Virtualization is used generically to refer to system or server virtualization, and it broadly reflects a technology that abstracts computer resources for platforms, applications, sessions, storage, and desktops. Dell™ PowerEdge™ servers can run many virtualization products. This page provides a basic reference that introduces virtualization and the different types of virtualization products and approaches that are available for enterprise data centers.
Dell vStart Solution provides a racked, networked and configured virtualization solution that just requires power to start using it in a data center environment.
Desktop virtualization is in many ways different from "normal" virtualization; however, it is worth mentioning here because PCs that enterprise users work with are not the machines that do the actual computing work. Typically, these computers use software such as Citrix and provide for controlling one user context on a server in the data center with a keyboard, mouse, and monitor. Other software examples besides Citrix include NoMachine NX Server and RealVNC Virtual Network Computing (VNC).
When considering a virtualization strategy for your enterprise, most organizations need to consider more than just the hypervisor. Considerations on how the virtualization project will affect their Enterprise Systems Management platform, Backup, Recovery, Archive (BURA), and Disaster Recovery plans need to be brought into consideration. Below are some examples of tools and products that can assist in virtualization management, adoption and optimization. Dell Management Plug-In for VMware vCenter (DMPVV)Dell Management Plug-In for VMware vCenter allows IT admins to update firmware, bare metal deployments and manage their entire infrastructure- both physical and virtual environments.
Disaster Recovery and Data Protection
Dell Quest vRanger product family speeds VMware backup and replication while dramatically reducing storage requirements. Simplify your disaster recovery plans for vSphere with one-pass ESX / ESXi backup that includes granular restore capabilities across files, objects and applications. Improve disaster recovery plans on site or at a remote site with efficient VMware replication and easier access during data protection efforts.
Dell Quest vConverter provides image-based Hyper-V and VMware P2V to Transform Data Protection in Physical Systems to Virtual Environments. vConverter offers fast, simple and flexible conversion of; physical systems into virtual images (P2V), virtual images between hypervisor platforms (V2V) and virtual images into physical systems (V2P).
VMware Site Recovery Manager - Creates successful recovery plans by automating the recovery process and eliminating the complexity of managing and testing recovery plans.Monitoring and ReportingVMware vCenter Server - Provides centralized control and visibility at every level of virtual infrastructure (VM, ESX Host, VMware Datacenter).Dell Quest vFoglight offers unmatched visibility to resolve VMware ESX and Hyper-V performance management issues and drastically reduces costs. It is also the only solution on the market that provides powerful virtual infrastructure monitoring, capacity planning, chargeback, Hyper-V and VMware management all from a single downloadable solution.Cloud Automation (Orchestration and Self-Service) Dell Quest Cloud Automation Platform allows customers to create flexible, robust, scalable infrastructure as a service (IaaS) private clouds using the Cloud Automation Platform. This solution is unmatched at reducing administrative workloads. It automates infrastructure delivery, eliminates virtual machine (VM) sprawl, and easily scales to accommodate a range of environments, from individual departments to the global enterprise. With the Quest Cloud Automation Platform, you can; take full advantage of your infrastructure with dynamic capacity management and guaranteed reservations, dramatically cut costs and eliminate downtime by ensuring just-in-time, self-service resource delivery and leverage mixed virtual/physical environments and multiple hypervisor technologies.OptimizationDell Quest vOptimizer Pro is the only product on the market that can reclaim over allocated virtual storage (shrink VMDKs) and perform 64K partition alignments to significantly improve VM I/O performance. vOptimizer Pro reduces the cost, time, and risk of managing virtual storage.Provides visibility of the total amount and value of over-allocated VM storage, reclaims wasted VM storage (shrinking VMDK disk files) for use by other applications and business units, automates the resizing of VMs -- either larger or smaller -- to cut administration time, prevents VM outages due to storage shortages and improves VM I/O performance by up to 15% through 64K partition block alignment.