Newsgroups: comp.os.mach
Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!van-bc!ubc-cs!uw-beaver!rice!news
From: troth@rio-grande.rice.edu (Richard M Troth)
Subject: Re: Mach as a Virtual Machine
Message-ID: <1991May2.214203.21549@rice.edu>
Sender: news@rice.edu (News)
Organization: Rice University
Date: Thu, 2 May 91 21:42:03 GMT

Organization: Rice University, Houston, TX.
Date: Wednesday, 1 May 1991 14:40:32 CDT
From: Rick Troth <TROTH@RICEVM2.RICE.EDU>
Message-ID: <91121.144032TROTH@RICEVM2.RICE.EDU>
Newsgroups: comp.os.mach
Subject: Re: Mach as a Virtual Machine
References: <1991Apr19.180259.18834@cs.cmu.edu> <21336@paperboy.OSF.ORG>
 
When I first caught this discussion,  I wanted to say,  "No no ...
you don't understand what a VM virtual machine is/does.".  But now
that everyone has defined their terms,  it's clear that we all do.
VM in fact emulates some instructions that do not exist on native
360/370/390 machines.  VM provides the testing-new-releases and the
running-different-environments-concurrently aspects Mach offers.
It also allows you to run VM on VM,  which Mach does not offer.
And,  of course,  Mach offers a number of features VM does not,
not the least of which is some sense of portability.   :-]
 
I should maybe have changed the subject to "Mach IN a Virtual Machine".
I'm in the middle of a research project at Texas A&M to configure a
personal UNIX [UNIX is a trademark of ATT] as an alternative to CMS.
Mach/370 would certainly be of great use,  although I am sure I would
not be able to complete implementing it in this go-around.  My e-mail
tracks led me into IBM research,  which has now proven to be a dry gully.
[it's gettin' near Summer]   If any of you know of a lead to a Mach/370
port,  please please tell me.
 
VM offers some interesting possibilities to Mach:  if you picture the VM
world as a virtual network,  you can see one virtual machine acting as
the UNIX server,  one or more acting as file servers,  etc.,  with user
virtual machines serving individual users or small groups.  And this
virtual network can just as well be "plugged in" to your real network,
offering access to/from non-370 machines.
--
 "The tomb is empty"
 Rick Troth <TROTH@RICEVM1.RICE.EDU> ------------- Rice ONCS VM Systems Support
