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Virtual ServersVirtual ServersHarry Dickens
Arkansas Public School Resource CenterHarry Dickens
Arkansas Public School Resource Center
How it looks and
How it works
Virtual Software
What Apps will you run on a Virtual Machine
• Share Point• SQL database • Exchange• Grade books• Time Clock Software• Library Software• Website• Antivirus • Windows Update Server
How many Apps can I run on a Physical
server ?
• The machine must be a multi-core processor with 2-4 gigabit of RAM per virtual machine running on the physical server.
• I have asked several technology directors this question. Their answer has been no more than 5 or 6.
What happens when you virtualize
• Vitalizing servers on to redundant boxes allows for easier and centralized system administration. Instead of having many servers at each school running many different services that are global to all sites, virtualization saves money and time.
What happens when you virtualize
• Vitalizing servers on to redundant boxes allows for easier and centralized system administration. Instead of having many servers at each school running many different services that are global to all sites, virtualization saves money and time.
What happens when you virtualize
• Support cost, especially electricity, are diminished. Example 10 sites connected by fiber all running the same programs on a server could be whittled down to one server at one site. This eliminates the cost to supporting 10 remote servers.
What happens when you virtualize
• Other cost that go down: remote technicians that have to support them, air conditioners to cool the servers, locked closets or enclosures to house the servers, and peripherals necessary to accommodate a server.
Other things to think about before virtualizing
• Your network must be fast, redundant and stable since the servers maybe running your entire district at mostly one location. The server needs to be at your network core and your core must be stable.
Other things to think about before virtualizing
• The server itself has to be redundant to ensure that it can withstand a component failure with limited downtime.
• Power Supplies - NIC Cards
• - Hard Drives - and Network
• Connections
Question to Ask as an Administrator
• How familiar are you with VM concepts and how important is support?
• What is the difference between free and paid products?
• What hardware is needed? Is it readily available? What operating system will you want to run?
• You will still need IT staff
Question to Ask as an Administrator
• Consolidation Expectations
• Upfront Hardware Investments
Virtualization Software
VMware/EMC Microsoft Xen
URL Vmware.com Microsoft.com/virtual server Xensource.com
Free server product VMware Server Virtual Server 2005 R2 XenExpress
Paid server productsInfrastructure v3 (Starter, Standard, and Enterprise)
None XenServer and Enterprise
Pricing range paid product $1000 - $5750 (two CPU versions) Free Server : $99/yr Enterprise: $750
Host OS (if any)Server: Windows Server, various LinuxInfra v3:bare metal
Windows Server , XP Pro SP2 (for testing purposes only)
Bare metal
Management toolsVirtual CenterVMotion migration tool
System Center VM Manager (beta) Administrator Console
Support resources High Medium Medium
Advantages• Widest selection of pre-built appliances• Widest selection of guest OS support• Wizards galore for install aids
• Can run on any IE browser with Internet access
• Less expensive option• Easy cloning of VM images
Open source solution that doesn't require any host OS
DisadvantagesConfusing array of pricing and configuration options
Only four "virtual hard disk" pre-built appliances of MS server products
• Limited hardware support• Limited Windows guest OS
support
