite sensible new features. The snapshot function saw some especially fundamental revisions. Any previous snapshot can now be restored to be the current VM state and new snapshots can be branched from existing ones.
Live migration is a new feature, called teleportation, in VirtualBox that is based more on business requirements. It allows porting a VM session on a running basis from host to host.
Sun also reports a performance improvement for PAE and AMD64 guests in the changelog. Network performance underwent some changes as well. It's now possible to adjust network settings for the VM while it's running and the implemented NAT can act as a DNS proxy.
The free VirtualBox software under a personal use and evaluation license is available for download as packages for Linux distros in addition to Windows and Mac OS X. Sun also provides the source code for VirtualBox OSE, the open source edition under GPLv2 license.
Issue 41: Linux Shell Handbook 2021 Edition/Special Editions
Buy this issue as a PDF
News
-
GNOME 40 is Now Available on openSUSE
The rolling release edition of openSUSE, Tumbleweed, now offers the latest version of the GNOME desktop.
-
Apple M1 Hardware Support to be Merged into Linux Kernel 5.13
Linux users will be able to install their favorite distribution on Apple’s M1-based hardware.
-
KDE Launches the Qt 5 Patch Collection
To support and maintain a stable Qt 5 for KDE Gears and Frameworks, KDE will maintain a patch collection.
-
Linux Creator Warns Next Kernel Could be Delayed
Linus Torvalds has issued concern about the size of kernel 5.12 and possible delays for its release.
-
System76 Updates its Pangolin Laptop
System76 has released a much-anticipated AMD version of their most popular laptop, the Pangolin.
-
New Debian-Based Distribution Arrives on the Market
TelOS is a new Debian-based Linux distribution with a customized, touch-screen-ready KDE Plasma 5 desktop.
-
System76 Releases New Thelio Desktop
One of the most ardent supporters of open source hardware has released a new desktop machine for home or office.
-
Mageia 8 Now Available with Linux 5.10 LTS
The latest release of Mageia includes improved graphics support for both AMD and NVIDIA GPUs.
-
GNOME 40 Beta has been Released
Anyone looking to test the beta for the upcoming GNOME 40 release can now do so.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 4.2 has Arrived
The latest stable version of OpenMandriva has been released and offers the newest KDE desktop and ARM support.