virt-manager is a graphical program that lets you create, run and manage virtual machines, which are computers running inside another computer. It is aimed at people and system administrators who want to run other operating systems on a Linux machine or server.
Has 1 of 5
How many people bookmarked its code on GitHub. It shows how popular it is, not how good it is or how well it replaces the app.
How hard it is to start using it. Easy: install it like a normal app, or use it in your browser. Advanced: you run it on your own server, use the command line, or it is a tool for developers.
Its code changed within the last year, so someone is still looking after it.
Does the whole job.
Ordered by how fully it replaces the app, Verified, setup and, when there are enough, people's votes.
VirtualBox is a free program that lets you run other operating systems, such as Windows or Linux, inside your current computer as a separate virtual machine. It is made for everyday users, laptops, desktops and servers, and for people who need to test software.
Has 2 of 5
How many people bookmarked its code on GitHub. It shows how popular it is, not how good it is or how well it replaces the app.
How hard it is to start using it. Easy: install it like a normal app, or use it in your browser. Advanced: you run it on your own server, use the command line, or it is a tool for developers.
Its code changed within the last year, so someone is still looking after it.
Does the whole job.
Ordered by how fully it replaces the app, Verified, setup and, when there are enough, people's votes.
UTM is a free app that lets you run other operating systems, such as Windows or Linux, inside your Apple device like a Mac, iPhone or iPad. It is aimed at everyday people who want to use another system alongside their own.
Has 1 of 5 · Windows, Mac and Linux app ✗
How many people bookmarked its code on GitHub. It shows how popular it is, not how good it is or how well it replaces the app.
How hard it is to start using it. Easy: install it like a normal app, or use it in your browser. Advanced: you run it on your own server, use the command line, or it is a tool for developers.
Its code changed within the last year, so someone is still looking after it.
Does part of the job.
Ordered by how fully it replaces the app, Verified, setup and, when there are enough, people's votes.
Incus is software that runs full Linux systems inside containers or virtual machines on a computer or server, letting it act like a small private cloud. It is aimed at system administrators, IT staff and developers who manage servers or set up test environments.
Has 0 of 5 · Windows, Mac and Linux app ✗ +1
How many people bookmarked its code on GitHub. It shows how popular it is, not how good it is or how well it replaces the app.
How hard it is to start using it. Easy: install it like a normal app, or use it in your browser. Advanced: you run it on your own server, use the command line, or it is a tool for developers.
Its code changed within the last year, so someone is still looking after it.
Does part of the job.
Ordered by how fully it replaces the app, Verified, setup and, when there are enough, people's votes.
None of these match. Try another device.
Help me choose
I want to pick an open-source replacement for VMware Workstation / vSphere. Below is a list from Open Source Everything (CC BY-SA 4.0), in the order its website shows it. The order is a starting point, not a verdict.
- virt-manager: virt-manager is a graphical program that lets you create, run and manage virtual machines, which are computers running inside another computer. It is aimed at people and system administrators who want to run other operating systems on a Linux machine or server. [Easy setup; Linux; replaces fully; GPL-2.0; https://github.com/virt-manager/virt-manager]
- VirtualBox: VirtualBox is a free program that lets you run other operating systems, such as Windows or Linux, inside your current computer as a separate virtual machine. It is made for everyday users, laptops, desktops and servers, and for people who need to test software. [Easy setup; Windows · Mac · Linux; replaces fully; GPL-3.0; https://github.com/VirtualBox/virtualbox]
- UTM: UTM is a free app that lets you run other operating systems, such as Windows or Linux, inside your Apple device like a Mac, iPhone or iPad. It is aimed at everyday people who want to use another system alongside their own. [Easy setup; Mac · Linux · iPhone; replaces partly; Apache-2.0; https://github.com/utmapp/UTM]
- Incus: Incus is software that runs full Linux systems inside containers or virtual machines on a computer or server, letting it act like a small private cloud. It is aimed at system administrators, IT staff and developers who manage servers or set up test environments. [Advanced setup; Windows · Mac · Linux; replaces partly; Apache-2.0; https://github.com/lxc/incus]
Setup rating: "Easy setup" means you can install it like a normal app, use it in a browser. "Advanced setup" means you must run it on your own server or use the command line, or it is a tool for developers.
Full details: https://opensourceeverything.org/data/groups/virtual-machines.json
Before recommending anything, ask me these three questions (one at a time, in plain words): 1) Which device or devices will I use it on (Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iPhone)? 2) How comfortable am I with technical setup: only installing apps from a store, happy to follow a step-by-step guide, or comfortable with servers and the command line? 3) What is my budget: free only, or willing to pay for hosting or support? Then recommend one to three projects from this list only, and for each say why, using how fully it replaces the app, its setup rating, and the devices it runs on. If nothing on the list fits me, say so plainly instead of stretching.
Before you build
Read the list of open-source projects at https://opensourceeverything.org/data/groups/virtual-machines.json. Compare it with my project or idea below. Tell me which projects overlap, what I could reuse instead of rewriting, and what mine does that none of them do.
My project or idea:
