Parallels Server 4 Bare Metal Overview

Parallels Server 4 Bare Metal provides you with the possibility to simultaneously run Parallels virtual machines and Containers on the same server. Using this software, you can efficiently use your server's hardware resources by sharing them among multiple virtual machines and Containers.

Graphically, a Mac with the Parallels Server Bare Metal software installed can be represented as follows:

At the base resides server hardware. Next is the Parallels Server Bare Metal software which is installed directly on the server hardware and does not need any operating system for its functioning. Parallels Server Bare Metal includes two virtualization layers:

• Hardware virtualization layer . This layer provides the necessary environment for creating and managing Parallels virtual machines.
• OS virtualization layer . This layer provides the necessary environment for creating and managing Parallels Containers.

For more information on both layers, see OS Virtualization Layer and Hardware Virtualization Layer .

Effectively uniting both virtualization technologies, Parallels Server Bare Metal provides the best value for cost conscious organizations enabling them to:

• standardize server hardware platforms
• effectively consolidate server resources
• consolidate and support legacy OSs and applications
• streamline server and application deployment, maintenance, and management
• simplify software testing and development
• optimize server and application availability

Parallels Server Bare Metal allows you to create virtual machines and Containers and Containers and manage them using the same tools you would use on systems running Parallels Server 3.0 and Parallels Virtuozzo Containers 4.0. These tools include:

• Command line interface (CLI) . This tool comprises a set of Parallels command line utilities and can be used to manage virtual machines and Containers both locally and remotely.
• Parallels Management Console . Parallels Management Console is a remote management tool for Parallels Server Bare Metal with a graphical user interface. This tool can be used to manage physical servers and Parallels virtual machines residing on them.

  Note : In this version of Parallels Server Bare Metal, you cannot use Parallels Management Console to create and manage Parallels Containers.