VMware

Overheard: Microsoft vs. VMware

In a dig at VMware, Microsoft claims the reason less than 10% of servers are virtualized today is because the schemes available are too complicated and expensive. And in another dig at VMware, Microsoft suggested that Dell, Fujitsu, Fujitsu Siemens, Hitachi, HP, IBM, NEC and Unisys would be pre-installing the final Hyper-V code on their machines. IBM, Dell, HP and Fujitsu Siemens pledged a few weeks ago to pre-install VMware’s freebie ESX 3i bare metal hypervisor on some of their gear. Maureen O’Gara, Hyper-V Virtually Done

Overheard: Hardware virtualization could make virtualization software obsolete

“Think of it: a piece of server hardware that carries its own hypervisor embedded directly in the machine’s firmware, obviating the need to buy costly ESX or fool around with not-quite-fully-mature Xen.” Jeff Gould, Can new server hardware make virtualization software obsolete?

A couple of years ago, the message was “Why buy fourteen servers when you can use virtualization software and run everything on just one server?”

America listened. They bought just one server. And VMware became the hot stock to watch.

Now hardware vendors like Hitachi are hopping on the virtualization bandwagon — “WE can give you virtualization too,” they say. “We’ll embed hypervisors in our shiny new blade servers and let you get rid of that extra layer of software.” (Actually, that was me speaking, not Hitachi.)

So now the software and hardware vendors are fighting over which way offers the best performance. Hypervisor in the software or hypervisor in the firmware? Duke ‘em out boys. We’ll be the winners no matter which way it goes.