Linux desktop virtualization with synchronization

[sid_das]

I've to implement Desktop Virtualization as my college project, how to start working on it, give us some directions, I've studied documentation of virtual box but it is also not helping much.

The objective of the project is:

"Create a desktop virtualization system for Linux which allows a user to virtualize an existing desktop environment,download and use a virtualized environment on a local machine, and then save the changes made locally."

My first doubt is how to virtualize the system, is there some pre-existing tools available through which we can do this task?

And second is that do we need to remote access multiple instances of virtual machine?

[Rubberman]

School work is not allowed on the Forums...

[sid_das]

School work is not allowed on the Forums...

its not about the whole work, its a 1 year project, just want some guidelines, if someone knows how to proceed then it will be a great help.

[Rubberman]

Well, good answer...

This is not trivial. I user VirtualBox for my VM requirements, pretty much exclusively, both at home and at work. Migrating a VM back to a non-VM system, and vice-versa is not easy, in my experience. So, I would be interested in your work in this regard! Specific issues, I'll be happy to help, or to learn from your experience. So, get started, and let us know how/what your are experiencing. Also, welcome to The Linux Forums!

So, what I am saying, is that I am basically clueless, and I would be happy to help you verify your work, and "steal" from it as well...

[sid_das]

Well, good answer...

This is not trivial. I user VirtualBox for my VM requirements, pretty much exclusively, both at home and at work. Migrating a VM back to a non-VM system, and vice-versa is not easy, in my experience. So, I would be interested in your work in this regard! Specific issues, I'll be happy to help, or to learn from your experience. So, get started, and let us know how/what your are experiencing. Also, welcome to The Linux Forums!

So, what I am saying, is that I am basically clueless, and I would be happy to help you verify your work, and "steal" from it as well...

Even we are using VirtualBox for this purpose as it is open source, the only thing we know till date is that we have to create a SSL connection between our Server Virtual Machine to the Client System, after that we may use RDP for remote display(I'm not sure abt it, whether it will work or not).

If u have any IDEA then please SHARE...

[Rubberman]

Well, your initial specification was this:

Create a desktop virtualization system for Linux which allows a user to virtualize an existing desktop environment,download and use a virtualized environment on a local machine, and then save the changes made locally.

That is to say (in more or less, the same words), you need to take an existing desktop environment, move it to a virtual machine, and then make any changes to the virtual desktop, real on the physical one. Correct?

To my mind, whether or not you are using VBox, VMware, Parallels, or whatever for the VM environment is irrelevant. The key requirement is to be able to move your real environment to a virtual one, and then move the changes in the virtual one back to the real one. Do I understand this correctly?

[sid_das]

Actually what we are thinking is that we will keep the desktop environment virtually in server, when a client demands it via web-browser(or any other GUI based application, which is not decided) it will be provided to him/her. He will work on it and save the changes made by it back to the server by redoing the log created on the client and the local copy at the client will be deleted.

[Rubberman]

Well, you can do that on Linux without difficulties, by allowing remote desktop access to the virtual machine. The VNC client/server tools will provide this capability. I've used it in the past myself, so I could access my server/workstation from my latptop over the LAN. With a VPN, you can even do that over the WAN/Internet.

[sid_das]

is it possible to have a single, optimized image of the operating system and make it available on-demand across all the users. All virtual desktops boot this same image over the network, applying user-specific settings and profiles at run-time.

[Rubberman]

is it possible to have a single, optimized image of the operating system and make it available on-demand across all the users. All virtual desktops boot this same image over the network, applying user-specific settings and profiles at run-time.

It should be possible using the network Pixie (PXE) boot capabilities most hardware, and virtual machines, possess. Here is a link to a Wikipedia article about it for more information: Preboot Execution Environment - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia