What do you use VMs for at home?

[parityboy]

Currently running Mint 13 KDE as the host OS, with VirtualBox 4.x for desktop virtualisation.

VM-1: pfSense for DNS and DHCP duty
VM-2: Mint 13 KDE (torrenting & NZBs)
VM-3: Windows 7 Ultimate (Newsleecher)
VM-4: Ubuntu Server 12.04 LTS (software testing)

 

[paret0]

Have been using ESXI/XenServer/Hyper-V in production environments for a few years. I've juggled back and forth between HV for home use but I'm currently using XCP 1.6 + XenCenter 6.1.

It provides 95-100% of the XenServer Platinum's features at none of the cost. For those that don't know, XCP is derived from the Xen Hypervisor just like Citrix's XenServer and a few other solutions out there. It offers a much greater feature set compared to, imo, both Citrix and VMWare's Free Licenses.

I'm running a few linux boxes currently, one file server, one web server and bunch of play around / destroy rebuild VM. I'm limited with what I can really do by my X6, I plan on upgrading at some point to either a Xeon E3/E5 setup.

Sorry for the necro, but this threads fun!

Have you looked at OVM? How do you think it compares with XCP?

 

[TheBlueChanell]

Have you looked at OVM? How do you think it compares with XCP?

I'm aware of the product but don't have any first hand experience with it. I don't believe it uses XAPI, which is common between XCP and Citrix's XenServer allowing me to use XenCenter. XCP 1.6 is basically a feature complete version of XS 6.1 without the cost, this configuration wasn't plausible until recently. It's to my understanding as well that future releases of XCP will coincide with Citrix's releases before there was a huge lag at the start of the XCP Porject.

Sorry I can't shed anymore light on Oracle VM.

 

[paret0]

I'm aware of the product but don't have any first hand experience with it. I don't believe it uses XAPI, which is common between XCP and Citrix's XenServer allowing me to use XenCenter. XCP 1.6 is basically a feature complete version of XS 6.1 without the cost, this configuration wasn't plausible until recently. It's to my understanding as well that future releases of XCP will coincide with Citrix's releases before there was a huge lag at the start of the XCP Porject.

Sorry I can't shed anymore light on Oracle VM.

Thanks for what you do know!

The Windows requirement for XenCenter has put me off it more than once, since I have to make a special effort to fire up a bare metal Windows box. I keep waiting on a roundtuit.

 

[TheBlueChanell]

Thanks for what you do know!

The Windows requirement for XenCenter has put me off it more than once, since I have to make a special effort to fire up a bare metal Windows box. I keep waiting on a roundtuit.

There are some web based UI's that work with XAPI. I'm not sure how good they are based on first hand experience but based on what I read some of them were pretty good. Check source forge.

 

[saranya]

Planned (after some stability testing of new box, home use):

Hypervisor: ESXI 5.1.0b

VM1: pfSense, Router/Firewall
VM2: Server 2012 Datacenter, AD/DNS
VM3: Server 2012 Standard, AD Backup
VM4: Server 2012 Standard, vCenter Server
VM5: Server 2012 Essentials, Fileserve/Backup/Flexraid
VM6: MS System Center 2012, Security, AV
VM7: Windows 7 (1), Plex media server, PS3 Media server
VM8: Windows 7 (2), Torrent, Usenet, Sabnzbd +FTP
VM9: Windows 7 (3), Sickbeard
VM10: Windows 7 (4), Isolation Testing
VM11: Windows 7 (5), Backup, maybe
VM12: Ubuntu, Optional for Plex Media server

 

[koolaidkitten]

ESX 5.1
======
Server 2008 - Active Directory / DC++ Hub Server / Ventrilo Server
Server 2008 - FileServer /EMIT streaming media / PS3 MediaServer / Torrenting / DC++ Client
Server 2003 - Security Camera Server *I have a couple IP security cameras*
Server 2008 - Game Server (Counterstrike Left4Dead etc)
PFSense - Router/Firewall/VPN
Test - Test out various Linux Distros

 

[fantabulous]

Nothing outlandish, just KVM on my desktop (sometimes with VT-d).

The only permanent VMs currently are Windows 8 and Ubuntu 12.04 guests for Steam.

 

[schizrade]

I had some PE1950's and a r710 at home... but I sold them cause I have a dev box (Precision T7600 128GB RAM, dual Hex Xeons, 4x 3TB Sata) at work, plus I want a life, and all that crap prevented me from having it. Hell I even sold my Desktop.

Meh.