Linux Foundation To Support The Development Of KVM Hypervisor

The Linux Foundation has adopted Open Virtualization Alliance (OVA) as one of its ‘Collaborative Projects’, to promote the development of  the open source hypervisor KVM (kernel-based virtual machine).

OVA was founded in 2011 by Red Hat and IBM to advance the alternative to proprietary virtualization technologies through increased marketing, education and advocacy, and already includes participation of more than 250 companies. One of the criteria for joining the Alliance is to produce or use a product or service that is based on KVM.

“By moving to the Linux Foundation as a Collaborative Project, OVA will gain expertise and an extended network that will benefit KVM for the long run,” commented Al Gillen, vice president of system software at IDC.

The announcement was made at the annual LinuxCon Europe event in Edinburgh.

Open relationship

KVM is a complete, open virtualisation solution for x86 hardware which supports all major operating systems including Linux and Windows. It converts the Linux kernel into a bare metal hypervisor and incorporates several security features of the open source OS. Analysis by OVA suggests that KVM can be 60-90 percent less expensive than other solutions, while offering the same core functionality and outperforming VMware in several benchmarks.

Since being developed in 2008 by Avi Kivity, a programmer at Qumranet, the open source hypervisor has become one of the fastest-growing virtualization technologies, with 50 percent growth in deployments in 2012, according to IDC. Seeing the value of KVM, Red Hat quickly snapped up Qumranet in 2008

The OVA is not a formal standards body and does not influence upstream development, but encourages interoperability and the creation of common interfaces and APIs to ease the adoption of KVM for users.

The Linux Foundation has extensive experience in remaining neutral while fostering cross-company collaboration, and is a “natural fit” for OVA, according to its board chair Chuck Dubuque.

“While hosting code and providing open source governance best practices is a big part of what we offer, we’re also happy to provide guidance to organizations that want to reduce operating costs, maximize promotional reach and increase participation among diverse stakeholders,” said Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux Foundation. “The Open Virtualization Alliance is a natural addition to our Collaborative Projects and we’re very happy to support all virtualisation technologies that help advance Linux.”

Any organisation that uses KVM can join OVA, by filling in a short application form on the website.

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