StratoVirt

What StratoVirt is

StratoVirt is a Linux virtual machine monitor for cloud data centers, intended for virtual machines, containers, and serverless workloads. It runs on x86_64 and AArch64 hosts with KVM and provides a command-line management interface. Its external API is compatible with QEMU Monitor Protocol, it supports OCI compatibility, and it can connect with libvirt. Lightweight workloads can use fast boot, while standard VMs can boot with UEFI and attach Virtio-pci or VFIO devices. StratoVirt provides common I/O functions alongside minimalist device emulation. The documentation states that a microVM can start within 50 ms and use less than 4 MB of memory. It works with iSulad and Kata containers and can integrate with Kubernetes. Its feature list describes hardware-based isolation and Rust language-level security, and says it uses fewer than 46 system calls while running. Intel and Arm platforms are supported. Both host and guest operating systems are limited to Linux, with kernel versions 4.19 and 5.10 recommended. A VM can have up to 254 CPUs. The installation guide lists minimum requirements of a 2-core CPU, 4 GiB memory, and 16 GiB of available drive space. StratoVirt is free.

Who it suits

StratoVirt suits teams running Linux-based cloud data centers that need a monitor for VMs, containers, or serverless workloads. It is also relevant where compatibility with QEMU Monitor Protocol, libvirt, OCI, iSulad, Kata containers, or Kubernetes matters.

Getting started

1. Open the StratoVirt project website.
2. Use an AArch64 or x86_64 host with KVM.
3. Check that the host meets the listed minimum CPU, memory, and drive requirements.
4. Install StratoVirt on Linux and manage it through the command-line interface.

Verdict

Choose StratoVirt for Linux cloud workloads needing VM, container, and serverless support, with a free monitor and Kubernetes integration. Look elsewhere if you need a non-Linux host or guest, or a management interface beyond the command line.