Virtualization and Linux can be a match made in heaven, which is why enterprise Linux heavyweights Red Hat and Novell are pushing so hard to make support for virtualization a highlight of their respective mainstream Linux operating systems.
Also recognizing this potential—but pursuing a markedly different tack toward realizing it—is rPath, a company that offers IT organizations and the ISVs that serve them a clever new means of getting the most out of this technology tandem.
Virtualization products—such as those from VMware, Microsoft and the open-source Xen project—let administrators boost utilization and sidestep software conflicts by deploying applications in customized operating system environments.
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