The idea that virtualization technologies are revolutionizing the market is no longer novel. Though the conversation has shifted toward cloud computing, server virtualization remains the foundation. Driven by numerous benefits including lower capital and operational costs, greater IT efficiency and agility, and improved application performance, server virtualization is being deployed rapidly and near-universally by large midmarket and enterprise organizations. These benefits, realized by neophyte adopters, are merely the tip of the proverbial iceberg; organizations with more extensive deployments have realized improvements in application provisioning, automation of IT tasks, application availability, disaster recovery, business continuity, and application development.

The acceleration of server virtualization investments and cloud computing initiatives, combined with the potential change in IT infrastructure consumption, is rapidly transitioning the IT conversation away from a technology focus to more of a business-oriented approach. Today, the discussion is more about operational efficiency and economics. While the initial success of server virtualization was tied to the reduction of capital expenditures and containment of IT resources, the next phase is poised to focus more on its operational benefits and less and less on the technical nuances of one solution over the other. Procuring virtual computing infrastructures is going to become more of a business decision than most IT organizations are accustomed to. The buyers of virtual computing infrastructures are not concerned with the “speeds and feeds” of the infrastructure; they are focused on business priorities, time to market (cycle time), and ultimately improving IT service levels to the businesses they support. Server virtualization and cloud computing are acting as the ideal catalysts to introduce this strategy to mainstream IT and change the way businesses consume IT infrastructure.

IT is at a tipping point as more organizations consider investing in this new consumption model. This report will help to identify:

• The key benefits and driving factors of virtual computing infrastructures
• The primary challenges and concerns surrounding virtual computing infrastructures
• Tips for IT to use to help decide when to make a shift to a virtual computing infrastructure
• Approaches for  making an educated investment that fulfills short-term growth requirements and accommodates long-term IT strategies
• Potential vendor solutions

Though the report will discuss the deployment options that best suit future cloud initiatives, it will focus on the foundational infrastructure for x86-based server virtualization, not on the managerial add-ons and solutions that enable organizations to achieve the primary tenets of cloud computing. As a result, while some vendor solutions incorporate one more of these tenets, the solutions themselves center on virtual computing infrastructures.

Meantime, it’s very normal to make predictions at this time of year, with blogs and articles awash with prognostications…I won’t be immune from that over the coming weeks but for now I figure I’ll do something a little different by looking backwards in order to look forwards; and in so doing come up with one prediction of which I’m supremely confident.

Of course, once I found the stash of old pocket diaries I couldn’t help but look through them, whether or not they were applicable to the naturalization paperwork. Apparently I used to have a life! But I figure you’re not that interested in the plays I saw, parties I attended, and parenting events I undertook!? So I picked a few things of interest…before wondering what we would have predicted for 2012 from a decade or two ago?

First off, some of you may be too young to really have appreciated a good pocket diary – these things were mines of information….from world time-zones and public holidays (pretty useful) to wine vintages, metric/imperial conversions and atlases so tiny that you could barely make out the continents let alone cities. But there were also pages to note your expenses (no Excel back then!) and I was able to look back at all my achieved sales numbers through the years – at least until everything went electronic and of course I have no idea where, or if, the more recent records are! [I'm sure there's a pertinent point in that!] Of rather more drama, it reminded me of one of my managers in the UK that was murdered (the rumor was that it was a ‘hit,’ although whether the result of marital issues or conducting ‘dodgy’ leasing deals was never clear). Even more dramatic is the fact that the map of the World has changed notably in the last few decades….Europe alone looks crucially different from when I was selling round tape drives to British Airways! On an almost similar theme (because Germany is one of those changed geographies), but of no marked importance to the world, I found a distressingly large notation of when I got my first BMW….and the polo events that they’d invite me to, not realizing that I was a meager company-car-3-series-driver and not likely to be splurging big, real money of my own anytime!

So, trying to look forwards as if from back then, what can I say? I could lie and tell you that today’s technologies were clear to all, but that would be disingenuous in the extreme. After all – just to put it in perspective – I’m writing this blog on my BlackBerry in an airport, and later I’ll – wirelessly of course – clean it up and load it to the ‘Cloud’ site that supports it. Heck, I thought I was cool and space-age when I first got a car-phone, so I can’t lay claim to having figured out the impact or capabilities of this ‘Internet Age’! Actually maybe it was/is the ‘Information Age’….I know this for a fact because I can see that one of the myriad courses I attended back then was at Cranfield Management Centre in 1997 and it was called “Reinventing Competitive Advantage in the Information Age!”

Computing in the years before that – at least to me as an early business user – was lots of columns of green numbers on a black screen…..there were no products with an ‘i’ in front of them back then, and the line between corporate and personal computing (to the limited extent it even existed) was very solid and very wide. Basically, there were mainframes doing big, important work and people in corduroys and white coats that operated them. In fact, that perhaps brings us to one of the big changes – and it’s not technical at all. As we’re re-creating the concepts of a mainframe world in many respects (VDI running in the things called Clouds, over the Internet, accessing Big Data and interconnected up the wazzoo, create a massive global mainframe ‘feel’) the attire of choice for IT folks is getting a big change – and it’s not even jeans, as these days our web-based world means PJ’s are just as likely to be the sartorial choice.

