Storage Virtualization

By Stephanie Jordan
in

Especially in today’s economy, businesses are looking for alternatives to costly investments in high-end storage systems. Not long ago, IDC authored a Viewpoint report that proposed using storage virtualization software to create scalable, robust SANs using equipment already in place.

IDC notes that, “This hardware-independent approach complements server and desktop virtualization without compromising availability, speed, or project schedules…Just as importantly, it can significantly lower capital and operational expenditure for physical and virtual environments alike, making such transitional initiatives viable.”

Among the key recommendations in the report is to choose storage virtualization software that is not tied to any one hardware vendor so that you will have the most latitude when selecting future devices. Another recommendation discussed is to ensure that the storage virtualization software selected for virtual systems also addresses physical servers and competing server virtualization platforms. Otherwise, IDC cautions that you may end up fragmenting the IT environment that you are eager to consolidate.

The IDC Viewpoint report Removing storage-Related Barriers to Server and Desktop Virtualization may be downloaded via DataCore Software. 

“In addition to server virtualization, industry analysts are now grasping the real benefits of storage virtualization,” comments George Teixeira, president and CEO, of DataCore. “Software-based storage virtualization is important because it helps IT organizations get more out of their existing hardware investments – and it does so by enabling IT organizations to turn existing storage arrays from multiple vendors into a shared pool of disk storage. Creating virtual storage pools out of existing storage investments, which easily marry with virtual servers, represents the real value that storage virtualization software delivers.”

Published October 19, 2009