Tool

This assessment and roadmap development tool will help you create a roadmap for future development of a managed virtual infrastructure and internal cloud.

Note

Server virtualization has gone from hot emerging trend to a mainstream reality. As virtual infrastructure becomes core infrastructure, focus investment on getting the most benefit at the lowest total cost.

Solution Set

For many enterprises, server virtualization is moving beyond basic consolidation into a more managed virtual environment, and potentially to the internal Cloud. Understanding the benefits of each of these stages and their associated costs will...

Note

VMware continues to dominate the server virtualization landscape; however, challengers such as Microsoft, Citrix, and Red Hat are providing competitive features for consolidation and virtual infrastructure management.

Tool

This tool allows enterprises to generate a customized shortlist of vendors based on required capabilities and future requirements around server consolidation, virtual infrastructure management, and the internal cloud.

Solution Set

A utility infrastructure IaaS alone does not equal cloud. A range of emerging solutions offer to pave that last mile to full-function IaaS cloud services.

Template/Policy

IT departments are being asked to respond to interest (and sometimes direct pressure) in cloud computing. This strategy position template will help objectively define IT's position on the cloud for the organization and set realistic expectations.

Note

A cloud management solution alone does not create an internal cloud. However, it does put the final piece of the cloud puzzle in place once a mature, standardized, and virtualized environment is established.

Template/Policy

This template is designed to provide server virtualization vendors with a consistent set of instructions, ensuring an objective comparison of product features, all while evaluating ease-of-use, and ease of setup and configuration. This template...

Tool

This TCO tool provides organizations with a framework for estimating the costs associated with deploying a server virtualization solution relative to a server refresh, or an alternate vendor.

Video

VMware continues to dominate, but selection isn't just about who is the leader. Competitors are providing legitimate alternatives for consolidation and virtual infrastructure management.

Template/Policy

Organizations embarking on the selection process for server virtualization may elect to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) after determining their final selection criteria.

Tool

For organizations that have issued a formal Request for Proposal (RFP) to evaluate server virtualization vendors, gathering and scoring the various responses can be difficult and time consuming. This tool enables enterprises to evaluate and...

Tool

Info-Tech Research Group has established that savings through lower one-time and ongoing server acquisition costs is the strongest argument in a business case for server virtualization. Use this calculator to get a broad sense of the...

Note

Most enterprises have already seen success in virtualizing the low-hanging fruit in the data center. As the percentage of the data center that is virtualized increases, IT must focus on building an internal cloud that leverages virtualization...

Video

Lead Analyst John Sloan and Info-Tech client George Neill of Organic Valley Family of Farms talk about the strategic and practical implications of building an internal cloud.

Intel's Xeon 5500 processors have been a boon to two areas of server management: power savings and virtualization. The recession in 2009 meant a slow start for the new technology, but deployment will start gaining speed.

Convergence in the "internal cloud" (formerly utility infrastructure) means that IT will no longer be able to compartmentalize data center infrastructure or vendor relationships into neat categories like servers, storage, and networks. Before...

Any small enterprise that wishes to create an agile, highly optimized server infrastructure can do so using the hardware and tools currently available. The utility infrastructure will continue to evolve and improve as more server rooms migrate...

Small enterprises will find that moving to a utility infrastructure will not happen overnight. It will require a long-term, phased approach with significant challenges along the way.

The competition in x86 server virtualization became hotter in 2008 as Citrix and Microsoft made significant bids to dethrone market leader VMware. There are also new entrants in the field from Oracle and Sun. Learn how the vendor landscape has...

Enterprise technology investments are progressively addressing financial and environmental concerns. In a time of economic downturn, IT must focus on getting the best bang for its buck without being distracted by flashy marketing. Keep a clear...

Hypervisors are the software that carve a single physical computer into multiple virtual machines. Competition has been heating up in the virtualization space as competitors argue the relative strengths of their hypervisors. This note reviews...

Most IT decision makers are struggling to optimize IT performance measurement, delivery, management, and reporting. Broadly defined, these activities can be grouped together and defined as "IT service management." Understand where the enterprise...

Virtualization of x86/x64 architecture is not a strategy; it is a tactical measure that addresses a specific impediment to achieve strategic goals in server consolidation. Virtual machine isolation enables more applications to run on fewer...

Modernizing applications and streamlining the delivery of IT services in energy companies is a long and arduous path. Adopting an IT strategy to reduce complexity and redundancy will result in a sustainable and cost-efficient IT environment.

Any enterprise that wishes to create an agile, highly optimized data center can do so using the hardware and tools currently available. The utility infrastructure will continue to evolve and improve as more data centers migrate away from the...