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I am a developer and I am currently working on a project that needs to support macOS, Windows and Linux. I usually work on a MacBook with virtual machines but for this project this just doesn't cut it.

I have a powerful desktop PC under my desk that I used to use for gaming and i am wondering if it is possible to have a setup where I can

  • install Windows and Ubuntu on my PC
  • access both systems via terminal either / or remote desktop using my MacBook
  • here's the catch… at the same time

Running to OSs at the same time sounds barely possible, but I have also heard about Xen Virtualization which I don't quite get so before you just say "no" and mark this question maybe it's possible to explain the possibilities and where things get impossible for this kind of request.

Lukas
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    There's no way to run simultaneously more than one OS without some kind of virtualization. –  Oct 01 '19 at 15:52
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    ESXi could be a solution. If you were to run a VSphere server within a VM to manage the cluster, you could use the vCenter web client to open a console to both. However, if a VM does not satisfy your requirements (for unknown reasons), neither would this solution. – Ramhound Oct 01 '19 at 16:11
  • I'd suggest getting the trial of VMware Workstation and installing it on your gaming PC. You can create a Ubuntu VM. If you access Windows via RDP, you'll see your Ubuntu VM in a Window (like an app) on your desktop and you'll be able to move between Windows and Ubuntu. – essjae Oct 01 '19 at 18:14
  • Thanks guys. My issue is that my MacBook does not have enough performance to run the VMs I need and, more importantly, I could not find a virtualization software that runs on macOS that enables access to the Mac's Bluetooth adapter for the guest OSs – Lukas Oct 02 '19 at 08:56

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An operating system (OS) is - among other things - being responsible to manage hardware resources. Imagine there would be two OS's running in parallel and both want to send a network packet at the same time. This would result in both OS's writing to the networks card memory address at the same time and thereby destroying probably both packets. This simple example demonstrates why it is impossible to run two OS's concurrently on bare metal.

However, type 1 hypervisors (like Xen) can be viewed as highly specialized OS's which run directly on the host's hardware with the only purpose to orchestrate and isolate the running guest OS's. Therefore they outperform type 2 hypervisors (like VirtualBox) in many cases.

Difference between hypervisor types

So if you only need to have better performance, my advice would be to try a type 1 hypervisor. If the performance penalty is still to high for your use case or if you need the OS's to run on bare-metal your best bet would to set up a dual-boot system or buy additional hardware.

dirdi
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