[deanhills]

Apologies if this is common knowledge.  Tonight I learned for the first time how to check what the virtualization of my VPS is from the command line.  Contabo didn't list this with the specs of the VPS I signed up for - their promotion focus was the 100% SSD.  So checked around on the Internet, and after a little bit of searching found the commands below.

I use CentOS 7.0 - so for other distributions the installation commands will be more or less the same but different as well.

(for CentOS)

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yum install imvirt

(for Debian)

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sudo apt-get install virt-what

(I discovered I didn't need to install imvirt as it already was loaded with CentOS 7.0.)

Then enter the following command:

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virt-what

This was my answer:

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kvm

Guess I've got a little bit more respect for my VPS and Contabo.  

8GB RAM, 4 cores, 200 SSD, location Germany BUT Contabo VPS speed feels the same for me as my VPS 16 with 1 GB RAM and location in Los Angeles.  Connection speed of the Contabo VPS is only 200 Mbps. VPS 16 is 1Gbps But, speed tests show a different picture.  Guess the connection speed makes a really BIG difference! Tryp4VPS was correct in his assessment of Contabo VPSs with their low connection speed.  I'll do a review of the Contabo VPS at end of April - if time allows for it.

[rudra]

actually you could run some hardware info command and check the manufacturer data / run dmesg or dmidecode and grep for dmi or virt/ hostnamectl status / see cat output of /proc/cpuinfo / check the IDTR register and tell without installing anything.

errr.... you said above that Contabo vps connection speed is 200Gbps. I think thats an error.

[Mashiro]

OpenVZ is easy to spot in most cases:
- venet0 network adapters in "ifconfig" or "ip a" output
- 2.6.32 kernel on no matter which OS (i.e. uname -a)
- simfs or ploop filesystem on "df -h" output
- lack of most system processes in ps and htop output (since almost all system and kernel processes are ran by the host and simply shared with to the VMs)

There is probably more to it.

[humanpuff69]

OpenVZ is easy to spot in most cases:
- venet0 network adapters in "ifconfig" or "ip a" output
- 2.6.32 kernel on no matter which OS (i.e. uname -a)
- simfs or ploop filesystem on "df -h" output
- lack of most system processes in ps and htop output (since almost all system and kernel processes are ran by the host and simply shared with to the VMs)

There is probably more to it.

the kernel is always 2.6 because openvz host must run a modified 2.6 kernel that is shared with the guest . the kernel version is most easiest way to determine since most newer distro already use kernel 3 or 4 . Openvz also cannot use latest distro like ubuntu 18.04 if you try it it will brick the openvz vps because of incompatibility with the old 2.6 kernel . If openvz did not try to upgrade their kernel soon enough it will be lesa of an option from time to time due to much more package not having support for old 2,6 kernel

[deanhills]

errr.... you said above that Contabo vps connection speed is 200Gbps. I think thats an error.

Thanks for picking up on it.  @Manalet me know too.  I wrote the post in the early morning hours, and just at the time when I got into bed it flashed through my mind I could have done that.  So now I know I did.  I've fixed it now.  It's 200Mbps.

OpenVZ is easy to spot in most cases:

I'm sure it must be.  I'm almost certain you'd have picked it up immediately from just reading through the specs at Cantabo.  I'm a bit of a dumb dumb with it.  I need to have it written in black and white, and for the life of me can't understand why Contabo doesn't make a big deal out of KVM - they're more enthusiastic about 100% SSD.  Like for me that's a really great promo point to push.

the kernel is always 2.6 because openvz host must run a modified 2.6 kernel that is shared with the guest . the kernel version is most easiest way to determine since most newer distro already use kernel 3 or 4 . Openvz also cannot use latest distro like ubuntu 18.04 if you try it it will brick the openvz vps because of incompatibility with the old 2.6 kernel . If openvz did not try to upgrade their kernel soon enough it will be lesa of an option from time to time due to much more package not having support for old 2,6 kernel

Aha - now that I'd be able to pick up on with the benchmark test. Or to do the CAT command. I won't forget 2.6 now, thanks for pointing that out @humanpuff69.

[Mashiro]

I'd like to make an addition to the message posted by @humanpuff69.

OpenVZ does indeed use the kernel branch 2.6.32 with their own modifications to make their software container based virtualization possible. That is true for the OpenVZ 6 version based on RHEL 6 only though.

It might not be popular and wide spread but the next version of OpenVZ "OpenVZ 7" is already in development for a few years. It's based on RHEL 7 and therefore has a newer kernel. That's as far as I remember the kernel branch 3.10.x.

Remember kids. November 2019 is the death of OpenVZ 6.

[deanhills]

I'd like to make an addition to the message posted by @humanpuff69.

OpenVZ does indeed use the kernel branch 2.6.32 with their own modifications to make their software container based virtualization possible. That is true for the OpenVZ 6 version based on RHEL 6 only though.

It might not be popular and wide spread but the next version of OpenVZ "OpenVZ 7" is already in development for a few years. It's based on RHEL 7 and therefore has a newer kernel. That's as far as I remember the kernel branch 3.10.x.

Remember kids. November 2019 is the death of OpenVZ 6.

Thanks very much for the feedback Hidden. So soon we should look at 3.10 Kernel as well in addition to 2.6 - until November.

I didn't have the foggiest about OpernVZ 6/7 - so nice to learn about this as well. Any idea what the difference is going to be between the two of them?

[humanpuff69]

The problem with the newer openvz 7 is that it isnt the same as older openvz 6 that is purely os level virtualization . Openvz 7 use some sort of qemu or kvm so it have sone kvm technology . I dont know how great or bad openvz7 is since i never used it but what i see now most openvz provider still use older openvz6 and it probably becausw of that reason . Openvz 7 isnt a pure openvz