Is it possible to create a VM that will run under both Linux using KVM and Windows using VMWare?

I doubt KVM would understand the VM Ware configuration files or hard disk format.

Could you use virtualbox which has platforms for Windows and Linux?

Why not use vmware player in Linux?

(note, I know very little about what you’re talking about!)

I could do. I just like the idea of KVM being kernel level. Dunno how much difference it makes tho.

Dunno. I’m running a vmware xp vm on my xubuntu laptop with 2gb ram. Just posted a wanted ad for some more ram as it’s running like a bit of a dog. Maybe kernel level would be better but I’m not that clever!

VMWare in linux is pretty damn good anyway. I can utilise most of the host resources with some meaty vms no sweat.

VMWare Workstation vs KVM? You’ll need to convert between the two, the disk formats are different. I very much doubt you’d get a noticeable speed increase in moving to KVM unless you have some very specific applications in mind you can tune for, and alter how the virtual hardware is driven.
You can of course treat a source VM as a physical machine for conversion tools like VMWare Convertor.

What’s the guest OS going to be? Linux guests might be dd’d across and still work Windows hmm, YMMV haven’t really tried much since 2003 when it almost always resulted in BSOD as the boot controller couldn’t be identified from the PCI vendor id table available to it on boot. Could sysprep and inject to fix but it was a ball ache.

Other option might be backup/imaging software with a ‘restore anywhere feature to side step that issue.

Alternatively use Virtual Box on both platforms.

Other option might be backup/imaging software with a ‘restore anywhere feature to side step that issue.

Not a bad idea.. but the device drivers on the guest would still be different no?

I think I might just end up with VMWare player for Linux.

Does that mean I win? Woohoo! 😀

Nah, it’s a compromise. I wanted to use KVM 🙂

Not a bad idea.. but the device drivers on the guest would still be different no?

Yeah, but plug’n’play will sort it eventually. It’s getting past boot that’s the key.

You know there is a full VMWare Workstation for Linux now? Check the licensing, it might be permissible to have two installs if only 1 is in use.

I have a license for Workstation, but I think VMware Player is free anyway isn’t it? I doubt my workstation license covers both OSes, especially as it’s only for v8

Why would you want to, out of interest?

because kvm is easy to script up and mange snap shotting and device cloning

You miss my point.

I didn’t mean, “why would you want to use KVM”, I meant “why would you want to use the same VM on KVM and VMware”, as per the OP.

Most of my colleagues use Windows and VMWare and we share VMs. I’m looking at Linux and this would stop me sharing VMs unless I dual boot. However VMWare for linux sorts this even if it’s not as fast or efficient as KVM (if that’s even true)

Player isn’t free for commercial use if I recall right.

Bin the Linux OS and use ESXi instead? Create a VM for the Linux ‘box’ and use it as a guest rather than a host maybe.