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KVM vs Oracle VM VirtualBox vs VMware Workstation comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Mindshare comparison

Server Virtualization Software
Server Virtualization Software
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

Lan Tuong - PeerSpot reviewer
Useful to manage the virtual environments
The most valuable features of KVM for us are the console, which allows us to build or clone VMs quickly, and the ability to take snapshots and recreate new VMs rapidly. That's one of the things we love about KVM. The built-in management console, Auto KVM, is the most valuable tool for managing our virtual environments. We use it most to create and fire up new VMs or clone them for customers based on requests. The migration tools have worked quite well for us. We're moving from an Oracle Solaris platform for KVM logical domains, upgrading, and using KVM from Red Hat. It's slightly different but very similar to Oracle Unbreakable Linux, which is basically a clone of Red Hat. Oracle's console is easier to use than Red Hat's, though.
Tomasz Pietas - PeerSpot reviewer
Good functionality and free to use with a useful snapshot feature
The functionality and productivity are very good. I can test and roll back features in my work. It's a big platform. It's very useful. I like that it has a snapshot feature. The virtual network is great. There are a lot of features. It has everything I need. The product is free to use. It's easy to set up.
Phanindar Ada - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers ease of deployment and use along with a comfortable configuration process to be handled
The tool's performance is really good, so I can rate it a ten out of ten. The product did meet my expectations by allowing me to run multiple operating systems simultaneously. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. The product is stable, very easy to deploy, easy to use, easy to configure, and easy to set up. I took care of the integration part of VMware Workstation with vSphere. I describe the product's documentation as a good area. My company gets complaints about technical notes from VMware. My company does face limitations with the product, and it is based on the licenses that we have purchased from VMware. I rate the overall product a ten out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"It is an easily scalable solution."
"This solution is open source and easy to configure."
"Good screen and keyboard sharing feature."
"I like that this is an open-source solution. It is very powerful, and it's easy."
"I have found KVM to be scalable."
"The tool's most valuable feature is backup. The product makes it easy to manage virtual machines. Other tools require third-party applications like VMware and vSphere. However, KVM doesn't require these applications."
"The GUI interface makes the management of KVM easier than ever before."
"I think nine out of the ten supercomputers in the world use Linux KVM, so I think that attests to the fact that it is a scalable product."
"I like that it is free and runs on Linux/Ubuntu - I wouldn't use any other solution. I am able to perform small developing tests."
"I like that it has a snapshot feature."
"Oracle VM VirtualBox is easy to use."
"This product is very user-friendly and easy to use."
"This product is extremely easy to install, use, has a great GUI and is incredibly stable."
"The cloning is a very useful tool."
"The product is very easy to use."
"The most valuable aspects of the solution were the support and performance of the product and the flexibility it gives you to work."
"Because the setup is so easy, this is a solution that can be used at a moment's notice."
"I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"The most valuable feature of the VMware Workstation is the ease to create a development environment. When you have different ongoing developments, you often need to create a lot of different development environments. With this workstation solution, you can have a development environment for all the things you develop."
"It's stable."
"We are able to simultaneously run multiple operating systems in a single machine and have virtually no performance hit."
"The technical support is good."
"I have found this product excellent for test/dev environments. This is 90% of what I use this product for."
"It will not harm any of the computer settings to run a specific program. For example, if a program needs a specific security policy, we don't have to use the shared configuration. We have an individual copy of Windows installed on the virtual machine, so anybody can access that. It helps us a lot."
 

