Infotech Lead India: Though several large corporations have made the change to virtualized data centers, there are many more businesses that have not made virtualization a priority. This is primarily due to the fact that many owners are unaware of the benefits virtualization brings to business productivity, management, storage, operating costs and much more.
Raghu Raghuram of VMware discusses his experience with those who begin using virtualization by saying, “[our] experience over seven or eight years has been that when customers start using virtualization, they have a preliminary notion of what virtualization is, but once they get in and start using it, they see it’s like a Swiss Army knife, and they can use it in many different ways.”
With so many ways to utilize virtualization in your business and data centers, it’s a wonder why it’s not a priority for more businesses across the world. If you have not yet made the switch to virtualization, here are five reasons to prioritize the virtualization of your data center immediately.
Better Storage
Every business needs more storage at one point or another. Whether a business is a large corporation or a small locally owned shop, the need for virtual storage for client and company information is ever-growing. Through the virtualization of a data center within a corporation or by outsourcing to a data center, businesses experience greatly increased storage in several ways.
The first increase in storage is seen as an actual boost to data memory and files. Cloud storage is endless and scalable, meaning that it adjusts to your usage. This means no more worrying about running out of space for important client and company information and having a back up in the case of an emergency. Virtualized data centers store information on the cloud, creating access for employees and business owners anywhere there is an internet connection, meaning it is a good back up for hard copy and virtual files.
Virtualization also offers increased storage through Software as a Service (SaaS). Software systems are saved and stored on the cloud instead of requiring physical programs for each company desktop and needing constant, time consuming as well as expensive updates.
The last way of increased storage is the physical increase of storage space within a building. Through the virtualization of a data center, the physical storage infrastructure is reduced, leaving more room for other business needs and lowering the carbon footprint of your data center and business.
Become Eco-Friendly
Because of the less physical space needed in a data center, virtualization also offers business the opportunity to become eco-friendly. Virtualized data centers work closely with blade servers, (servers that are streamlined and use minimal physical space) to create data center areas that need less cooling fans and consume less energy. Blade servers are able to virtually accommodate the work load of what previously could have been 20 servers, therefore cutting space and energy usage dramatically. With less space, energy usage and output, the carbon footprint of a company is reduced as well as the business’s operating costs.
Lower Operating Costs
Because less space is needed and virtualization is so eco-friendly, it also begins to cut down on operating costs for a business. Virtualized data centers create an opportunity for more work space within your office, use fewer servers while maintaining an equal or higher work load, cut energy costs, and require less employees and labor to be spent on data center maintenance. Because virtualization simplifies and supplies easy access to servers and information it means that fewer people are needed to maintain it, therefore cutting costs and headache for management.
Ease of Management
Business owners are often surprised by the ease of management that comes from a virtualized data center. Virtualization not only eases financial operation amounts but it also offers easy network assistance, creates cohesive systems for companywide use and uses the cloud to share software and information with clients and employees anywhere there is a network connection; which in turn creates efficient business service worldwide.
Security
Although there are many more benefits to the virtualization of a data center, the last I would suggest is the increased security virtualization provides to businesses.
Computer systems and data centers are fallible but with virtualization it makes it harder for hackers to compromise your business systems. Virtualization security systems are able to single out requests and determine if one might be a threat. If so, it will send that person to another route far away from your actual, secure information.
Virtualization Worldwide
Virtualization in your data center is the first step in using virtualization throughout the rest of business management and creating simpler and efficient business solutions. Much like the quote from VMware employee, Raghu Raghuram, many business owners do not understand how easy virtualization makes business management and the many ways it positively affects nearly all aspects of business.
David Malmborg works with Dell. When he isn’t working, he enjoys hiking, spending time with family and researching new technology. He is currently learning more about virtualization and recommends visiting Dell.com for more information.
David Malmborg of Dell
