SWsoft News

SWsoft Launches Virtuozzo 2.6 Server Virtualization Software for Hosting Providers Worldwide
Release Date: 7/13/2004

Industry’s Only True VPS Virtualization Software Upgraded with More than 50 Enhancements

Herndon, VA — July 13, 2004 – Today, SWsoft, the established leader in server virtualization and hosting automation software, announced the introduction of Virtuozzo 2.6 for hosting providers and enterprises worldwide. Virtuozzo 2.6 is a major new release that adds more than 50 additional features to an already robust feature set, which includes the ability to easily create and efficiently run up to tens, hundreds or thousands of virtual private servers on a single server.

Virtuozzo for Linux/Unix, which has supported 32-bit and 64-bit platforms since March 2003, is now available to lease or purchase on a per server licensing model at http://www.sw-soft.com/en/products/virtuozzo/. The forthcoming Windows and Solaris versions of Virtuozzo will be available Fall 2004.

“Virtuozzo is the only true virtualization management software that has been broadly deployed in hosting environments and shown to handle thousands of VPSs per server with virtually no overhead,” said Serguei Beloussov, CEO, SWsoft. “Created for hosting providers or enterprises looking to consolidate their existing infrastructure, provide increased security, or efficiently roll out and control the cost associated with new services, Virtuozzo can handle virtually any demand placed on it.”

Virtual Hosting Success Today with Virtuozzo 2.6
Virtuozzo brings mainframe concepts that were proven in the datacenter for over 30 years on x86 commodity hardware and offers: Dynamic Partitioning, Resource Management, OS Virtualization, and Mass Management. Virtuozzo is the only true VPS technology on the market for enterprises and hosting service providers with hundreds of thousands of VPSs in production use and that allows for a full spectrum of services offerings including VPS, Advanced shared, Split dedicated, Split shared, Dynamic dedicated and more.

Virtuozzo 2.6 is a major new release of the only true VPS technology and includes over 50 powerful new features designed and developed around several important themes, including:

• Plesk ready — Transparent Plesk integration allows Plesk users to use Virtuozzo Power Panel interface and functionality on the same port with the same IP and credentials and appearing as integral part of Plesk Interface. Also, Plesk density and performance in Virtuozzo VPS was significantly improved.
• Complete —Includes more than 50 new features based on customers feedback collected during the previous versions the recent Virtuozzo 2.6 Beta Evaluation program.
• Self-management — Providing end user a tool to manage their own VPS by means of Virtuozzo Power Panel, a provider may delegate most of the tasks to VPS owner.
• Interface — Clean and easy interfaces for simple and powerful management of own VPS.
• No compromise — New Virtuozzo features make Virtuozzo VPS functionality closer to real dedicated server while not adding to any additional virtualization overhead.
• Global —Includes complete international language packs, localization support in GUI applications.
• Easy-to-use — New management tools make working simpler and more effective by automating and simplifying the most mundane tasks in day-to-day maintenance, and reusable in both operator-driven and unattended or scripting usage.

Major Feature In Virtuozzo 2.6
• Complete Plesk integration – When Plesk Control Panel is installed in Virtuozzo-based VPS, Virtuozzo Power Panel functionality becomes available directly in Plesk admin interface, with Plesk look and feel, familiar for Plesk users. At the same time, that interface is available when Plesk itself is not running, or even when VPS is not running.
• Virtuozzo Power Panels – Powerful Web based tool for VPS owners. Using Virtuozzo Power Panel, VPS owners may start, stop, backup, restore and make other management tasks. Even complete VPS reinstallation may be handled by VPS owners, without involving provider’s support.
• Density – New model of memory management and improved CPU utilization significantly increase the density of Virtuozzo VPSs. Also, together with optimization of Plesk, it provides twice as much density and performance when running in Virtuozzo VPS.
• Vzcache utility provides ability to “template” common VPS files, reestablishing cross-VPS file sharing, and saving on disk and memory usage on the server.
• Master node concept in VZMC simplifies management of IP addresses and other network settings while guaranteeing assignment of unique VPS IDs and making possible single-click VPS provisioning where all the major VPS parameters are assigned automatically.

Additional Cool Features
• Control Panel on VPS IP – Virtuozzo Power Panel Web interface URL may reside on VPS own IP address, making it easy memorize and more intuitive. VZPP can be accessed regardless of VPS state – even if VPS is stopped or completely broken.
• Reboot working “out of the box”-- VPS has its own BIOS, which would handle bootstrap procedures before first process in VPS starts. As a result, to make reboot command working in VPS, Virtuozzo before 2.6 might use a script that checked all the VPSs periodically and started those VPSs needed to start after reboot command. In this Virtuozzo release, VPS reboots are handled automatically in VZagent, which eliminates the need for periodic VPS checks, thus conserving server power and further improving stability.
• Sendfile over VZFS support— Sendfile system call implies a number of specific requirements to underlying file system and does not work if the file system does not fit these requirements. However, to make applications depending on this system call working in Virtuozzo environment without additional configuration, Virtuozzo now supports this system call over VZFS file system as well.
• Vzlist utility provides convenient access to quickly retrieve most significant information about VPSs created on the server. This utility may provide information in human-readable form, as well as an output suitable for parsing and for scripting languages.
• Name Based Hosting support – Virtuozzo 2.6 provides name based support for HTTP, FTP, POP3 and SMTP protocols. Virtuozzo Name Base Hosting advances the concept of Apache-like sharing of IP addresses to Virtuozzo platform, allowing provisioning of shared web accounts with Virtuozzo level of isolation. Separate Name-Based hosting deployment guide is also available.

Virtuozzo for Linux/Unix, which supports both 32-bit and 64-bit platforms, is now available for lease or purchase (for as low as $299) on a per server licensing model. The forthcoming Windows and Solaris versions of Virtuozzo will be available Fall 2004.

To learn more about pricing, system requirements and features, visit www.sw-soft.com/en/products/virtuozzo/.

About SWsoft
SWsoft is the recognized leader in automation and server virtualization software for hosting service companies, communications providers, and enterprises. The company powers more than 50,000 servers for customers in over 100 countries. SWsoft’s products deliver industry-leading performance, stability and manageability for its customers to increase utilization of their limited IT resources. Headquartered in Herndon, VA, with offices around the world; SWsoft is a privately held, profitable company, offering comprehensive solutions including: Plesk, Virtuozzo, PEM, HSPcomplete, and Confixx. For more information about SWsoft, visit www.sw-soft.com.

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