Hosting Server

Ever wondered what the difference between an OpenVZ or KVM VPS is? In this article, we will go over the differences so you can make an informed decision.

OpenVZ VPS:

OpenVZ is container-based virtualization for Linux. Each container performs and executes exactly like a stand-alone server; a container can have root access and be rebooted independently.

An advantage of OpenVZ is less of a running overhead, which is why OpenVZ VPS’s tend to be the most affordable type of VPS’s in the marketplace.

Some restrictions of OpenVZ is that it only supports specific preconfigured Linux templates – and has no Windows OS support. Additionally, the kernel modules available are the ones loaded by the host – and if you are missing something (or if you want to run a custom kernel) – there will be no option to do that as you are sharing the kernel with the host node.

KVM VPS:

KVM (which stands for Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is a full virtualization solution. Using KVM, one can have Linux and Windows virtual machines running side by side on the same hardware. Each KVM VPS has its own kernel independent from the host (you can install or modify your own kernel). Since it has its own virtualized hardware, the virtual server will act completely on its own and can run any operating system.

As KVM maintains separate instances for each virtual server, it uses significantly more resources than OpenVZ form a host and resource overhead perspective. While KVM VPS’s may cost slightly more than an OpenVZ VPS, it serves many advantages from both a features and reliability standpoint as you can see.

The pros with KVM is that all applications should work exactly as on a dedicated server — thanks to it being independent from the host node.