Doing IT Virtual

Microsoft Windows Server Virtualization (WSV) Community Technology Preview (CTP) is now included in the Windows Server 2008 Release Candidate 0 (RC0) release!  If you want to learn more about the Windows Server 2008 RC0 release, you can read this press release.

If you are participating in the Windows Server 2008 beta program, you can get the download now from the Microsoft Connect site. If not, then start checking the public Windows Server 2008 download site to get your hands on the WSV CTP, as it will be posted very soon. If you want to learn more about Microsoft WSV, you can also check out this Channel 9 video in which Jeff Woolsey, Sr. Program Manager in the Windows Server Virtualization team, explains the WSV Hypervisor.

In contrast to Virtual Server 2005 R2 which runs above an operating system, WSV is a Hypervisor solution because it loads and runs directly above the hardware level. This implementation is also commonly referred to as a “bare metal virtualization.”

Although you can download both x86 and x64 versions of Windows Server 2008, you will need a server with a 64-bit Intel VT or AMD-V hardware architecture to run WSV. Intel VT and AMD-V add two new processor modes which are needed by WSV: one for execution of the Hypervisor, which now moves to a new ring (sometimes referred to as Ring -1), and another mode for execution of the guest operating system, which is now fully in Ring 0.

John Howard, another Sr. Program Manager in the Windows Server Virtualization team, provides a quick look at how to install WSV.

Ready, Set, Test!