Virtual systems are software-based simulations of computer systems, that run on top hardware. They can offer a range of advantages to your company such as IT efficiency and cost savings.
Virtual machines are ideal for testing new software, use Wikis or Jabber IM services and make backup images of your current system for quicker recovery in the event of disaster. Virtual machines can be replicated, or migrated to other physical servers in high availability configurations, thus reducing downtime.
The capability to virtualize multiple systems results in significant reductions in server equipment, energy and maintenance costs. IT personnel can be less busy with maintenance tasks, like updating software, as the virtual infrastructure is controlled by an integrated platform. This increased efficiency will allow your team to concentrate on projects that will propel your business forward.
Improved Data Security & Disaster Recovery
VMs are hardware-independent, meaning that they can be moved from one physical server to another just as easily as moving files on your desktop or laptop. This is particularly useful in the event where the company that developed an older piece of software goes out of business or if it’s no longer supported by the original equipment manufacturer.
The type of hypervisor that is used in a virtualized system can affect the management of the virtualized environment. A hypervisor that is optimize data management for better decision-making bare-metal, such as VMware vSphere or Microsoft Hyper-V, provides more control and is independent of the host operating system. A hypervisor hosted by a host, such as KVM, (built into Linux kernel) can forward VM requests to the host OS which can impede VM performance.