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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

"The product's scalability is good...It's a very stable product."
"The initial setup was very easy."
"KVM has benefited our organization by enabling us to assess different virtualization solutions with reduced latency, which is crucial for guaranteeing the reliability and real-time performance of our communication systems."
"The KVM service is well managed with a central policy interface."
"The initial setup was simple."
"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."
"I appreciate the network passcode feature in KVM, as it provides a convenient way to manage DNS and cloud hosting."
"It is an easily scalable solution."
"The product gives us the flexibility to try different machines."
"The flexibility as well as performance wise and as well as data volume, we have huge volume stored."
"It is easy to use and does not require complex knowledge."
"This product is very user-friendly and easy to use."
"VirtualBox provides an isolated, consistent environment"
"Oracle VM VirtualBox is easy to use."
"The initial setup was straightforward."
"Technical support is good."
"The most valuable feature of VMware Player is the ability to snapshot with or without memory."
"I have found this product excellent for test/dev environments. This is 90% of what I use this product for."
"VMware Workstation allows you to run a virtual machine."
"The performance is good."
"VMware Workstation is great for migrating and patching operating systems."
"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is an easy-to-use product."
"The tool’s GUI is very user-friendly."
"VMware Workstation is easy to manage and understand."
 

Cons

"Its resource usage can be improved."
"I would like to see more focus on microservices and integration with Kubernetes or OpenShift."
"We are not getting good support from KVM, and it is not that user-friendly."
"The main drawback in the solution is probably disaster recovery."
"The speed is around thirty percent slower than another competitor. This would be something to work on."
"Business continuity features need to be added."
"The KVM tech support is really bad. They are not very responsive."
"Technical support is not top-notch."
"The user interface needs to be improved."
"We're working with them to be able to allow the local USB ports to be ported over to the remote desktop, running VirtualBox."
"The tool has some stability issues."
"I think that this solution should be more user-friendly."
"The technical support needs to improve."
"The communications setup lags. It does not connect properly so the batching and networking is a bit slow."
"The solution lacks some open source remote administration tools. The reload of individual virtual machine definitions through the vboxweb service (via its API) without restarting it and the access to shared storage (to use teleport functions) need to be improved."
"The solution is not flexible."
"The support can be improved."
"The tool has limited scalability."
"I would want to see features included that make deployment easier."
"The price of VMware Workstation is an area of concern where improvements are needed."
"There could be more integration with different tools."
"VMware Workstation uses more resources like CPU and disk space, especially the CPU, which is a shortcoming that needs improvement."
"Installing VMware Workstation isn't so easy. It's highly complex compared to Windows. I rate it four out of 10 for ease of installation. Setting up a remote desktop only takes a minute or so, but the Workstation itself takes some time."
"The product is outdated."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is free for everyone."
"The solution is extremely cheap in China."
"This solution is an open-source, free platform with paid support."
"We had some problems with the licensing."
"KVM is priced reasonably."
"The product's pricing is above average but cheaper than that of VMware. I can't provide specific licensing costs, but we have a contract with Red Hat for client support that covers everything. There are no additional costs beyond the standard licensing fees."
"One only needs a subscription to Oracle Linux. So, it's cheaper with Oracle Linux's subscription. It is not very expensive. In short, the solution is open source, and you need only a subscription."
"The tool is free."
"It is an open-source solution."
"Everything is free within limitations. Once you go over a certain level of usage you have to license the product."
"There are no licensing fees."
"The solution is free."
"Price wise, Oracle VM VirtualBox is a six on a scale from one to ten."
"Oracle should consider reducing the cost of the product."
"It is pretty good for the price, which is free."
"No licensing is required as it is open-source."
"The licensing costs are cheap. I pay approximately $100 per year."
"It has the best licensing modules."
"VMware Workstation has a high price than competitors in the market."
"The solution is moderately priced. I rate the pricing a six out of ten."
"The tool is not the cheapest."
"The product is expensive."
"You need to pay for a license, but I don't think it costs that much. I think it's a one-time payment."
"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.
 

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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.