In a Nutshell

Virtualization enables the provision of IT resources on a virtual level and is fundamental to cloud computing.
Virtual machines (VMs) and hypervisors abstract physical resources to create separate virtual environments.
Efficient use of resources, cost reduction, simple administration and improved system security are key benefits of virtualization.
Server, data, application, storage, network and desktop virtualization offer various ways to optimize the IT infrastructure.

What is virtualization?

Virtualization refers to an abstraction of physical IT resources. It makes it possible to provide these resources virtually, independently of their actual hardware or software. Applications, operating systems, memory, processors or networks can be made available digitally as virtual images. These resources can therefore be used flexibly and comparatively inexpensively as required.

Virtualization can be used to create several virtual instances of machines on a single physical machine, which are fully functional and independent of each other. When accessing these resources, users have all the options that a physical machine would offer. In this way, the available IT resources can be used and controlled much more efficiently without having to make additional investments in new hardware. The virtualization of hardware and software components thus forms the basis of today's cloud computing.

How Does Virtualization Work?

In order to understand how virtualization works in practice, it is necessary to explain two central pillars of this technology: the virtual machine (VM) and the hypervisor.

Virtual Machines (VM)

A virtual machine (abbreviation: VM) is a virtual environment defined by software on a physically existing machine. Put simply, it is a computer within a computer that has separate resources and its own operating system. A single physical machine can simultaneously act as a host for numerous virtual machines. The software that monitors all VMs in a machine and manages their resources is called a hypervisor.

Hypervisor

The hypervisor (abbreviation: VMM / Virtual Machine Monitor) is software that defines the virtual environments of all VMs on a machine. At the same time, the hypervisor coordinates the provision of the required resources between all virtual machines and ensures that the VMs do not interfere with each other during operation.

A distinction is made between two types of hypervisors:

Type 1 Hypervisor / Bare Metal Hypervisor

A type 1 hypervisor is installed directly on the hardware of a machine. There is no need for a host operating system; the hypervisor coordinates all resources directly at the source and can divide them between the virtual environments. This type of hypervisor is usually the preferred variant for corporate applications.

Typ-2-Hypervisor / Hosted Hypervisor

A type 2 hypervisor is installed on a machine that already has a host operating system. These hypervisors run there as an application and can only access the resources that the host operating system provides for them. This variant is too inefficient for corporate applications and therefore rather unsuitable - but it is practical for private users.

For companies that want to actively address the topic of virtualization, we at GFOS offer suitable solutions in the Cloud & IT Infrastructures area. We provide flexible service packages for all industries. We are also happy to provide individual advice.

The Advantages of Virtualization

Virtualization has a number of advantages that are of particular interest to companies:

Efficient Use of Resources
By virtualizing IT resources, for example, any type of in-house server infrastructure can be used much more efficiently. Instead of configuring individual dedicated servers for each application, VMs can run these programs in separate virtual environments on a single server. This makes better use of the capacity of the existing infrastructure.
Reduction of IT Costs
By optimizing the utilization of individual machines, freed-up servers can either be used elsewhere or saved. In the best case scenario, no additional IT components need to be purchased in the medium term. In this way, virtualization reduces the potential costs for new hardware purchases as well as the ongoing expenses for maintenance, power supply and cooling.
Simple Administration
The switch to virtual machines enables the software-based administration of entire data centers. With an IT infrastructure that is largely virtual, numerous processes can be fully automated and carried out in digital form. Using suitable programs for provisioning and configuration, exact templates can be created based on existing VMs with little effort. These “blueprints” enable duplication as required and make manual setup processes completely superfluous. Thanks to virtualization, this eliminates a typical source of errors in the system.
Security of the Systems
Security-related events such as cyber attacks, power failures or similar serious incidents can, in the worst case, put physical servers out of operation for a long period of time. Such downtimes are usually very costly for companies in several respects. Virtual machines, on the other hand, can be isolated more easily, simply restored using snapshots or operated directly redundantly without incurring major costs. This increases reliability and reduces operational risk.

