(1) Hardware. A "bare metal computer" is generally one without any software (OS or applications). However, when contrasted with a virtualized server environment, bare metal may imply a regular, non-virtual server that does include an OS. See
bare bones system and
bare-metal server.
(2) A "bare metal" virtual machine monitor, correctly called a "hypervisor," directly controls the hardware without using device drivers from another operating system (see
virtual machine). See
bare-metal switch.