What you need to know:

KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is a virtualization technology that is free, open-source, and available in most modern Linux distributions. Thanks to it, you can create and run Linux and Windows-based virtual machines that are independent of one another and each comes with virtualized hardware like network cards, graphic cards, disk storage, and more. All that’s needed is a Linux distribution that supports KVM and a CPU that has virtualization extensions (Intel VT or AMD-V). The downside of using KVM is that it’s not available in Windows as it is bundled with the Linux kernel. Also, its centralized hardware approach may result in downtime for the virtual machines in case the host computer experiences a malfunction.

Virtual machines (VMs) allow you to run virtualized computers as regular programs within your physical computer. There are different software solutions for creating and running VMs. In this guide, we’ll focus on KVM and explore its capabilities.

Table of Contents:

• What Is KVM?
• KVM Advantages
• KVM Disadvantages
• Use Cases
• Conclusion

What Is KVM?

KVM, which stands for Kernel-based Virtual Machine, is a full-featured virtualization software that has been part of the Linux kernel since early 2007. Thanks to KVM, you can create, manage, and run virtual machines that are based on Linux and Windows. All that you need is a host computer running Linux with KVM and a CPU that supports virtualization (Intel VT or AMD-V).

What Is a Virtual Machine?

A Virtual Machine (VM) is a sophisticated computer process that emulates the operation of an entire physical computer. In other words, a VM has its own virtualized components like a graphics card, a network card, a sound card, storage, etc, and runs an operating system like Windows and Linux. A single physical computer can run multiple VMs at a time and you can interact with those VMs in the same way you would interact with a regular computer. You can learn more by reading our article on virtual machines.

KVM Advantages

There are many reasons to choose KVM over other virtualization solutions. Below, we’ll outline the most notable ones:

• KVM is free, open-source, and ships with most modern Linux distributions.
• KVM offers live migrations. In other words, a virtual machine can be moved from one physical computer to another without having to shut it down.
• KVM provides a single hardware platform for all guest systems. This ensures that no driver conflicts will occur.
• KVM supports snapshots for its VMs.
• KVM is 15 years old. This means that it is an established technology that has no major bugs or issues.
• The resources for each VM can be scaled in real-time, enabling complete flexibility.
• KVM supports automated administration through libvirt.

KVM Disadvantages

KVM also has a few notable drawbacks:

• Since KVM is bundled with the Linux kernel, you need to have a Linux distribution as your host OS.
• KVM’s hardware strategy is to have a single physical computer power one or more virtual machines. The downside here is that if the physical computer experiences a malfunction, all of its VMs will go down.

Use Cases

Since KVM comes bundled with Linux, the virtualization technology is popular in places where Linux is used. Two such cases are software development and web hosting.

Software developers often use KVM to test their products in different environments. Hosting companies, on the other hand, can leverage KVM to create comprehensive server systems.

Here at ZETTAHOST.com, we use KVM as the backbone for the various Virtual Private Server packages that we offer. So, whenever you purchase a VPS plan from us, it will be powered and managed by KVM.

Conclusion

Using KVM, or virtualization technology in general, is a great way to fully utilize the processing power of your computer while also neatly separating every type of service in its own environment. This affords you the stability you would get if every service was run by an independent computer but without the extra hardware and financial investment.

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Spam is a big problem for email today. One of the simplest ways to fight it is using spam filters that can detect and block malicious email messages. Among the most effective anti-spam software programs is SpamAssassin. It’s an open-source email spam filter written in Perl and compatible with most systems. SpamAssassin is a customizable software that easily detects spam messages based on content-matching rules, using spam databases, text-analyzing, and Bayesian filtering. SpamAssassin can be easily extended and improved because it actually learns more about spam from the information you give it.

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MX Record or Mail Exchanger Record is set in the Domain Name System to the point where the emails for a certain domain name should be delivered. This means that when somebody sends an email to your domain, the MX records determine to which server the email will be delivered, stored, and then retrieved by you. You can create more than one MX record pointing to other servers (usually backup servers) to make sure that your emails will be received if one of the servers fails. In this case, one domain uses multiple email servers, which secure your email messages while providing better and faster email delivery. MX records are always required when an email is sent over the Internet and they are pre-configured when you register your domain.

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TXT (Text) records are part of the Domain Name System and they may include human-readable and machine-readable text. The TXT records could have different functions and contain any kind of text. However, TXT is often used to authenticate that you are the owner of your domain and to protect your email address from spam and various forms of infringement. The company from which you got your domain holds your TXT records and for access to them, you need their assistance. For that reason, you must make sure that your domain name provider allows access to the TXT records.

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SPF (Sender Policy Framework) is an open standard that validates your email address. The SPF record is one of the DNS records storing information or regulating the functions of your domain names. SPF is used mainly to prevent email SPAM which comes primarily from forged addresses. That is why mail services use SPF records to check if an email is sent from the mail servers hosting your domain. In an email sent without SPF defined you could write that you send the message from any domain. That is why most email systems don’t accept messages without SPF records or treat them as SPAM. Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, AOL, and others require your SPF record and without it, you can’t send emails to their networks. For that reason, you’d better make sure that the email and web hosting services you are using allow the setting of SPF records.

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The webmail gives you web-based access to your email accounts. Most email providers have webmail, which is easily accessible via any browser. For that purpose, they build user-friendly websites where their services are quickly accessible. Popular providers of web-based email services are Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo Mail. Unless you want to use an email client you will often need access to webmail services. Web hosting providers also offer email capabilities, so you can send and receive messages at the email address of your website – your own email that is very important for the credibility of your brand.

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The email account is a crucial part of your website, as email is the simplest and most convenient way to communicate with your customers. There are many available tools and options that will facilitate and enhance the way you manage your emails. The usage of the Catch-All email feature is important for your business because any email sent to any mailbox (not existing or incorrect) on your domain name is received at one single mailbox that you have selected. This guarantees that you will not miss any messages that could be of significance.

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Everyone hates email SPAM and there are numerous ways of dealing with it, some of them are relatively efficient, but most of them are not. One of the ways to get rid of SPAM is to use email filters. SPAM filters are simply set up, but when you choose filtering software it’s always better to have filters that are more flexible and of course – compatible with the email software and services that you are using. What the SPAM filter should do is to detect and block, delete or remove spam messages to your SPAM folder.

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The mailing list is one of the essential email features that simplify your work, education or email marketing projects by enabling you to easily send identical email messages to groups of your contacts simultaneously. This option lets you create a list of multiple email addresses that you can write to by sending an email to a single address – that of the mailing list (also known as a reflector), which sends copies of the email to the addresses from the list. So, if you frequently need to send uniform emails like newsletters, notifications, and others to lots of users, you’d better save yourself time and use mailing lists.

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SPAM and viruses are the two evils of all email systems. Everyone hates mailboxes crammed with SPAM messages and getting a virus on any computer is commonly done via the user’s email account. That is why it’s so important to have a reliable email anti-virus protection service that can block threatening emails from going into your email account. Email antivirus protection systems scan all incoming and outgoing messages and attached files, thus protecting your email account and computer, as well as the email servers from getting infected.

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