EMC Corp., the parent company of hypervisor maker VMware Inc,. is emerging as an unexpected force in the industry shift beyond traditional server virtualization. The company yesterday open-sourced a homegrown tool called Unik that is meant to streamline the creation of unikernels, a promising alternative to virtual machines and containers.

Whereas the average vSphere or Docker instance consists of multiple discrete components, a unikernel fuses its workload with the operating system below into a single binary file. The approach makes it possible to include only the parts of the Linux stack that are needed for the application to function, which greatly reduces hardware usage and thereby allows for more processes to be fit on a given server. As a result, organizations can potentially end up having to spend less on infrastructure than in a more traditional arrangement without compromising any operational performance.

In fact, unikernels actively help improve management when it comes to security: Removing unnecessary operating system features leaves fewer moving  parts for hackers to try and  exploit. That in turn makes it easier for administrators to handle tasks like patching and frees them to focus on other tasks, thus speeding up their entire workflow. EMC’s Unik aims to lower the entry barrier to the technology by providing a straightforward command-line interface for turning applications into unikernels.

According to its GitHub page, the tool makes the process as easy as building Docker containers. Developers can assemble unikernel with a few commands using their compiler of choice, configure it for their infrastructure of their choice and then deploy it right away. Unik integrates with vSphere to allow for images to be run in virtualized environments and also supports popular public clouds like AWS. According to EMC, an image created using its engine can potentially even be made run on a connected device thanks to its low resource requirements.

The release of Unik bodes well for future unikernel adoption, especially since EMC is only one of several players that are backing the technology. The other big name on the list is Docker Inc., which joined the fray a few months ago by acquiring the U.K-based Unikernel Systems Ltd., a startup founded by the creators of the Xen hypervisor.

Image via Geralt