Cons

"The stability of this solution is less than other products in the same category."
"The virtual manager and the graphical QEMU for KVM need some improvement."
"The speed is around thirty percent slower than another competitor. This would be something to work on."
"The product must provide better performance monitoring features."
"Business continuity features need to be added."
"We are not getting good support from KVM, and it is not that user-friendly."
"I would like to see more focus on microservices and integration with Kubernetes or OpenShift."
"Lacks high availability across clusters as well as support for Apache CloudStack."
"Having live migrations to move a running server to other hardware would be great."
"The user interface needs to be improved."
"The solution has to do a better job of promoting the product and its licensing capabilities."
"They could improve the graphics functionality of the product."
"When I select the Ubuntu operating system from within the virtual machine, it sometimes hangs."
"Oracle VM VirtualBox doesn't work properly with an antivirus tool."
"We're working with them to be able to allow the local USB ports to be ported over to the remote desktop, running VirtualBox."
"I think that this solution should be more user-friendly."
"The tool can improve network storage technology."
"The support can be improved."
"For some virtual machine configurations, you have to go to the text editor and make the configuration changes, which could be improved."
"It would be better if software updates occur automatically."
"The product could provide the features available in Microsoft Hyper-V."
"The solution should provide a guide on its installation."
"The product's integration capabilities are an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."
"I need to buy a newer version of the tool to support Windows Server."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I use KVM for free through Proxmox, which offers a free license alternative."
"It is free for everyone."
"It is cheaper than other competitors like VMware or Hyper-V."
"​It is free and can be run from your laptop, if needed, unlike VMware.​"
"There is no cost involved in the use of KVM, as it is open source."
"The tool is free."
"The price is fair compared to others. But in our local market, it's a problem to get budget approval from management. That's why they are trying to get those products so we can give them the price benefit. But if you consider the international market or other products, it's sometimes better than their price."
"KVM is free."
"No licensing is required as it is open-source."
"There are no licensing fees."
"The solution is free."
"Pricing does not apply for us, we do not have to pay for the service."
"It is a very cost-effective solution."
"It is an open-source solution."
"Oracle should consider reducing the cost of the product."
"Available for free use"
"The solution’s pricing is moderate."
"I use the free version of VMware Workstation."
"The tool is not the cheapest."
"I would rate the pricing an eight out of ten, with ten being expensive."
"It is an expensive solution."
"The solution's pricing is almost the same as what Google Cloud, AWS, or Microsoft would charge you."
"The price of the solution per workstation is approximately 200 Francs annually. We pay a total of 800 francs. Everything is included in the price such as the support."
"VMware Workstation is an expensive solution in Asian countries."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Computer Software Company
16%
Educational Organization
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
University
8%
Computer Software Company
16%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Why KVM??? Help please!
KVM scales better, orchestration better, performs better and supports a wider range of hardware and, also, you can im...
Why KVM??? Help please!
Small support team, small cluster, low core count, use VMware products Large support team, large clusters with many c...
Why KVM??? Help please!
Far from being an expert, my opinion is that the positive sides of KVM are: Lower costs and open-source which gives ...
How does KVM compare to Oracle VM VirtualBox?
KVM is easy to use, stable and flexible. It is mature and very fast. It is an affordable open-source solution that is...
What do you like most about Oracle VM VirtualBox?
The product’s most valuable feature is the ability to manage multiple operating systems through one application.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle VM VirtualBox?
The pricing is flexible. When Oracle bought VirtualBox, they introduced some licensing issues. However, it did not af...
Which VMware solution would you go with - Workstation or vSphere?
VM Workstation’s setup is so easy, you can use it almost instantly, it works well with Windows and Linux. We like VM ...
What do you like most about VMware Workstation?
The product is stable, very easy to deploy, easy to use, easy to configure, and easy to set up.
What needs improvement with VMware Workstation?
The product's integration capabilities are an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required.
 

Comparisons

 

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Sample Customers

MediaWiki, Wikimedia Foundation, Wikipedia, Wikivoyage, Wikidata, Wikiversity, Commons
Airbus, Colorado State University, SCS Africa, Wolf Medical Systems.
Akademiska Hus
Find out what your peers are saying about Proxmox, VMware, Microsoft and others in Server Virtualization Software. Updated: November 2024.
817,708 professionals have used our research since 2012.