A Survey of Virtualization Technologies: Towards a New Taxonomic Proposal

At present, there is a proliferation of virtualization technologies (VTs), which are part of the basic and underlying infrastructure of popular cloud computing. Those interested in VTs are faced with a non-unified volume of information and various approaches to modes of operation, classification structures, and the performance implications of these technologies. This makes it difficult to decide which type of VT is appropriate for a particular context. Therefore, this paper reviews the state of the art on VT taxonomic models. Methodologically, a literature review is carried out to identify VT classification models, recognizing their features and weaknesses. With this in mind, a new taxonomy of virtualization technologies is proposed, which responds to the weaknesses identified in the analyzed schemes. The new VT taxonomy combines the Abstraction Level and Virtual Machine Type approaches, providing the reader with a means to visualize VTs. In doing so, the reader can locate the level of abstraction at which each VT is developed, in addition to the type of machine projected, whether it is a complete system or an execution environment for processes. The proposed taxonomy can be used in the academic environment to facilitate teaching processes or in the business environment to facilitate decision-making when implementing VTs.