Which software abstracts processor, memory, and storage resources from physical hardware to be allocated to VMs?

Which software abstracts processor, memory, and storage resources from physical hardware to be allocated to VMs?

• A. Hypervisor
• B. Router
• C. Switch
• D. BIOS

Answer: (A)

Virtualization relies on software that sits between the physical hardware and the virtual machines, exposing CPU, memory, and storage as resources that can be allocated to each VM and managed independently. This software is the hypervisor. It abstracts the underlying hardware, providing isolation between VMs and orchestrating how much CPU time, memory, and storage each VM receives, along with how I/O is handled. Hypervisors come in two broad flavors: Type 1 (bare-metal), which runs directly on the hardware for better performance and security, and Type 2, which runs on a host operating system. The other options don’t fit because routers and switches are networking devices that route packets, not allocate hardware resources to VMs, and BIOS is firmware that initializes hardware at boot and doesn’t manage VM resource allocation.

Virtualization relies on software that sits between the physical hardware and the virtual machines, exposing CPU, memory, and storage as resources that can be allocated to each VM and managed independently. This software is the hypervisor. It abstracts the underlying hardware, providing isolation between VMs and orchestrating how much CPU time, memory, and storage each VM receives, along with how I/O is handled. Hypervisors come in two broad flavors: Type 1 (bare-metal), which runs directly on the hardware for better performance and security, and Type 2, which runs on a host operating system. The other options don’t fit because routers and switches are networking devices that route packets, not allocate hardware resources to VMs, and BIOS is firmware that initializes hardware at boot and doesn’t manage VM resource allocation.