“User-mode Linux (UML) is the port of Linux that runs inside
Linux. This provides a virtual Linux machine running on the
physical Linux host. This is interesting from a purely technical
standpoint, since it demonstrates that the Linux system call
interface is complete enough to be self-hosting. It is also very
interesting from a practical point of view, as it lends itself to a
surprisingly wide variety of applications.“UML can run essentially anything that will run on the host (the
exceptions mainly being things that deal directly with hardware).
This means that a UML can do anything that a physical Linux machine
can, with the advantage that UMLs can be created and destroyed as
needed. The fact that a UML instance is virtual gives it
capabilities which make even more applications possible.“Many of these applications are common to any virtual machine
technology which can boot a Linux kernel, while others are due to
the unique design of UML…”
Web Webster has more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience in the tech sector. He’s written and edited news, demand generation, user-focused, and thought leadership content for business software solutions, consumer tech, and Linux Today, he edits and writes for a portfolio of tech industry news and analysis websites including webopedia.com, and DatabaseJournal.com.
LinuxToday is a trusted, contributor-driven news resource supporting all types of Linux users. Our thriving international community engages with us through social media and frequent content contributions aimed at solving problems ranging from personal computing to enterprise-level IT operations. LinuxToday serves as a home for a community that struggles to find comparable information elsewhere on the web.
Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2025 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved
Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.