Multipass vs QEMU

Struggling to choose between Multipass and QEMU? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Multipass is a Development solution with tags like virtualization, ubuntu, linux, docker.

It boasts features such as Create Ubuntu VMs with a single command, CLI and GUI available, Built-in SSH access to VMs, Suspend and restart VMs while maintaining state, Share folders between host and VMs, Customizable CPU and memory allocation, VM image caching to speed up launches and pros including Simple and easy to use, Lightweight and fast VM launches, Reproducible dev environments, Native clients for Linux, macOS and Windows, Active development and maintenance.

On the other hand, QEMU is a System & Hardware product tagged with emulator, virtualization, open-source.

Its standout features include Full system emulation for multiple CPU architectures, Dynamic translation for fast emulation, TCG JIT dynamic translator, KVM acceleration, User mode emulation, Virtualization with KVM kernel module, Snapshotting and live migration of VMs, Emulation of various devices like disk, network, graphics etc, Support for many guest operating systems, and it shines with pros like Open source and free, Good performance through dynamic translation, Feature rich emulation capabilities, Active development community, Cross-platform support.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Multipass

Multipass

Multipass is a lightweight virtual machine manager for Linux, Windows and macOS. It simplifies setting up virtual Ubuntu instances in just a few clicks, allowing developers to easily create reproducible development environments.

Categories:
virtualization ubuntu linux docker

Multipass Features

  1. Create Ubuntu VMs with a single command
  2. CLI and GUI available
  3. Built-in SSH access to VMs
  4. Suspend and restart VMs while maintaining state
  5. Share folders between host and VMs
  6. Customizable CPU and memory allocation
  7. VM image caching to speed up launches

Pricing

  • Free
  • Open Source

Pros

Simple and easy to use

Lightweight and fast VM launches

Reproducible dev environments

Native clients for Linux, macOS and Windows

Active development and maintenance

Cons

Only supports Ubuntu VMs currently

Limited configuration options compared to other VM managers

No snapshot or cloning support yet

No built-in orchestration features


QEMU

QEMU

QEMU is an open source machine emulator and virtualizer. It can emulate a complete computer system, including peripherals, and allow you to launch different operating systems without rebooting your physical machine.

Categories:
emulator virtualization open-source

QEMU Features

  1. Full system emulation for multiple CPU architectures
  2. Dynamic translation for fast emulation
  3. TCG JIT dynamic translator
  4. KVM acceleration
  5. User mode emulation
  6. Virtualization with KVM kernel module
  7. Snapshotting and live migration of VMs
  8. Emulation of various devices like disk, network, graphics etc
  9. Support for many guest operating systems

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Open source and free

Good performance through dynamic translation

Feature rich emulation capabilities

Active development community

Cross-platform support

Cons

Configuration can be complex

Limitations in emulating proprietary and closed-source OSs

Steep learning curve

Not as seamless as virtualization solutions like VirtualBox