The VirtuaLinux Storage Abstraction Layer for Ef?cient Virtual Clustering

VirtuaLinux is a meta-distribution that enables a standard Linux distribution to support robust physical and virtualized clusters. VirtuaLinux helps in avoiding the "single point of failure" effect by means of a combination of architectural strategies, including the transparent support for disk-less and master-less cluster configuration. VirtuaLinux supports the creation and management of Virtual Clusters in seamless way: VirtuaLinux Virtual Cluster Manager enables the system administrator to create, save, restore Xen- based Virtual Clusters, and to map and dynamically re-map them onto the nodes of the physical cluster. In this paper we introduce and discuss VirtuaLinux virtualization architecture, features, and tools, and in particular, the novel disk abstraction layer, which permits the fast and space-efficient creation of Virtual Clusters.