Virtualization & Cloud Basics Lab

Hands-on exercises for setting up and managing virtual machines and cloud environments.

February 9, 2025

Virtualization & Cloud Basics Lab

Setting Up Your Virtual Environment

Follow these steps to set up your virtualization platform:

1. Choosing Your Virtualization Platform

Select one of the following options to create a virtual machine:

VirtualBox (Recommended for most users)
Hyper-V (For Windows Pro/Enterprise users)
VMware Workstation Player
Cloud Instances (AWS, Azure, GCP)

2. Installing a Virtual Machine

Download Ubuntu or Debian ISO from the official site.
Create a new virtual machine in your chosen platform.
Allocate 2+ CPU cores, 4GB RAM, and 20GB storage.
Boot the VM and install the operating system.

Working with Virtual Machines

3. Managing VM Snapshots

Take a snapshot before making system changes.
Restore a previous snapshot if something breaks.
Export VM configurations for backup.

4. Remote Access with SSH

Enable SSH on your virtual machine:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install openssh-server
sudo systemctl enable ssh
sudo systemctl start ssh

Find your VM’s IP address:
```
ip a
```
Connect from your host machine:
```
ssh user@<vm-ip-address>
```

Introduction to Containers

5. Setting Up Docker (Optional but Recommended)

Install Docker:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install docker.io -y
sudo systemctl enable docker
sudo systemctl start docker

Run a simple container:
```
docker run hello-world
```
List running containers:
```
docker ps
```

Self-Check: Virtualization & Cloud Mastery

Try answering these questions:

What is the difference between a VM snapshot and a backup?
How can you access a cloud instance remotely?
Why are containers more lightweight than traditional VMs?

Submitting Your Work

Include screenshots and documentation of completed steps.
Submit your work through the course website or designated repository.