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What Is Virtualization (and What Are VMware and Hyper-V)?

Several servers on one physical machine. What VMware and Hyper-V do and when it matters.

Virtualization runs multiple independent servers, called virtual machines, on a single physical machine by using a layer of software called a hypervisor. VMware and Microsoft Hyper-V are the two hypervisors most small and mid-sized businesses use. Nearly every modern server, on-premises or in the cloud, is virtual.

Why businesses virtualize

  • Fewer physical servers. One well-specified host replaces five aging boxes, with less power, cooling and space.
  • Isolation. The accounting server, the file server and the application server run separately, so a problem in one does not take down the others.
  • Portability. A virtual machine is a set of files. It can be backed up as a whole, moved to new hardware, replicated to a second site, or migrated to Azure or AWS.
  • Disaster recovery. Replicating VMs is the foundation of fast failover; see what is DRaaS.
  • Testing. Snapshot a server before an upgrade and roll back in minutes if it goes wrong.

VMware

The long-time standard, known for maturity and management tooling. Now owned by Broadcom, with licensing that moved to subscription bundles, which changed the cost picture for smaller environments.

Hyper-V

Microsoft's hypervisor, included with Windows Server. Well integrated with Azure, Windows management tools and Microsoft licensing, and often the more economical choice for Windows-centric businesses. See VMware vs Hyper-V.

Cloud is virtualization too

An Azure or AWS virtual machine is the same idea running in someone else's data center. That is why a virtualized on-premises server is easy to migrate later and a physical one is not. It also shapes the do I still need a server decision.

What to keep in mind

The host is now a single point of failure for everything on it, so hosts need redundancy, monitoring, patching and tested backups. Licensing for Windows Server and SQL Server on virtual hosts has its own rules worth checking before you buy.

Mentis Group provides VMware support in Dallas-Fort Worth, Hyper-V and hybrid server implementations, and virtualization consulting as part of Managed Cloud Services.

Have a question about your own environment? Schedule a consultation with Mentis Group or call (866) 901-7808.