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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The Second Level Domain or SLD is essential to the hierarchical Domain Name System. It is the second part of the full domain name after the Top Level Domain, on its left side. The Second Level Domain is often the same as the website name, the company, or the individual that registered it. There aren’t any restrictions on the registration of SLDs. You may choose any Second Level Domain for your website address and register it (unless somebody else already uses that domain). For example, in www.yourbrand.com there are three domain name levels: the first, the Top Level Domain is the .com part, the Second Level Domain is .yourbrand and the Domain on the third level is the www segment.

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The Top Level Domain name (TLD) is the last or right-most fragment of the domain name. The parts of the domain name are separated with dots and form their own hierarchy in the Domain Name System (DNS). There is a Top-Leveл Domain list where you can see all available TLDs: they are about 300 predefined TLDs that serve different purposes. The Second Level Domains are basically website names and brands. You can come up with any Second Level Domain (SLD) name for a certain TLD for your site and you can register it (unless someone else already had registered that domain). For example in www.zettahost.comthere are three domain name levels: the first, Top Level Domain is the .compart, the Second Level Domain is .zettahost – the website name and the Third Level Domain is the www part. The TLDs are managed by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).

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What is IANA? Although the Internet is not really a centralized system, there are some key infrastructure elements that need to be coordinated. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) is an organization that was founded in 1988 by the government of the U.S.A. but is now under the management of ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers). IANA is an essential ICANN department that is responsible for the allocation of domains and IP addresses, but also for the technical maintenance for some of Internet’s most important structures and rules that must be internationally coordinated.

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What is ICANN? ICANN is an abbreviation from Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. It is the non-profit organization that’s responsible for the assignment and coordination of unique Internet addresses and names for all devices connected to the Internet, which enables them to communicate with each other. ICANN has a crucial role in the development of the Internet policy as it defines the rules for assigning domain names and IPs as well. The ICANN authorizes the usage of new generic Top-Level Domains.

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Domain parking refers to the process of buying a domain name, but still not using it – the period before the website is uploaded or after the domain expired and the website’s been deleted and there’s no content on that address, only one blank or a placeholder page. This mostly occurs when you buy a new domain, but you still haven’t developed and uploaded the website itself. So, when users type your site address in the browser, they will see only one page that’s not actually a part of your site and that simply displays a temporary message about your website’s status or it’s an advertising page.

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WHOIS is an international database that contains information about every registered domain name. The WHOIS data is required by the ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) that coordinates all IP addresses and Top Level Domains globally. The domain WHOIS data includes registrar, IP address, name, email, phone, name servers, date of domain registration and expiration, etc. This information is public in order to facilitate the confirmation of ownership and the status of the domain, to build trust in users, fight fraud or assist authorities for legal investigations, but could also be a threat to anonymity and free speech. WHOIS is also the type of communication protocol that stores and delivers data from the publicly accessible WHOIS databases storing information for all machines and users connected to the Internet.

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One of the most important issues you should deal with when you launch your website is security and reliability. It’s recommended that you have different passwords for all your accounts and use anti-spam and anti-virus software for your domains and email. You could also secure your customers’ transactions with SSL. However, there are some features necessary for the management of all domain names that are free and usually accessible to the user. The Registrar Lock is one of these essential security features that every domain owner should be able to manage.

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EPP Key stands for Extensible Provisioning Protocol which is a code consisting of numbers. It’s required in order to transfer a domain from one registrar to another. The EPP Code is also known as the Authorization Code or Transfer Secret Key. The EPP key is created by your current registrar and checked through the global registries for validity. EPP keys are security codes required by the registrar when you transfer domains. They are unique for every domain. No two EPP keys are similar and if you are transferring several domains, you’ll need to get an EPP key for each of them. The EPP key serves as one of the security measures that protect your domain from being transferred illegally. If someone else besides your registrar requires your EPP Code, make sure it’s not for a fraudulent purpose.

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The domain name transfer is the process of moving your domain name from one domain registrar to another. It is usually a free and easy process and your domain doesn’t have to change in any way, you simply switch the registrars. However, some registrars might have fees for allowing you to transfer your domain to another company.

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