| We talked
about virtualisation a while back, but now more people are recognising its
importance. Witness the article in this week's Economist (The
rise of the hypervisor). The article talks mainly about server virtualisation, predicting that the
market will be worth over $5bn by 2011:
Rather than splitting up big machines, firms found it easier to use small
ones for each new application. For a while, this was a rational strategy.
Servers were cheap. Machines that ran more than one application were more likely
to crash. Yet the approach led to “server sprawl”, turning data centres into
complex warrens of understretched hardware that required ever more people, space
and power to keep them going. So it is hardly surprising that virtualisation,
which allows multiple servers to be consolidated into a single machine, is one
of the fastest growing areas in the software industry.
This is certainly borne out by the experience of HP customers. For example,
Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust was able to consolidate an
average of six servers onto each of its new HP C-Class blade servers using
virtualisation. Although space saving and improved efficiency were the main
objectives, a useful byproduct was an 87 percent cut in power consumption,
according to Malcolm Flier, IS Head of Support Services.
However, desktop virtualisation may be the next frontier. This is where a
desktop computer or laptop runs several separate operating systems on a single
computer. You could have one for work, another for personal use and a third for
your family. Keeping them separate has obvious security benefits.
It is possible to try this technology out yourself. VMware has a free
downloadable VMware Player which lets you run virtual systems on a regular PC.
Combined with 'virtual appliances', such as a locked-down, totally-secure
browser or even a complete Linux installation, you can experiment with new
software without any great effort. The browser-in-a-box might be a really useful
sandbox for family members to get online without any risk of infecting a PC with
spyware or viruses.
Here's how to do it:
- Download and install the VMware Player: www.vmware.com/download/player (Registration
required.)
- Download and unpack a virtual appliance such as the Browser
Appliance or Ubuntu Linux.
- Open your chosen virtual appliance in the VMware Player.
(Note this is just for fun and experimentation. HP doesn't make this
software. We're not recommending anything or making any promises. Use at your
own risk. Go geek!)
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