Chapter 3 - Introduction to Microsoft Virtual Server

Abstract

Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 R2 is a very versatile application. The main reason for implementing Virtual Server 2005 R2 may be to reduce physical servers and reduce cost. There are several scenarios where virtualization has tremendous advantages. Production servers can greatly benefit from virtualization technology. Each virtual server's hard drive is represented by a single file. One is able to take a snapshot of this file for backup. One of the main advantages of using virtualization in the test and development areas is the ability to rapidly deploy new virtual serves. Disaster recovery is becoming a critical issue for most companies today. By using Microsoft Virtual Server at the disaster recovery location, one is able to significantly reduce the hardware costs. Virtual Server 2005 Migration Toolkit is a free tool available from Microsoft that enables one to migrate a physical machine to a virtual machine. This is commonly known as the P2V (physical-to-virtual) process. This may be used to make a clone of an existing physical machine for test and development purposes. There are still a limited number of third-party tools designed for Virtual Server 2005 R2 today, but as the product grows, many more may become available. One of the companies that specializes in such tools is PlateSpin. PowerRecon is designed to evaluate one's current physical environment and to assist one with his or her server consolidation planning. Virtualization works by taking the physical components of a machine and presenting virtual hardware instead.