Virtualization
Virtualization is the creation of a virtual (rather than actual) version of something, such as an Operating System, a Server, a storage device or network resources.
You probably know a little about virtualization if you have ever divided your hard drive into different partitions. A partition is the logical division of a hard disk drive to create, in effect, two separate hard drives.
Operating system virtualization is the use of software to allow a piece of hardware to run multiple operating system images at the same time. The technology got its start on mainframes decades ago, allowing administrators to avoid wasting expensive processing power.
In 2005, virtualization software was adopted faster than anyone imagined, including the experts. There are three areas of IT where virtualization is making headroads, Network Virtualization.
- Network virtualization is a method of combining the available resources in a network by splitting up the available bandwidth into channels, each of which is independent from the others, and each of which can be assigned (or reassigned) to a particular server or device in real time. The idea is that virtualization disguises the true complexity of the network by separating it into manageable parts, much like your partitioned hard drive makes it easier to manage your files.
- Storage virtualization is the pooling of physical storage from multiple network storage devices into what appears to be a single storage device that is managed from a central console. Storage virtualization is commonly used in storage area networks (SANs).
- Server virtualization is the masking of server resources (including the number and identity of individual physical servers, processors, and operating systems) from server users. The intention is to spare the user from having to understand and manage complicated details of server resources while increasing resource sharing and utilization and maintaining the capacity to expand later.
Virtualization can be viewed as part of an overall trend in enterprise IT that includes autonomic computing, a scenario in which the IT environment will be able to manage itself based on perceived activity, and utility computing, in which computer processing power is seen as a utility that clients can pay for only as needed. The usual goal of virtualization is to centralize administrative tasks while improving scalability and work loads.
Why Your Company Should Virtualize
Virtualizing your IT infrastructure lets you reduce IT costs while increasing the efficiency, utilization, and flexibility of your existing assets. Around the world, companies of every size benefit from virtualization. Thousands of organizations—including all of the Fortune 100—use virtualization solutions. See how virtualizing 100% of your IT infrastructure will benefit your organization.
Top 5 Reasons to Adopt Virtualization Software
- 1. Get more out of your existing resources: Pool common infrastructure resources and break the legacy “one application to one server” model with server consolidation.
- 2. Reduce datacenter costs by reducing your physical infrastructure and improving your server to admin ratio: Fewer servers and related IT hardware means reduced real estate and Reduce power and cooling requirements. Better management tools let you improve your server to admin ratio so personnel requirements are reduced as well.
- 3. Increase availability of hardware and aplications for improved business continuity: Securely backup and migrate entire virtual environments with no interruption in service. Eliminate planned downtime and recover immediately from unplanned issues.
- 4. Gain operational flexibility: Respond to market changes with dynamic resource management, faster server provisioning and improved desktop and application deployment.
- 5. Improve desktop manageability and security: Deploy, manage and monitor secure desktop enviroments that users can access locally or remotely, with or without a network connection, on almost any standard desktop, laptop or tablet PC.