For most IT managers the need to do more with less has never
been more pressing. But how can you build better IT systems with
reduced funds? There is one approach that has become the hottest
topic - virtualisation,writes Michael Hassan, product
manager atNetBenefit.
Although virtualisation has been around for a number of years
and has been adopted by large corporates, financial organisations
and enterprises, it is now moving firmly into the web hosting space
where users are anticipating the resulting benefits of improved
operational efficiency, reduced hardware requirements, better use
of technology - and ultimately lower costs.
From a business perspective, there are many reasons for
deploying virtualisation but the most often quoted is server
consolidation. Simply put, if you can virtualise a number of
under-utilised systems on a single server, there are distinct
savings in power, space, cooling, and administration.
Whether it's the cost of cooling thousands of physical servers,
powering the boxes, or simply finding the real estate for them, a
purely physical server infrastructure can be expensive for many end
users. With space at a premium and limits on power, particularly in
London, virtualisation can help companies meet the challenge of
coping with ever-increasing computing resource requirements, within
their current environment. This reduction in power consumption and
the actual amount of physical space required also has strong
environmental benefits.
With Microsoft promoting virtualisation, coupled with maturing
technology, there is no doubt customer demand will drive
virtualisation in the hosting space. Not only can it help
businesses scale easily, it can help a company work more
efficiently. If you can move the equivalent of many servers onto a
large-capacity dedicated server, with less wasted space and a
greener footprint , why would you choose anything else?
But a word of warning: even though virtualisation has a part to
play it needs to be understood properly because it's not ideal for
everyone. In some scenarios it might make more sense to keep some
workload on physical hardware. Astute hosting providers remain
unfazed by the hype and ensure their customers get the best
solution for their needs - it might make a lot more sense to move
them into a virtual world, especially those that are not making
optimum use of their hardware but for others, a physical
environment may well continue to be the best solution.
Security, as always, is a critical consideration. A diligent
approach which considers the specific environment, including
virtualisation technology, is required. Gartner is predicting that
in 2009 as many as 60% of production [virtual machines] will be
less secure than their physical counterparts, bullet-proof security
is vital. The danger is that many will rush into adopting
virtualisation without ensuring that robust security strategies are
in place.
Virtualisation is clearly here to stay and there are equally
many benefits in a hosted, outsourced environment as there are in
the in-house, enterprise environment. However, keeping it in
perspective as a tool in the box of a varied portfolio of solutions
is the right approach. Virtualisation is not the panacea to resolve
the need for reliable, high-performance and cost-effective managed
hosting services.