HP, VMware each launch new virtualization options
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(InfoWorld) - Hewlett-Packard is upgrading its virtualization software offerings to help data center managers better manage their virtual environments, while VMware is offering a virtualization capability for Web hosting companies. HP on Wednesday announced enhancements to its HP Virtual Server Environment software for its Integrity line of servers, which creates a pool of virtual servers that can expand and contract depending on capacity needs. Virtualization refers to the practice of running multiple software applications on one physical server to enhance utilization. Previously, most servers were dedicated to running only one application, but that kept utilization rates as low as 15 to 20 percent. Virtualization increases server utilization, thus reducing the need to buy, power, cool, and manage additional servers. HP also offers a specific software tool, Integrity Essentials Capacity Advisor, for easing the migration of data from Sun servers to HP servers. Although virtualization improves server utilization, it requires different management tools than a nonvirtual environment. HP says the Integrity Essentials Global Workload Manager, another feature of Virtual Server Environment, specifies which computer workloads can automatically access available capacity in order to maintain service level agreements for key applications. The company also announced a new Partner Virtualization Program, which allows ISVs to test how their software will work in an HP virtualization environment. Testing and fine-tuning can be done for virtualization using HP ProLiant and Integrity servers and with a number of operating systems, including HP-Unix, Windows Microsoft, and Novell and Red Hat Linux. The Virtual Server Environment also works with VMware virtualization software. Meanwhile, VMware announced Wednesday the launch of its VMware Service Provider Program, which allows Web hosting services, telecommunications companies, and other outsourcing businesses to include virtual infrastructure as a service offering. Traditional hosting services use dedicated servers for each client, but virtualization makes it possible to run multiple virtual servers, even for different clients, on one physical server. The Web hosting company can then bill clients monthly based on how many virtual machines they use, not physical ones, VMware said.
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Virtualization will get another lift next week when Microsoft (Quote, Chart) rolls out its Virtual Server 2005, a product geared to help companies efficiently pool computing resources.
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In a matchup between VMware Server and Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 R2, our reviewer says they're both capable products and that the differences is "on the margin." Making the right choice is all about deciding what's most important to your infrastructure.
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Microsoft Corp , the world's  largest software maker, said on Thursday that its customers can  download early versions of virtualization software that  competes with programs from VMware Inc.
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Large vendors such as Microsoft and Citrix are expanding into the field of Microsoft virtualization that VMware has long dominated.
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Security-conscious IT managers stand to gain a promising new option today, as a novel tool from software virtualisation pioneer VMware enters beta testing.
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VMware, a maker of software that enables computers to run multiple operating systems simultaneously, is working on a new product to make it secure for corporations to open their networks to contractors or telecommuters.
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TechWeb - Among the new features is support for IBM's Virtualization Engine, a slice-and-dice technology that splits processors into as many as 10 virtual CPUs.
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Microsoft has laid out plans to become a bigger force in the market for virtualization software, stepping up its assault on established leaders such as VMware.
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Virtualization software is ideal for trying out new software--and keeping your real PC clean.
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The software company is now looking to the red-hot virtualization market.
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VMware Inc. has unveiled the first release candidate of its Fusion virtualization software, with the final version due out next month.
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(InfoWorld) - The president of virtualization software leader VMware Wednesday questioned the strategy of rivals that are integrating virtualization functionality into their operating systems. Diane Greene made the comments at the third and final day of the Morgan Stanley Technology Conference in San Francisco. VMware, a subsidiary of storage vendor EMC, doubled revenue in EMC's latest quarterly report, compared to the year ago quarter, as enterprises embrace VMware's virtualization software to make more efficient use of the servers in their data centers. RivalsÂ like Red Hat and Microsoft have responded to VMware's dominance by integrating virtualization into coming new operating systems. Red Hat is introducing Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 next week, and Microsoft's new Windows server OS is due later this year. But Greene, in discussing virtualization with analysts for the investment firm, said she wonders how effective the competition's virtualization features can be. "Traditionally, the operating system manages the hardware and manages the application. Once you virtualize with a hypervisor, that is now what is managing the hardware, not the OS," Greene said, in a presentation that was distributed via webcast. "Now the operating system is just managing the application. So certainly Windows and Red Hat are moving to integrate virtualization into their OS, but part of the value proposition seems to be lost when you do that." Spokespeople for Microsoft and Red Hat did not respond to requests for comment. VMware is a strong contributor to the earnings of parent company EMC, which also sells storage hardware and security software. Greene also is executive vice president of EMC. Revenue for VMware increased to $232 million in the fourth quarter of 2006, 101 percent more than a year prior. The growth comes from increased demand for VMware Infrastructure 3, a virtualization software suite for servers and storage networks. VMware's growth prompted EMC to recently announce plans toÂ spin off 10 percent of VMware in an IPO. EMC executives said they anticipate releasing the prospectus later this month for the IPO, expected about midyear. Greene noted the stock sale will benefit VMware employees as well as potential shareholders. "Our stock-based compensation will track our performance, and that is the ideal model," she said. Also at the Morgan Stanley conference, Greene acknowledged that virtualizing servers, which helps them use more of their designed capacity, may suppress server sales growth. But she said many customers are upgrading servers as they introduce virtualization into their operations. Those new servers are more high-end products, with greater processing power, and should yield higher margins for server vendors. EMC reported fourth quarter 2006 financial results Jan. 23, posting net income of $389 million, or $0.17 a share, on revenue of $3.21 billion. It edged out analysts' estimates of $0.16 a share. Â
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Dell has announced the availability of virtualization services that aim to help enterprises draw up and implement their virtualization plans -- and it'll help you choose from its own hardware and software portfolio too of course.
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(InfoWorld) - For a technology that's supposed to make computing easier,Â virtualizationÂ is becoming quite complicated. The Hewlett-Packard Technology Forum that starts Monday in Las Vegas will feature as many as 87 user training sessions on virtualization, more than any other category, organizers say. This is a recognition both that virtualization continues to gain in popularity but also that end users have a lot of questions. The HP Technology Forum (HPTF) is expected to draw 7,000 attendees. It coincides with the HP Software Universe event expected to draw 3,000 people to Las Vegas, though to a different venue than the Technology Forum. Despite the appeal of virtualization as a way to use IT resources more efficiently, the technology adds a layer of complexity that IT managers may not be prepared for and may reduce the anticipated return on investment. The number of virtualized servers deployed by businesses is exploding "like bacteria in a petri dish," said David Gee, vice president of marketing for HP Software. Users say they face the same management issues running a virtual environment as a physical one. "I have to track and monitor who gets access to what, who created it. Are they allowed to do this?" Gee said. Virtualization can make a single physical server act like multiple logical servers, improving server utilization. It allows one server to run multiple software applications simultaneously, reducing the number of computers needed. While virtualization is commonly used in server environments, it's also being used in desktops, storage arrays, networks and for disaster recovery. But using virtualization to consolidate the number of physical servers doesn't mean your management duties shrink proportionally. CA Inc., a maker of IT management software, reported in March that 44 percent of 800 IT professionals surveyed globally "were unable to declare their virtualization deployment a success." The survey, conducted for CA by an independent firm, showed that 28 percent of respondents failed to see the return on investment (ROI) they anticipated, or couldn't determine if they had. Forty percent didn't achieve the cost savings they expected, or couldn't determine if they had. For one thing, companies don't necessarily save on IT staff costs by virtualizing, said Peter Richardson, director of product management at CA. If a company that runs 300 operating systems on 300 servers reduces that to running 10 virtual servers on each of 30 physical servers, it still has 300 OSs, and related software applications, to manage, said Richardson. Moreover, as more virtual servers are added, those 30 physical servers could be running as many as 500 applications. "You could go around universally and ask any client that has virtualized whether they reduced staff and the bottom line is no," he said. Staff isn't reduced because server sprawl continues, even if it's just virtual. Of course, CA is making the point to promote its own virtualization management software, which, Richardson says, manages virtual environments even if there are different brands of servers on the network. Server vendors offer virtualization management software, such as HP's ProLiant Essentials Virtual Machine Management software. There also are a few good niche management software products available, "but there is still no fully cohesive virtual management suite," said Andi Mann, senior analyst with Enterprise Management Associates. The HPTF sessions should answer a lot of questions for HP customers about whether virtualization will live up to its promise, said Scott Healy, chairman of the IT User Group (ITUG), which is co-hosting the HPTF with the user group Encompass. Healy is also a vice president of IT at Sabre Holdings Corp. "The promise of virtualization is when you are able to use servers for different applications at different times without impacting the general availability of your IT resources. Balancing that is a concern for any IT manager," said Healy.
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Microsoft Corp. , seeking to  preserve the dominance of its Windows franchise, launched a new  software application that takes aim at VMware Inc. , the  leader in "virtualization" technology that allows a single  computer server to operate like many machines.
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Microsoft Corp  said on Thursday  that it has begun public trials of new virtualization software  that competes with programs from VMware Inc , saying the  tests are starting ahead of schedule.