Envisioning true cloud computing

it's a kludge. When an OS kernel can instantly request, adapt, and use additional compute resources without going through these back alleys, we'll be closer to the concept of true cloud computing: server instances with no concern for underlying hardware, no concept of fixed CPUs, no concept of fixed or static RAM. These will be operating systems that tightly integrate with the hypervisor at the scheduling level, that care not one whit about processor and core affinity, about optimizing for NUMA, or about running out of RAM.

The forthcoming Windows Server 8 Hyper-V

(I should note that Microsoft has already done something like this in the forthcoming Windows Server 8 Hyper-V, enabling the hypervisor to hot-add RAM to a Microsoft OS even as old as Windows Server 2003 R2. It just says, "Oh, more RAM," and goes with it -- good show.)