What Is Virtualization?

The virtualization market is undergoing a significant shift. Many enterprises are reevaluating their long-standing infrastructure choices as licensing models evolve and operational costs climb. Today, IT leaders are moving away from restrictive, high-cost proprietary suites in favor of architectures that offer more flexibility and better alignment with modern, cloud native goals.

When auditing your current environment, consider these three primary drivers for change:

• Rising infrastructure costs. Unpredictable pricing structures and mandatory bundling are forcing a rethink of traditional budgets. Strategic IT leaders are now looking for ways of reducing virtualization costs by adopting more transparent, value-based models.
• The need for unified management. Maintaining separate silos for virtual machines (VMs) and containers creates unnecessary complexity. The goal for modern platform engineering is a single, consistent stack that manages both legacy workloads and new microservices side by side.
• Open source momentum. Modern virtualization is increasingly built on a foundation of community-driven innovation. Open source technologies provide the vendor neutrality and transparency required to avoid future lock-in, ensuring your stack remains adaptable to changing business needs.

This transition is not just about migration; it is about incremental modernization. By choosing an open, platform-led approach, you can maintain operational consistency while positioning your organization to thrive in a hybrid IT environment.

Types of virtualization

There are five main different types of virtualization which all have their own use cases and benefits: 

• Server virtualization - Server virtualization involves dividing one physical server into multiple virtual machines, each with its own operating system and applications.
• Network virtualization - Network virtualization lets you run multiple virtual networks on one physical network.
• Desktop virtualization - Desktop virtualization lets you access different desktop operating systems through virtual machines.
• Storage virtualization - Storage virtualization combines different physical storage devices, such as NAS and SAN, into a single virtual unit.
• Application virtualization - Application virtualization is the separation of computer programs from the underlying operating systems they run on.

Key concepts in virtualization

Understanding the core components of a virtualized environment is essential for building a scalable and resilient hybrid IT infrastructure.

What is a hypervisor?

A hypervisor or virtual machine monitor, is a software layer that creates and runs virtual machines. It abstracts guest operating systems from the underlying physical hardware to ensure efficient resource distribution. This allows multiple independent workloads to share a single physical server securely.

What is a Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM)?

A Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) is virtualization technology built into the Linux kernel. KVM allows the Linux kernel to function as a hypervisor, enabling the creation and management of VMs. It supports multiple operating systems, including Linux and Windows. KVM is widely recognized for its high performance, security, and enterprise grade reliability.

What is Hyperconverged Infrastructure (HCI)?

Hyperconverged Infrastructure (HCI) combines compute, storage, and networking into a single, software-defined system. This architecture replaces legacy hardware silos with a unified pool of resources managed through a single interface. HCI simplifies scaling and reduces the operational overhead of modern data centers.

SUSE is a leading provider of comprehensive virtualization solutions. With a focus on scalability, compatibility, and comprehensive support, SUSE’s platforms empower organizations to integrate virtualization seamlessly, enhance productivity and achieve their strategic goals.

SUSE Virtualization, formerly known as Harvester, is the leading cloud native virtualization platform for managing VMs and containers. It features a 100% open source foundation to prevent single vendor-lock-in while leveraging enterprise-standard technologies including SUSE Linux and kernel-based VMs. 

Learn more about how SUSE Virtualization can delivers seamless lift-and-shift transformations at your pace.

Many organizations have successfully partnered with SUSE to drive their virtualization initiatives. These success stories highlight the impact of SUSE’s solutions on enhancing efficiency, improving customer experiences and achieving strategic goals.

BMW: creating a continuum between cloud and edge

BMW uses SUSE Virtualization and Rancher Prime to create a seamless integration between cloud and edge. As a result, the German luxury automobile company ensures precision, agility, and innovation in its production lines.

ECKD reforming church and charity IT

A leading IT service provider for churches and charities in Germany, ECKD GmbH uses SUSE technologies to drive digital transformation and enhance IT operations.

What is the difference between virtualization and cloud computing?

Virtualization is the technology that creates multiple simulated environments from a single physical hardware resource. It relies on virtualization software to partition resources. Cloud computing is a service model that delivers these virtualized resources over a network. While virtualization is the functional "engine," cloud computing is the "delivery vehicle" providing automated, on-demand access to those resources.

Is open source virtualization enterprise-ready?

Yes. Open source virtualization powers many of the world's largest data centers and public clouds. Technologies like KVM provide the performance, security, and scalability required for mission-critical workloads. Choosing an open source foundation ensures vendor neutrality and prevents the restrictive licensing common in proprietary stacks.

What is cloud native virtualization?

Cloud native virtualization allows you to run traditional VMs inside a Kubernetes environment. This approach unifies management by treating VMs and containers as part of the same orchestration layer. Using HCI and Kubernetes together enables you to modernize legacy applications incrementally without managing separate, siloed infrastructures.

How do organizations reduce virtualization costs?

Many organizations reduce costs by moving away from expensive, bundled proprietary licenses. By adopting open, platform-led solutions, you pay for the value and support you need rather than forced features. Consolidating VM and container management also lowers operational overhead and simplifies hardware requirements.