VMware has upgraded its ESX Server software to add support for more
physical memory and more virtual machines, providing options for
users looking to consolidate their applications on a single
server.
VMware's ESX Server 1.5 software, like previous editions, allows
servers and workstations to run multiple copies of either Windows
or Linux operating systems on the same computer. This makes it
possible, for example, to put several Web servers on one
Intel-based server instead of running Web servers on several
systems.
ESX Server 1.5 is aimed at data centres and can support up to 64
concurrent virtual machines. It can also address up to 64Gbytes of
RAM, and permits each virtual machine to use up to 3.6Gbytes of
RAM.
Because of its ability to use more memory, the new version also
allows for more applications to be run on one physical
server.
The software typically runs on servers with two to eight processors
and lets an administrator adjust CPU, memory and bandwidth
resources on the fly for each partition.
Pricing for ESX Server 1.5 starts at $3,750 (£2,573) for a
two-processor server and rises to $10,000 (£6,863) for a server
with eight processors. The software is already available in the US
but will soon be available worldwide.
VMware is in a partnership with IBM to co-develop this type of
partitioning technology for IBM's Intel-based server line. With the
ESX Server software, the companies are touting expanded processing
capabilities at a reduced cost, because users would require fewer
Intel servers and would not have to pay for high-end
hardware.
VMware aims to make its products available for the growing blade
server market and for Intel's higher-end 64-bit Itanium processors.
The mainframe-like partitioning features of VMware's software could
help users manage a number of applications on Itanium servers and
make the hardware more competitive against Unix servers.
VMware has also released the latest beta version of its lower-end
GSX Server 2.0 software.