Altiris SVS - a new kind of virtualization

Now THIS looks interesting. A company called Altiris has released a product called Altiris SVS (Software Virtualization Solution ). It’s officially version 2.0, though I never heard about version 1.0.

In a nutshell, SVS lets you install applications in to virtualized file and registry sandbox. As far as the app knows, it’s installing into the regular file system, but SVS redirects its requests into a separate area on disk (a layer, in SVS parlance). Layers can be deactivated, in which case the app effectively disappears from your Windows install. Reactivate the layer, and the app reappears. It’s actually kind of a trip. Layers can also be rolled back to a stable state, much like a snapshot in VMWare. And even cooler, layers can be moved between machines, providing nearly instant application installs.

Coolest of all is that Altiris is providing a free personal version, so it’s easy and free to try. I’ve installed it (in VMWare, naturally) and did some very basic testing, and so far it works as advertised. Much more testing to do, though.

Obviously my biggest concern is the effect on Windows stability – SVS is operating at a very low level (basically a Windows file system filter driver, as I understand it). But if it proves stable…well, maybe I’ll finally be able to install all that Microsoft beta software on my production machine instead of in VMs. :)

There’s a review over on the PCMag, as well as a link to download the personal version.