Red Hat Announces Embedded Virtualization ProductRed Hat Announces Embedded Virtualization Product

Linux developer Red Hat announced that it's developing a Linux-based hypervisor for a fully open-source virtualization solution.The Embedded Linux Hypervisor will supposedly host both Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Microsoft Windows operating systems but be compact enough to fit on a flash drive. "This is the first Linux-based, fully open-source hypervisor," said Paul Cormier, president of products and technology at Red Hat. "This is the next-generation operating system."

The new hypervisor is based on the Linux KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) project, while the company's existing virtualization strategy has been based on the open-source Xen, now a Citrix product. Red Hat Enterprise Linux, for example, already integrates Xen virtualization. Red Hat executives said the company intends to maintain both technologies going forward.

The product is now in beta and can be downloaded from the oVirt Web site. No announcement has been made as to shipping date or method.CNET News, The Register