Microsoft announced the release of System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 (SC VMM 2008) which adds support for VMware ESX Infrastructure virtualization technology. The move by Microsoft is unprecedented as Microsoft usually let third parties manage non-Microsoft software. Now Microsoft can manage VMware virtualization technology.
A consistent theme from large and small companies is these groups are looking to aggressively manage costs and improve operational efficiency. Microsoft’s new virtualization software addresses these areas. First, IT managers can acquire Microsoft virtualization offerings for about 1/3 the cost of what a comparable VMware installation would cost, helping them realize immediate cost reduction benefits. The portfolio of technologies Microsoft offers spans the entire IT infrastructure from the desktop to the datacenter, while providing the tools for managing a customer’s infrastructure and apps regardless of whether it’s their physical or virtual assets. Additionally, because the solutions Microsoft is delivering are based on Windows, customer can take advantage of the skills and knowledge they already have when implementing, developing to, or managing our virtualization offerings helping to save them both money and time.
Also new in SC VMM 2008, are support for virtual machines running on Windows Server 2008; performance and resource management toolsSC VMM 2008 provides plenty of functionality through monitoring groups of host systems, a virtual machine management interface, a library for centrally stored resources from which to create new virtual machines and a convenient job monitoring console. This is an impressive continuation of Microsoft’s effort to do management right that the company started with the previous version of SC VMM.
Microsoft has demonstrated that it can take cross-platform management tasks and succeed. It is clear that Microsoft has turned over a new leaf and that IT data center managers will be the beneficiaries. Click here for more on SC VMM 2008.
Posted under Desktop Virtualization, Virtualization News, Virtualization Products / Reviews, Virtualization Software
This post was written by admin on November 26, 2008
