Cloud, virtualization and mobility: the new IT reality for North American SMBs

Demystification

For a few years now, when someone talks about IT infrastructure in your organization, the term « virtualization » is frequently mentioned. This major technology innovation used to be reserved for large corporations but it is democratizing more and more every day. Nowadays, 70%[1] of North American SMBs use virtualization technologies on a regular basis. GTI Canada’s customers have been benefiting from the advantages of virtualization for several years and we believe it is important for us to introduce them to this technology. What does virtualization mean? It can be implemented at different levels and platforms. Your servers, your desktops, your data and even your mobile units can be virtualized. In this article we will focus on server virtualization (where the potential gains are the most important for your company). Simply put, virtualization means dividing a physical server into several virtual servers. Traditionally, a server is installed with a single operating system, like Windows, Linux…and has one or more roles in your network. In this scenario, the power of your physical servers is rarely used to its full potential. This is even more true for SMBs that usually have lower power needs. Virtualization enables you to use your physical server’s power to its full capacity so that it can have more roles in your network. [1] Source : State of SMB IT 1H 2013, Spiceworks inc. Semi-annual report on small and midsize business technology plans & purchase intent.

Pratical application for SMBs

Lower server power needs does not mean that SMBs business needs are less important. An SMB uses several IT services to try reach its business objectives: file management, emails, database, remote connection… These services cannot always be installed on the same server and prior to virtualization companies often had to purchase other physical servers to host their business applications. Thanks to virtualization technologies, an SMB can deploy several virtual servers with different roles on a single physical server and solve this issue. Even though, some important factors have to be considered before deciding to deploy virtual servers, there are many solutions adapted to the needs of SMBs that offer numerous advantages.

IT cost reduction

Perhaps the most important reason to use virtualization is IT cost reduction. Thus, a single physical server having more roles in your network helps you save on material costs. Even though you might have to invest in a more powerful server than the one you currently own, this investment will not double the price of your server and important savings can be expected in the short-run. Furthermore, it is possible to virtualize an old physical server to migrate it in a virtual environment. Thanks to this best practice, you will eliminate the risk associated with the end of its useful life, it can still be used for the same role and you will avoid the investments needed to create a new virtual server.

IT recovery plan

Huge improvements have been made as regards IT recovery plans thanks to Virtualization. Indeed, we can create an “image” of a virtual server on a local disk (in you facilities) or an external disk (outside of your facilities that is to say in an independent datacenter). Thanks to the image on your local disk you will be able to back up your critical data and the configuration of your operating system. In case of a server breakdown, it is now possible to have a functional server in less than an hour where traditional methods would take from 7 to 10 hours. A best practice here would be to save your image on both local and external disks in order to protect your critical data and configuration from a disaster in your facilities like a fire, for instance.

Efficiency and stalability 

A virtual server farm enables higher efficiency. Indeed, it is a lot easier to add memory, power, storage or even other physical servers to our virtual servers to support new needs. Your organization will have a lot more flexibility to test newer version of one of their software, for instance. It is possible to duplicate virtual servers to install a new version of a software to test it without having to invest in creating a new server.

Green and energy consumption impact

Des gains importants sont également à noter pour la politique environnementale de votre organisation. En effet, la réduction du nombre de serveurs physiques évite de multiplier les futurs déchets technologiques, réduit l’espace plancher nécessaire pour héberger vos serveurs (et tous les coûts associés) et cela permet de diminuer les besoins en climatisation, en énergie, etc.

Performance

One of the most important factors to consider prior to creating virtual servers on a physical one is performance. As we mentioned earlier, a physical server will share its resources with the virtual servers and this could obviously impact its performance. In order not to affect the performance of a physical server, you might have to invest in new components or combine more than one physical server to support the multiple instances of virtual servers. The last option has a cost that has to be taken into account while computing the return on investment of your project.

License cost

Creating virtual servers and images of these servers will require licenses of specific software (VMWare, Veeam…). Nowadays, many affordable solutions are available to SMBs and will even enable SMBs to reduce their material costs, however, license fees should also be taken into account while computing the return on investment of your project.

Single point of failure

Now that you have combined several virtual servers on a single physical one, it will support all of the breakdown risk alone. You might have to invest in another physical server with a duplication of its critical components. A server with two power supply units, more than one network cards, several hard drives and processors…will reduce this risk. You can duplicate your physical servers so that they support your virtual servers together. As a result, you will still be able to access your data if one of your servers breaks down.

Technological Expertise

Because this technology is fairly recent (from a technological standpoint), qualified virtualization experts are not very easy find. Apart from monitoring the servers (Important: even if we reduce the number of physical servers, more virtual servers should be monitored), virtualization tools should also be monitored. In case of a breakdown, your IT department should perfectly master virtualization technologies for you to fully benefit from their advantages.

Conclusion

The advantages of server virtualization for SMBs are very important at different levels. Even though qualified IT professionals should only implement these solutions after evaluating the return on investment for the company, with this new technology democratizing, SMBs have a lot more tools reach their business objectives. Thanks to traditional tools, cloud computing, virtualization and mobile computing (the topic of our next article), SMBs are able to easily support the needs of their human capital and environment. [1] Source : State of SMB IT 1H 2013, Spiceworks inc. Semi-annual report on small and midsize business technology plans & purchase intent. [2] Selon la loi de Moore, la capacité des ordinateurs augmente de façon exponentielle et ce, beaucoup plus rapidement que les besoins. Article écrit par Patrick Hardy, Directeur, Infogérance