Windows And Linux Users Get Another Great VM Option

Parallels, Inc. is a company best known for its Mac-based virtualization software. This week, however, it finally delivered an updated version of its Windows- and Linux-based products.Most Mac users know about Parallels Desktop for Mac, which allows them to run Windows or Linux VMs from within OS X. Yet the company also offered a similar, if somewhat dated, tool for Windows and Linux desktop systems, Parallels Workstation 2.2.

This week, for the first time in nearly three years, Parallels updated (and renamed) Workstation.2.2. The new release, dubbed Parallels Desktop 4 for Windows and Linux, offers some features that should make it very interesting to both personal and small-business PC users.

The most important change lies under the hood: The new version is based on the same virtualization engine used to Parallels' Mac virtualization software. According to Parallels, this change will enable Windows- and Linux-based VMs to run up to eight times faster than they did under Workstation.

(As one news article on the release points out, this change suggests -- accurately -- that Workstation wasn't exactly a speed demon. So the improvement is more a matter of delivering acceptable VM performance rather than some sort of quantum leap in virtualization technology.)

Parallels Desktop will also allow Windows and Linux users to make the most of high-end desktop hardware. The new product will create VMs that support up to eight CPU cores, making it suitable for use on mid-range Intel Xeon-based workstations, and up to 8GB of memory. As a result, the product should be suitable for use with VMs running resource-hungry desktop publishing, graphics, or Web development software.

Other major new features (according to Parallels, there are nearly 70 significant changes) include:

- Support for Parallels Transporter, a tool that can automatically convert either a physical OS or a third-party VM for use as a Desktop 4 VM.

- Compressor, a utility that basically does for virtual hard drives what a defrag tool does for physical drives.

- Image Tool, a utility for changing the size, type or properties of a virtual disk.

- Support for Windows VMs from Windows 2000 all the way to Windows 7 and for pretty much any Linux distro.

- Support for virtualization technology built into newer Intel and AMD processors. (In fact, one of these processors is required to run Workstation 4. So even if you wanted to run VMs on older hardware -- generally a huge waste of time -- you would not be able to do so.)

Parallels Desktop isn't necessarily easier to use than VMware Workstation, which is generally an outstanding product. It is, however, cheaper than VMware: Parallels Desktop 4 will retail for around $80 per computer, while VMware Workstation costs nearly $200.

Another up-and-coming virtualization product, Oracle's (previously Sun's) VirtualBox, uses a subscription-based model that currently charges $30 per user per year, including updates and support. VirtualBox is also highly regarded, especially in terms of its hardware footprint and efficiency.

Be aware that while VMware and VirtualBox offer free versions of their products (the latter as an open-source software project), their functionality is limited in some very significant ways. While these are perfectly suitable in many cases, the paid versions of both products are generally more appropriate for production use in a business environment.

The timing of Parallels' announcement, by the way, is no coincidence. The company clearly wants to position its Desktop for Windows product as a far more powerful and functional alternative to the Virtual XP Mode built into Windows 7. That, however, is an item of interest mostly to companies with custom-built business applications that are designed to run on Windows XP but will not play well with Windows 7.

For everyone else, I will point out that Parallels Workstation 4 simply amplifies an existing trend: combining effective, low-cost virtualization software with powerful, very low-cost desktop PC hardware.

What does this mean for small business users? Consider the cost and security benefits of running Linux on desktop PCs as a rule, not as an exception. A desktop Linux system, for example, is far less vulnerable to malware while browsing the Web, reading email or accessing cloud-based applications.

Powerful, inexpensive desktop virtualization tools mean never having to do without Windows when an employee really needs it. Is Office 2007 a necessity? Is the inability to run QuickBooks a deal-killer? Keep the appropriate VM up and running, and it's there when you need it.

It's also a simple task to move a Windows VM from one desktop to another, based upon changes to your company's headcount or employee needs.

Clearly, this approach works best with late model (i.e. less than about three year-old) desktop hardware. Yet as more companies move through their usual PC replacement cycles -- a process that switching to Windows 7 would require anyway -- this issue will resolve itself.