TrustRadius: an HG Insights company

Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) vs. Microsoft Windows

Save this comparison

Save this comparison

Add Product

Recommended Comparisons

    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    KVM

    Score9.5 out of 10
    N/AKernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) is a virtualization solution developed by small Israeli software company Qumranet and supported by Red Hat since that company's acquisition in 2008.N/A

    Microsoft Windows

    Score8.2 out of 10
    N/AWindows is an operating system with editions to support business workstations.N/A
    Pricing
    KVMMicrosoft Windows
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    KVMMicrosoft Windows
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    KVMMicrosoft Windows
    Considered Both Products
    Red Hat
    No answer on this topic
    Microsoft
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    90%
    Would buy again
    9 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    80%
    Delivers good value for the price
    8 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    90%
    Happy with the feature set
    9 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    80%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    4 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    9 Answers
    Features
    KVMMicrosoft Windows
    Server Virtualization
    Comparison of Server Virtualization features of Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) and Microsoft Windows
    Feature
    Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM)
    9.2
    6 Ratings
    13% above category average
    Microsoft Windows
    -
    Ratings
    Virtual machine automated provisioning7.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Management console10.04 Ratings00 Ratings
    Live virtual machine backup10.04 Ratings00 Ratings
    Live virtual machine migration10.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Hypervisor-level security9.04 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    KVMMicrosoft Windows
    Small Businesses
    Proxmox VE
    Score9.2 out of 10
    CentOS Linux
    Score8.9 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    VMware vSOM (discontinued)
    Score10 out of 10
    IBM AIX
    Score9.4 out of 10
    Enterprises
    IBM PowerVM
    Score9.6 out of 10
    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
    Score9.1 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    KVMMicrosoft Windows
    Likelihood to Recommend
    10.0
    (6 ratings)
    9.2
    (10 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Usability
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.4
    (7 ratings)
    Support Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    KVMMicrosoft Windows
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Red Hat
    KVM is the best solution in the case you need to test and turn up any virtual environment with limited vCPU/RAM resources. The obvious area of its use is a network environment when we want to avoid being tied to one type of hardware/vendor and being able to swap from one instance to another with no downtimes. The use of a vSwitch (that supports VLAN tagging) is a significant bonus for network engineers that some other hypervisors do not provide.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    I think for every business in the world Microsoft Windows is a good use as standard OS system. It’s easy to use and a lot of other company's use it which make it very appealing for user to learn more about Microsoft Windows. The Office 365 suite is really good as a free feature and used a lot by every user of Microsoft Windows. If you got a designer business I would recommend other brands that are specialized in that kind of work. I feel Windows will come short on that end.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Red Hat
    • KVM is really good at providing fast and reliable virtualization for Linux guests
    • Since KVM is a kernel module, every VM is a Linux process which can be managed by Linux system tools
    • KVM integrates very well with the management framework libvirt, which is why KVM can be integrated in automation tools as well
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • It is very easy to use, can be picked up by a novice in minutes.
    • It is aesthetically pleasing, and appears clean and modern.
    • Most programs that people use in their day to day run on windows natively.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Red Hat
    • KVM itself doesn't ship with a management interface
    • KVM itself is a bit complicated to handle
    • KVM needs Qemu to virtualize Windows guests
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Forced updates occasionally have bad timing when ignored for too long
    • Microsoft Edge Web Browser is a bit clunky
    • The 3D desktop still needs some improvement
    Read full review
    Usability
    Red Hat
    It does the job and stays out of the way. The specifics of usability relies on the implementation, but with things like Icarus and libvirt, things are standardizing nicely.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    It's easy to use, very straightforward, and user-friendly. It has improved over the years, but you still need to be careful not to shut it down improperly because that may lead to corruption and Windows being unable to boot. There is plenty of software available that covers most needs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Red Hat
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    support remains spotty, researching online articles are a pain
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Red Hat
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    MDT helped deploy OS to users machines via PXE boot.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Red Hat
    It is a very reliable solution that can be used for x86 architecture virtualization with low overhead. It is a free and open source software. Easy to use withOpenStack.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Microsoft Windows and macOS are both useful operating systems. There are businesses who much prefer macOS and some that prefer Windows. Businesses that revolve around industries such as game design, art design, graphic design may opt to use macOS due to its optimization with programs that revolve around these topics. Other businesses that are more focused towards Data or text processing may opt to use Windows due to its familiarity across the world and ease of access.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Red Hat
    • Fast provisioning of new servers.
    • Huge drop of the cost of servers compared to bare metal.
    • Easy upgrades of resources, sometimes now even requiring a server restart.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Positively effects our easy of use of other programs
    • Take it for granted because it is so transparent in use
    • Definitely worth the price.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots