Virtualization is the foundation of cloud-based computing. Traditionally, IT organizations dedicate a single server to a specific application, leaving it to function at a fraction of its capacity. Virtualization allows organizations to take advantage of this unused potential. See how virtualization for data centers can benefit your business.
The benefits of virtualization include:
- Cost-savings
- Faster disaster recovery
- Increased scalability and flexibility
- Improved legacy system support
- Enhanced security
What is Data Center Virtualization?
Virtualization is creating a virtual version of a traditional data center. This is also known as a virtual machine (VM) which “lays over” physical hardware to enable cloud computing.
These systems include access to and control over critical computing resources in a virtualized environment, including:
- Applications
- Networks
- Servers
- Storage devices
Specialized software creates a virtual version of computing environments, such as operating systems and applications, on a single server.
This is one of the major benefits of virtualization and cloud-based computing—allowing organizations to run a single physical server as if it were more than one. Also known as server virtualization, a single server can be “split” into multiple virtual parts. This allows you to use the server more efficiently, resulting in an increased return on your organization’s investment.
The Benefits of Virtualization
1. Cost Savings
Cost savings is one of the biggest advantages of virtualization. It allows your organization to run multiple VMs on a single server, saving your company on hardware costs. By having fewer physical machines, the cost of maintenance naturally decreases.
Reduced emissions are another cost-related benefit of virtualization. Data centers are an essential part of most businesses, but they also make up for about 2% of global carbon emissions. While it may not seem like much, this actually puts them on par with the airline industry. A larger carbon footprint can also result in higher rates for your business.
TenHats takes a more sustainable approach to carbon emissions as well as your ROI. We draw air from the outdoors, chill it, then use the air to chill the coils that keep the inside of our data center cool. As Wade Orloski, our data center manager explains, “There’s a major focus on the chillers and the hot aisle containment being efficient for optimal performance for our clients.”
Learn how the right data center can boost your ROI, reduce costs, and promote sustainability.
2. Faster Disaster Recovery
Virtualization enables your organization to perform faster disaster recovery in critical ways. This is achieved by the easy replication of VMs that can be moved between physical servers. With this feature, you can reduce the time it takes to restore your services by recovering your data on alternate hardware.
Snapshots and sandboxing are two other important features that improve disaster recovery. You can use snapshots taken at a specific time to determine a reliable restart point. With sandboxing, you can fully test your recovery process in an isolated test environment without affecting your entire physical server.
Learn more about disaster recovery.
3. Increased Scalability & Flexibility
The ability to have multiple VMs working on a single physical server can do wonders for the scalability and flexibility of your organization. Scalability improves because of the ease with which you can create or remove VMs. This kind of on-demand control allows your organization to be more efficient with its hardware by optimizing its usage.
Flexibility is improved by separating your software environment from physical hardware. Users can experience the entire digital environment, including:
- Operating systems
- Applications
- Configurations
This makes it much easier to move data to and from different servers. The portability also allows you to make better use of your resources and balance workloads more effectively.
4. Improved Legacy System Support
Legacy systems are older and somewhat out-of-date technologies that remain critical to your daily business. Unfortunately, they can be designed to run on specific hardware setups, making it difficult to maintain or even run them on more contemporary IT infrastructure. Virtualization allows you to run multiple legacy systems without having to modify the software.
Legacy system support is one of the major benefits of virtualization. It enables improved:
- Migration
- Backup
- Restoration
They also benefit from the snapshot and sandbox features mentioned previously. With virtualization, you can restore and test your legacy systems with fewer disruptions.
5. Enhanced Security
Virtualization keeps your different operating systems and software applications isolated from each other. This isolation prevents them from gaining direct access to each other’s sources, creating a boundary in case of a security breach. This means that if one of your VMs is hacked, there’s a significantly reduced chance that it will reach the others.
Virtualization also allows security policies to be implemented at a core level. A security patch can be enabled on the same layer as the VM, preventing hackers from exploiting vulnerabilities. Access controls can also be limited to only those who work with the VMs. This helps ensure that no one on the user end has access to information that they shouldn’t have.
Learn more about what TenHats can do for your organization. Contact us today to start a conversation!
One of the biggest benefits of virtualization is the cost savings from making the most of physical hardware. It also creates faster disaster recovery thanks to VMs being movable between physical servers.
Organizations will also experience increased scalability and flexibility through on-demand control and separate software environments. Virtualization provides support for legacy systems that may be older or even out of date. It also features enhanced security since systems are isolated from each other and have limited access controls.
In 2016, TenHats built East Tennessee’s first purpose-built colocation data center in over 20 years. Located in Knoxville, our data center can serve businesses, banks, health service providers, and more. With our team’s IT experience, we provide more than protected data. When you call us, you talk to a real IT expert. Connect with our team about our data center today!
