Server virtualization projects typically kick-off with a goal to reduce physical server count and to increase overall computer utilization. In the initial phases, new and powerful servers are typically bought up and deployed as virtual hosts. Then, a comparatively small number of very safe workloads are virtualized. While this does result in the server count typically being reduced, computer utilization is not, as the new servers have significantly more power than the ones replaced. And there is capacity for more servers to join the cluster, but with the next wave of workloads more mission-critical, careful planning becomes a requirement.
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With each additional physical server converted to virtual server, the savings begin to increase significantly. Cooling and power necessary is reduced, with the hard reduction in number of servers. Consequently, more servers can be managed by the current number of admins. While this is all very beneficial, the challenge remains making the upcoming migrations predictably safe.
To measure the current, stand-alone server environment, tools such as those from Tek-Tools can be utilized. The details of this analysis can then be compared to the virtual environment, and the systems can be prioritized to decide which are best suited to be virtualized. To help forecast the impact, simulations can be run which will show what adding a workload to the virtual environment would do.
Doing more with less is the mantra of server virtualization. This can lead to a significant reduction in the number of physical servers deployed and the space and power they consume. The more an organization leans on server vitualization, the greater the space savings becomes. Virtualization can be done safely by tapping into tools that will accurately predict the results of increased density and then continuously monitor the environment.
Virtualization Infrastructure Management: Meet Your Business IT Goals
These types of tools allow for greater virtual machine densities per virtual host while maintaining the right sense of balance for virtual machine migrations and disaster recovery.
Surprisingly enough, the virtual environment can also possibly be a storage waster, so be warned. This tends to happen when virtual machines are created from templates and administered without care. While templates are a valuable aspect of server virtualization, and enable rapid deployment of new servers, one should use caution. Typically, the storage in allocation for these templates is set to a default number. Most administrators of virtual environments set a “safe” default size, in which a particular machine does not appear to waste much space. As rapid growth is typical in virtual environments, these environments never stay at just a handful of virtual machines. As a result, the cumulative waste of each virtual machine can result in TBs of total wasted disk capacity.
By pinpointing and adjusting these virtual machines and potentially getting rid of the standard template deployment, tremendous savings in space and all other benefits of server virtualization can be realized.
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Reduction in floor space, power and cooling are added byproducts of greater space utilization, either for the computer or storage environment. Almost instantaneous ROI is realistic with a proper data center management tool, as the typical cost of data center floor tile runs at approximately $10,000 per month.
