Virtualization questions

[BF04]

I am looking at doing some virtualization and have some basic questions. The products I am looking at using are:
virtualbox - home use only, not allowed at work.
virtual pc 2007
virtual server 2005 sp1

2003 Server, loading virtual server 2005sp1
1. Can you assign the nic card in the virtual server a different IP than the host?
2. Can outside connections connect to this IP?
3. Can you have more than 1 virtual server running?

Basically I want to load WSUS and an FTP site in their own virtual instances on the same W2K3 server. Can you do this, can you have users connect to the WSUS or FTP based on what IP their using?

Virtualbox. I have Vista home edtion and installed Virtualbox. I installed w2k3 server in the virtual directory. Isetup a domain, AD/DNS. Can I make another virtual directory and run XP Pro and have it connect to the domain in the other virtual directory?

Thanks.

Moved to appropriate forum - Moderator Rubycon

 

[Nothinman]

1. Can you assign the nic card in the virtual server a different IP than the host?

Yes, generally each VM appears as a completely separate machine on the network.

2. Can outside connections connect to this IP?

Yes, it works just like any other machine on the network by default. There are other modes of networking that affect this though. I'm a VMware user so I don't know what terminology MS uses but one option is host-only networking where the VM can only talk to the host, no network access is allowed.

3. Can you have more than 1 virtual server running?

As many as your machine can handle.

Virtualbox. I have Vista home edtion and installed Virtualbox. I installed w2k3 server in the virtual directory. Isetup a domain, AD/DNS. Can I make another virtual directory and run XP Pro and have it connect to the domain in the other virtual directory?

Sure, but just remember that the VMs don't come up until after the host so the host can't (or at least shouldn't) be joined to a domain with a DC running in a VM on itself.

And also remember that you still have to pay attention to licensing. Some versions of Windows come with licenses for a number of VMs but I doubt Vista covers Win2K3 so you still have to license each VM's OS just like you would a physical server.

 

[BF04]

Thankyou Nothinman, that was very helpful


As for licensing, I am using trail version for demonstration purposes.

 

[Czar]

If you plan to use it at work then definetly go with vmware over microsoft

Microsoft is a few years behind everyone else

 

[Czar]

If you are starting then install vmware server

If you want something alot better and have dedicated hardware then install esxi, that way you get memory sharing so you can put alot more vm's onto the machine