http://www.unixshell.com/wiki/index.php?title=Creating_and_using_vserver_virtual_servers

Linux-Vserver [1] is a virtualization layer that allows you to run a Linux distribution within Linux. Using this method has many benefits, most apparent of which are: added security, new and easier ways to perform backups, "hot swap-able" servers, full root access on all vservers, and multiple flavors of linux installed under the same main server.

This howto will focus on Debian as both the host and guest, however, it should be easily enough to adapt for other flavors of linux. Also, because of the nature of this wiki, it will include some unixshell specific details. Because of the way the emulation is done in linux-vserver, there is very little overhead. That said, each vserver will still consume the same amount of resources as a full installation. As a result, vservers should probably not be used on some of the more modest plans. I would suggest at least the 64, preferably the 96.

Contents

 1 Prepare the Vserver Host
     o 1.1 Kernel and vserver-utils
     o 1.2 Host Networking
           + 1.2.1 xinetd
           + 1.2.2 Networking Option A
           + 1.2.3 Networking Option B
           + 1.2.4 Saving IP Tables Rules
 2 Create a Vserver Guest
 3 Configure the Guest
     o 3.1 Guest Networking
           + 3.1.1 Guest Networking Option A
           + 3.1.2 Guest Networking Option B
 4 Tips, Tricks, and Goodies
     o 4.1 Other Guest Distros
     o 4.2 Hot swapping
     o 4.3 Backups
     o 4.4 Reselling
     o 4.5 Other
 5 External Resources

[... rest omitted, check the source instead ...]

Page last modified 5 March 2006

documented on: 2008-02-03