Replies to post #22610 on Sphere 3D Corp. (ANY)

[donkschmonk]

Clearly not semantics:

Below are excerpts from the both the Sphere 3D website and Virtualisation Review that are very clear and contain examples and comparisons:

1) Sphere 3D website:

"Glassware 2.0 requires a micro hypervisor or what is referred to as a “Microvisor”. A microvisor is not to be confused with a traditional hypervisor which, in addition to a host Operating System (“OS”), requires a Guest OS for applications to run. A Microvisor only pulls in elements of the OS stack needed for the software application to run, and also fills in any gaps that may be present, in particular with applications needing functionality not inherent in whichever OS stack you happen to be using.
It is easier to explain using a concrete example. Let’s consider a PACS (healthcare imaging software) that runs on XP workstations. We can virtualize that PACS application on a Glassware server. Since the Microvisor only uses what it needs from Windows XP, it only uses about 5-10% of XP. Because we know that the application is graphics heavy, we can add a GPU chip to the server and the Microvisor allows for direct access to the chip therefore improving graphics rendering performance. Compare this instance with hypervisors. Hypervisors prevent direct access to the hardware. All access is made through virtual drivers which are cumbersome at best and do not work at worst.
The Glassware 2.0 Microvisor is highly efficient and powerful. It fills in the stack allowing Glassware 2.0 to virtualize anything you want from your Windows and Non- Windows environments. All this while still outperforming any of the hypervisor-based solutions.
You can actually utilize the microvisor for other functions as well. Examples would include management, clustering or orchestration. This approach enables you to maintain performance scalability despite what would otherwise be cumbersome overhead to the system."

http://sphere3d.com/glassware-2-0-microvisor/

2) Virtualisation Review:

Windows Containers and 'Microvisors'
A new Microsoft partner, Sphere 3D, is making containers that have fewer dependencies than Docker.

By Jeffrey Schwartz03/10/2015

Containers are still relatively new on the scene. Docker, of course, is the most famous name in containers, but competitors are cropping up weekly. And with those competitors come new technologies that are changing even the nature of containers.

One of those competitors is working specifically in the Windows world. In its push to simplify migration of Windows applications to cloud infrastructures without dependencies on hardware or software platforms, Microsoft has added Sphere 3D as its latest partner to deliver Windows containers. The two companies announced a partnership today to deliver Glassware 2.0 Windows containers for Azure.

Sphere 3D said it's collaborating with Microsoft to develop tools to simplify the migration of Windows-based end user applications to Azure. The two companies are first working to offer Glassware 2.0-based workloads in Azure for schools. Later in the year, Sphere 3D will offer other tools, the company said. Unlike Microsoft's higher-profile container partner Docker, which is open source, Glassware 2.0 is a proprietary platform designed to virtualize applications without requiring a virtualized desktop.

The Glassware 2.0 suite includes a micro hypervisor which the company calls a "Microvisor." Unlike a traditional hypervisor, which requires a guest OS for applications to run, the "Microvisor only pulls in elements of the OS stack needed for the software application to run, and also fills in any gaps that may be present, in particular with applications needing functionality not inherent in whichever OS stack you happen to be using," according to the company's description.

Glassware 2.0 also includes containers, management tools and clustering software. The containers are designed to run multiple instances of the same app in a Glassware 2.0-based server. It provides the ability to share binaries, libraries or the Glassware 2.0 Microvisor, according to the company. This environment provides access only to those components of an operating system an application needs to run. It supports applications running in Windows XP, Windows 7 and Windows 8.x environments.

http://virtualizationreview.com/articles/2015/03/10/windows-containers-and-microvisors.aspx?m=2

[Pepsiman2001]

The difference between a hypervisor and microvisor is most assuredly NOT semantics. If you were referencing my previous post, what I labeled potentially semantics is Spheres term of a microvisor and Dockers containers. The microvisor and docker container both use less resources than a hypervisor. But again, I believe there to be clear distinctions between GW and dockers Containers. The "microvisor" in GW is comparable to Dockers container technology, with some differences of course.

Bottom line, I believe Glassware 2.0 to be superior to Dockers containers. That is my personal belief. Everyone must decide for themselves.