We hear a great deal about cost reduction with virtual data centers, but just exactly how do these cost reductions materialize, and are there other benefits from moving to a vDC? In this article we will explore the fundamental benefits resulting in cost savings, and how the impact on the environment is reduced by the move to vDCs, as well as other benefits.
Benefit 1: Reduced Heat Buildup
Servers generate heat – a lot of it – and millions of research dollars have been spent trying to create efficient heat dissipation and heat reduction. The bottom line is simple though – use fewer servers, and this is achieved by the move to a vDC where more efficient physical server utilization is possible and practical. If you generate reduced heat, not only does this help the environment, but a long list of other issues are solved, plus you reduce cost.
Benefit 2: Reduced Hardware Costs
If you buy fewer servers, you spend less money – more efficient physical server utilization results in this hardware cost saving, however there are other sources of cost savings too. For instance, cost reductions due to reduced downtime, lower maintenance costs, and also reduced power bills – fewer servers, means significant savings in all of these areas.
Benefit 3: Agile Deployment
If a server goes down, the time to redeploy takes a considerable amount of time, not least, when you do not have a backup server ready to go! There are also issues with whether you have an image, whether the data is current and so on. All of this is taken care of with virtualization – with a few mouse clicks, a new virtual server, in fully functioning mode, can be replicated and allow you to continue with business in just a few minutes.
Benefit 4: Making Backups is Simple & Easy
Virtual servers make backing up a simple affair, and it is possible not only to run a full server backup, but also take snapshots and backups of individual virtual machines running on them. Virtual machines are also easily moved from one virtual or physical server with ease, while taking snapshots through the day ensures your data is always maintained in an up-to-date state. Booting up a snapshot is also a much faster process than firing up a physical server, which means that downtime is reduced and user experience improved.
Benefit 5: Avoid Being Locked In To a Single Vendor
Virtual machines do not need to be run on a particular physical server, supplied from a specific manufacturer. The tie between software and hardware is disconnected, and this severs the need for a specific vendor, physical server or even a specific platform.
Benefit 6: Improved Disaster Recovery Protocols & Protection
With a virtual machine it is click and go – providing you have been taking up-to-date snapshots of your virtual machine, it is fast and easy to get yourself back up and running in minutes, or even seconds. Even where disaster affects the physical servers, or even the physical data center itself, virtual machines can be restored in any location on any other physical machine. This provides far better protection from disasters, and enables recovery to be much more complete and faster than before.
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