I hear about this from the "security now" podcasts: colinux.
It is a linux that runs in windows. Unlike virtualization, it shares the kernel or something to that extent, which puts little of no overhead on the system.
http://www.colinux.org/?section=home
Episode 136: You will probably want to load the text, or pdf file and then just do a search for colinux, it will take you to the text transcript of the show
that contains the discussion about colinux. It is a time saver in case you don't want to listen to the podcast.
I think you guys will find it interesting.
http://www.grc.com/SecurityNow.htm