Xen Alternatives

Xen is described as 'org, home of the Xen hypervisor, the powerful open source industry standard for virtualization. It is a native (bare-metal) hypervisor providing services that allow multiple computer operating systems to execute on the same computer hardware concurrently' and is a popular Virtualization tool in the network & admin category. There are more than 25 alternatives to Xen for a variety of platforms, including Linux, Windows, Mac, Web-based and Self-Hosted apps. The best Xen alternative is VirtualBox, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like Xen are KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine), OpenStack, Windows Sandbox and Portable Virtualbox.

Xen alternatives are mainly Virtualization Tools but may also be Cloud Computing Services or Cloud Hosting Services. Filter by these if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Xen.

Xen alternatives page was last updated

Xen

Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool

Xen.org, home of the Xen hypervisor, the powerful open source industry standard for virtualization. It is a native...

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VirtualBox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Mac
Windows
Linux
BSD
Solaris
61 VirtualBox alternatives
VirtualBox is a powerful x86 and AMD64/Intel64 virtualization product for enterprise as well as home use. Not only is VirtualBox an extremely feature rich, high performance product for enterprise customers, it is also the only professional solution that is freely available as...
- - VirtualBox is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to Xen.
- - VirtualBox is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Xen.
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VirtualBox Features
1. LightweightVirtualBox consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
2. Container VirtualizationVirtualBox can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
3. PortableVirtualBox can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
Multiple languages
KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine)
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Linux
Android
40 KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) alternatives
KVM (for Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is a full virtualization solution for Linux on x86 hardware containing virtualization extensions (Intel VT or AMD-V). It consists of a loadable kernel module, kvm.
- - KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is the most popular Android alternative to Xen.
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KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) Features
1. Command line interfaceKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) either have CLI support or is a CLI-only app.
2. Container VirtualizationKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
3. LightweightKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
4. PortableKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
5. Privacy focusedKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is considered a privacy friendly alternative.
6. Extensible by Plugins/ExtensionsKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) can be extended with add-ons, plugins and extensions.
Linux-based
Nt kernel
Security focused
Emulation
OpenStack
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Cloud Computing Service
Cloud Hosting Service
Online
Self-Hosted
70 OpenStack alternatives
OpenStack OpenStack is a global collaboration of developers and cloud computing technologists producing the ubiquitous open source cloud computing platform for public and private clouds. The project aims to deliver solutions for all types of clouds by being simple to implement...
- - OpenStack is the most popular Web-based & Self-Hosted alternative to Xen.
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OpenStack Features
1. Privacy focusedOpenStack is considered a privacy friendly alternative.
2. Multiple Account supportOpenStack support multiple accounts without the need to logout and login
3. DecentralizedOpenStack is based on a decentralized infrastructure with no single entity controlling it.
4. Ad-freeOpenStack doesn't contain any form of external advertising.
5. Two-factor AuthenticationOpenStack supports two-factor authentication (2FA).
Cloud IDE
Dashboard
Windows Sandbox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Proprietary
Virtualization Tool
Windows
52 Windows Sandbox alternatives
a new lightweight desktop environment tailored for safely running applications in isolation.
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Windows Sandbox Features
1. Container VirtualizationWindows Sandbox can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
2. LightweightWindows Sandbox consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
Sandbox
Portable Virtualbox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Windows
40 Portable Virtualbox alternatives
Portable-VirtualBox is a free and open source software tool that lets you run any operating system from a usb stick without separate installation. It unpacks and adjusts the paths and configuration of VirtualBox so it will run portably.
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Portable Virtualbox Features
1. PortablePortable Virtualbox can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
GNU/linux-libre
Discontinued
It has not been updated since 2017 and does not work with any version of Virtualbox beyond v5.1.22.
SmartOS
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Self-Hosted
14 SmartOS alternatives
SmartOS is a hypervisor lean enough to run entirely in memory, powerful enough to run as much as you want to throw at it. Provisioning is blindingly fast, thanks to zones and ZFS file system creation.
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SmartOS Features
1. Ad-freeSmartOS doesn't contain any form of external advertising.
2. LightweightSmartOS consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
3. Command line interfaceSmartOS either have CLI support or is a CLI-only app.
4. Rolling ReleaseSmartOS supports updates that are continuously rolled out, rather than in batches of versions.
5. Container VirtualizationSmartOS can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
6. No TrackingSmartOS will not track you or use your personal data.
Hypervisor
VMware vSphere Hypervisor
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Paid • Proprietary
Virtualization Tool
Windows
Linux
NVIDIA vGPU
AMD MxGPU
40 VMware vSphere Hypervisor alternatives
VMware vSphere Hypervisor ( based on ESXi ) is a free bare-metal hypervisor that virtualizes servers so you can consolidate your applications on less hardware.
- - VMware vSphere Hypervisor is the most popular commercial alternative to Xen.
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VMware vSphere Hypervisor Features
VPS
LXC Linux Containers
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Linux
6 LXC Linux Containers alternatives
Containers which offer an environment as close as possible as the one you'd get from a VM but without the overhead that comes with running a separate kernel and simulating all the hardware.
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LXC Linux Containers Features
1. Command line interfaceLXC Linux Containers either have CLI support or is a CLI-only app.
2. Container VirtualizationLXC Linux Containers can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
3. LightweightLXC Linux Containers consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
Sandbox
XCP-ng
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Linux
NVIDIA vGPU
AMD MxGPU
17 XCP-ng alternatives
XCP-ng is a high-performance, enterprise-level hypervisor with a rich ecosystem and is the result of massive cooperation between individuals and companies. All commercial features are enabled with no commitment required to a support agreement.
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XCP-ng Features
1. DRM FreeNo Digital rights management (DRM), i.e. no copy protection.
Live migration
Unlimited resource usage
Hypervisor
Clustering
Live VDI-Migration
Replication
High Availability
Disaster Recovery
Compatible with xen
Comments about XCP-ng as a Alternative to Xen
pros, cons and recent comments
Ricardo Sales
Based on XenServer, XCP-ng is the result of massive cooperation between individuals and companies, to deliver a product without limits. No restrictions on features and every bit available on GitHub!
Positive comment•
0
Microsoft Hyper-V Server
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Proprietary
Virtualization Tool
Windows
47 Microsoft Hyper-V Server alternatives
Microsoft Hyper-V Server is a free product that delivers enterprise-class virtualization for your datacenter and hybrid cloud. Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2019 provides new and enhanced features that can help you deliver the scale and performance needs of your mission-critical...
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Microsoft Hyper-V Server Features
Hypervisor
VPS
Distrobox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Linux
6 Distrobox alternatives
Use any Linux distribution inside your terminal. Enable both backward and forward compatibility with software and freedom to use whatever distribution you’re more comfortable with. Distrobox uses podman or docker to create containers using the Linux distribution of your choice.
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Distrobox Features
1. Container VirtualizationDistrobox can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
2. Command line interfaceDistrobox either have CLI support or is a CLI-only app.
Support for Docker
Docker Container
bhyve
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
BSD
FreeBSD
20 bhyve alternatives
bhyve (pronounced "bee hive", formerly written as BHyVe) is a type-2 hypervisor that runs FreeBSD 9+, OpenBSD, Linux and MS Window desktop (versions Vista, 7, 8/8.1/8.2 and 10), as well as MS Windows Server (versions 2008/2008R2, 2012/2012R2 and 2016 Technical Preview...
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bhyve Features
Hypervisor
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