

The M16 star cluster

Source: HubbleSite

The OpenNebula project has announced the release of the latest major version of its open source cloud computing framework. OpenNebula 4.0, code-named "Eagle" after the M16 star cluster, introduces a redesigned Sunstone administration interface, a number of new virtual machine features, and improvements to several of the core components of the platform. The OpenNebula toolkit is used by, among others, the European Space Agency, Fermilab, CERN, and China Mobile and provides IaaS management capabilities for virtual infrastructure in data centres.

The redesigned Sunstone interface gives the web-based administration front-end a more modern look and introduces the Sunstone Views option, which allows users or groups of users to customise the UI to their liking. Sunstone Views replaces the self-service portal of the 3.x series of OpenNebula and administrators can use it to customise what kinds of access users have to the OpenNebula installation as a whole.



The redesigned Sunstone UI

Source: OpenNebula project

Where virtual machine management is concerned, OpenNebula 4.0 brings the ability to snapshot complete VM states, including the system's memory and disk storage, which can be reverted on running VMs. Disk snapshots can now also be performed on live VMs, meaning that applications have to guarantee filesystem integrity when run on this version of OpenNebula. Other new features include scheduled VM operations such as starts and shutdowns, hot plugging for network cards, and more command-line features. OpenNebula 4.0 also includes new drivers and refinements to its scheduler. A complete list of features is available in the release notes.

OpenNebula can be downloaded from the project's web site as source or binary packages for CentOS, Ubuntu, openSUSE and Debian. OpenNebula's source code is licensed under the Apache 2.0 licence.

(fab)