Solaris virtualization-zones

Question

In the context of virtualization in Solaris, could someone provide a short description of the following:

• Zones
• Kernel zones
• Branded zones
• Non global zones

Answer 1

All zones are branded. The brands are "solaris", which are the standard non-global zones introduced in Solaris 10. They share a kernel with the global zone but are otherwise a distinct Solaris instance; the shared kernel means that a solaris non-global zone runs the same release level of the OS. Kernel zones are the "solaris-kz" brand. They run a distinct kernel and thus can be a different OS level than the global zone.

Branded zones was also used (incorrectly) as a term for Solaris 8, Solaris 9, and Solaris 10 non-global zones that have been provided as transition aids. They share the global zone's kernel, but it emulates the interfaces required by the older release libraries, which are installed in the zone.