Types of Virtualization

In practice, there is not just a single form of virtualization - nowadays it is possible to transfer large parts of an entire IT infrastructure into a virtual environment and make them available in a very targeted manner. This can include both hardware and software components.

A distinction is made between the following types of virtualization:

Server Virtualization

Server virtualization is one of the most common forms of hardware virtualization. Here, a single server is divided into a series of smaller virtual servers, each with its own operating system and resources. These virtual servers in the server are the virtual machines (VMs) mentioned above.

Data Virtualization

Companies have large volumes of data that are aggregated from different sources and stored in various formats, either on physical servers on site or in cloud systems. This can make it considerably more difficult to access individual data sets as required and to analyze them across networks.

The virtualization of this data creates a virtual overall inventory of this data. If applications require specific data sets, the data visualization tools can process these requests, access the respective sources and make them available in a format suitable for the applications. In this way, even the largest data sets can be virtually merged without additional hardware.

Application Virtualization

Application virtualization makes it possible to use applications or software on an operating system without having to install this software there. This can be useful, for example, if the operating system currently in use does not natively support a specific application. Companies prefer to use this form of virtualization to make Office applications easily available.

A distinction is typically made between three forms of application virtualization:

Application Streaming
With application or application streaming, the actual application is located on an external server. The software is executed via streaming on the user's own end devices.
Server-based Application Virtualization
The application is hosted and executed externally. Users access the server via their own interface and can thus use the functions of the software.
Local Application Virtualization
The application is executed on the user's own end device. It is located in its own environment, which is independent and separate from the respective operating system.

Storage Virtualization

Storage virtualization offers the possibility of bundling the resources of individual storage media in a virtual storage pool. This total storage can then be centrally managed, partitioned and flexibly allocated as required using suitable tools. In this way, virtualization helps to use existing storage capacities as efficiently and fully as possible.

Depending on the context and scope of such virtualization, it is referred to as host-based, device-based or network-based storage virtualization. The network-based variant, which is often implemented in the form of a storage area network (SAN), is generally of particular interest for the requirements of companies.

Network Virtualization

In network virtualization, the resources of a network (hardware and software) are converted into a virtual form. In this way, even geographically separate networks can be bundled into a single virtual company network. This makes it possible to manage the entire network centrally without the need for physical interaction on site.

By abstracting the hardware and software components in this way, resources can be provided flexibly throughout the network wherever they are needed. At the same time, such a virtual IT infrastructure ensures the rapid scalability and high reliability of the entire network. At best, this makes parts of the expensive physical infrastructure (routers / switches / servers) on site superfluous.

In the field of network virtualization, a distinction is made between software-defined networks (SDN / software-defined networking).

Desktop Virtualization

The virtualization of desktop environments allows companies to run multiple desktop operating systems on a server via virtual machines and make these virtual environments available to users as required. Depending on the implementation, it is sufficient to equip users with thin-client or zero-client devices without affecting their ability to work. This allows hardware acquisition costs to be saved and all desktop environments to be managed centrally.

The following forms of virtualization can be used here:

Host-based Desktop Virtualization
The operating system is executed on an external server, which provides the entire computing power for the processes. Users usually connect to a VM on the server. This type of virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) usually only places low demands on the client hardware.

Client-based Desktop Virtualization
The operating system is either executed on the client side via a VM or from the server using OS streaming. In these cases, the client must provide the computing power. This form of virtualization requires one thick client per user.

How does GFOS Support Virtualization?

The future viability of a company's own IT infrastructure can be a decisive factor in its competitiveness. It is important to create the ideal balance between high-performance IT and efficient use of resources. With comprehensive IT infrastructure consulting (LINK), we help our customers to find precisely this balance.

We are happy to support you with the correct dimensioning of your IT, advise you on security issues, help with performance optimization or create a virtualization consultation tailored to your requirements. This will enable you and your company to take full advantage of the opportunities offered by virtualization in the future.