Hardware Consolidation Under The Microscope

One major benefit of virtualisation lies in the consolidation of hardware - or does it? Steve Gold looks at the real economics of virtualisation and explains why the devil is in the detail...

Whilst virtualisation clearly means different things to different people, one common theme - that of consolidation of hardware - tends to bubble to the top very early on in discussions about the technology.

It's interesting to note that, ever since VMware - arguably one of the major players in the PC software virtualisation stakes - was formed in the late 1990s, the company has promoted the idea that virtualisation is synonymous with the consolidation of hardware.

It's important to realise, however, that despite its recent rise to the top of the IT planning list, virtualisation technology has actually been around for some time and its origins trace all the way back to the earliest days of the mainframe computer.

One of the major advantages of virtualisation is that it complements the introduction of service-oriented architecture (SOA) in the IT planning process. 

If you're not familiar with the subject, service-orientation involves the loose coupling of services with operating systems, and other technologies that underlie applications.