CloudLinux has an ongoing commitment to supporting the diverse virtualization needs of its clients. In a significant update, CloudLinux is now officially providing support for Virtuozzo and OpenVZ containers, reversing a previous decision to limit support to hypervisors only. This change, driven by customer demand, marks a new chapter in the flexibility and functionality of CloudLinux OS.

Historical Context

Back in 2019, CloudLinux announced that it would discontinue support for Virtuozzo and OpenVZ containers, focusing instead on supporting only the hypervisor aspects of Virtuozzo and OpenVZ, along with other hypervisors such as Xen, KVM, and VMware. This decision was outlined in a blog post which emphasized the move to support hypervisors only, leaving container support aside. This led to numerous inquiries from clients regarding the continued support for containers.

Reintroduction of Container Support

In response to the increasing demand from customers who operate containerized environments, CloudLinux revisited its strategy in 2022. Recognizing the necessity for CloudLinux OS to function within containerized environments, the company decided to extend support to Virtuozzo and OpenVZ containers. This support was initially implied within the context of CloudLinux Solo and CloudLinux Admin releases, but explicit communication about the support for Virtuozzo and OpenVZ containers was not clearly stated until now.

For detailed information on installing CloudLinux in these environments, please refer to the CloudLinux installation documentation.

Enhanced CloudLinux Offerings

The reintroduction of container support comes with specific features and limitations. Notably, CloudLinux working inside containers will not support LVE (Lightweight Virtual Environment) features due to inherent restrictions. However, this limitation is mitigated by the robust features offered in CloudLinux Solo and CloudLinux Admin, which prioritize website performance and security without the need for LVE limiting.

Key features included in CloudLinux Solo and Admin are:

• AccelerateWP: Enhances WordPress performance with tailored optimization.
• PHP X-Ray: Provides in-depth PHP performance analysis.
• Mod_lsapi: Delivers improved PHP performance with LiteSpeed’s API.
• Website Monitoring Tool: Continuously tracks website uptime and performance.
• Slow Site Analyzer and Autotracing: Identifies and troubleshoots slow-performing sites.
• PHP Selector + Hardened PHP: Allows users to select the PHP version while ensuring security.
• Node.js/Python/Ruby Selector: Supports various development environments.

In addition, security features such as CageFS and symlink protection (the latter exclusive to CloudLinux Admin) enhance the security posture of web hosting environments.

Seamless Edition Switching 

A notable advancement in 2024 is the ability to switch seamlessly between different CloudLinux editions without needing to reinstall the system. This flexibility ensures that users can adapt their CloudLinux installations to evolving needs without disruptive transitions. This mechanism is also available in Virtuozzo and OpenVZ environments, providing the same seamless switching capabilities. For more details on this capability, see the blog post on seamless switching blog post on seamless switching.

CloudLinux's renewed support for Virtuozzo and OpenVZ containers underscores its dedication to meeting the dynamic needs of its clients, ensuring that both containerized and hypervisor-based virtualization environments are well-supported.