What then is my semi-serious, but likely correct, prediction for 2012 and beyond? Forget the evolutionary technical advances, and watch the advance of the flannel revolution! This may read like just a whimsical point, but – like my old hand-written pocket calendars – there’s a lot more in it than you’d think.

You can read Mark’s other blog entries at The Business of Storage.

Indeed, more organizations are looking to deploy desktop virtualization solutions to deliver a consistent image, complete with all applicable business applications to any device an employee chooses to leverage in order to solve this problem. It enables IT to provide greater levels of flexibility to its employees and yet still maintain control over the data, especially sensitive data, which will still be housed in the centralized data center. However, with most pilots done in a limited data center environment, organizations need to be more aware of the impact this may have on the network, especially if they are planning on deploying it in any remote or branch offices. Like any centralized application, if not done correctly, poor performance and availability issues will lead to user frustration and eventually abandonment, potentially wasting a great deal of money (think about some of the problems with the initial centralized SharePoint deployments, etc.).

In 2012 this may be even more of an issue, as ESG research indicates that, while 25% of respondents to our Remote Office/Branch Office Technology Trends survey indicated that they have already deployed centralized virtual desktop solutions at ROBOs, another 42 % plan to do so over the next 18 months. So now is the time to ensure that your virtual desktop initiative will not be hindered by the WAN. With the proper insight (network management tools) and testing (make sure the POC includes at least one typical ROBO location), problems can be averted. In some cases the WAN link you already have may be adequate, in others, you may need more. In those cases, I would recommend investigating optimizing the WAN link before simply ordering more bandwidth as over time it could save a significant amount from your operational budget. It should be noted that while WAN optimization technology wasn’t originally designed to optimize virtual desktops, many vendors have recognized the need and are rapidly adding support for different desktop virtualization vendors and their specific technologies. The key will be knowing which WAN links need additional support and then matching the appropriate WAN optimization vendors to your desktop virtualization solutions in advance of the formal rollout in order to increase your chances for success.

You can read Bob’s other blog entries at Data Center Continuum.

I couldn’t be more excited to be speaking at the inaugural CITE event. I am thankful to the conference panel for selecting me as a speaker. Hope to see you there!

You can read Terri’s other blog entries at IT Depends.

It is a really exciting time to be looking at this space. I am a bit embarrassed (a trend in my blogs lately) to admit that I have 5 endpoint devices that I use for assorted tasks that are work related: an android phone, an android tablet, an iPad, a laptop, and a desktop. Someday I will settle on which tablet I like better – but for now this is my reality. The ability to access the latest, consistent version of my work documents from any of these devices is invaluable for me – all of our research data points are at my fingertips wherever I am. All of my notes from all of my meetings – right there, no matter what device is in front of me. Okay – I am probably atypical, but still – how many users have a smartphone and laptop? Or a smartphone, laptop and tablet? That is much more typical – and it is driving changes in IT storage strategies.

I was initially skeptical about enterprise adoption of these solutions – the most well known are well known because of consumer use, not business use. However the “bring your own device” (BYOD) trend along with users having multiple endpoint devices is one driver for IT to look at solutions that support these devices, and of the companies we’ve spoken to that have BYOD policies, many (83% according to our research) allow employees to use their devices for both work and personal use. That explains why perhaps the bigger driver is end-user demand – an awful lot of IT’s customers are deploying these solutions without waiting for permission, and IT is being pulled into looking at and endorsing a corporate-wide solution that will provide the manageability, security, and control they need to protect corporate information assets.

I’ve spoken to a number of companies that have adopted these solutions, from web-based businesses to some well known large companies known for a conservative approach to IT, and I am no longer skeptical. They tell similar stories – the big drivers are end-user demand for these solutions, endpoint device support, unleashing the shackles of using a VPN for shared file access, collaboration, and supporting a mobile workforce. And when I ask whether they are augmenting existing storage solutions or replacing, I consistently hear that they are replacing file servers – either Windows or LINUX-based or dedicated NAS systems. Consumerization is indeed changing storage strategies within some enterprise IT shops and driving adoption of these solutions.

We will be increasing our coverage in this area in the coming year – this report is really to set the baseline for our future work. It is only available to premium subscribers – but contact us if you are not a premium subscriber and interested.

You can read Terri’s other blog entries at IT Depends.

I can’t even begin to fathom how much productivity time is lost or abandoned altogether simply due to how long it takes a system to “fire up.” I get that I may want to warm up my car on a cold morning, but the majority of times I like to get in it, buckle up, turn the key, and go. We don’t have to “fire up” our smartphones–they just work and provide instant access to calling and applications. It baffles me when I watch how long it takes some people to boot their systems or simply just not turn it on at all because of how long it takes to log on. The scary part is that IT is going to get more and more pressure from its users. I shudder to think how much productivity would be gained in any company if all endpoint devices instantly turned on and provided instant productivity. I suspect the impact would be dramatic.

I believe this is one of the many reasons we are starting to see such an insurgence of smartphone and tablet usage inside companies – they work – instantly! Laptops and desktops need to do the same. My informal survey of MAC users clearly validates the fact that one of the best benefits of the MAC is its ability instantly turn on, which alone is worth the price of admission. I’m positive someone can show me a Windows machine that does the same, but the majority of Windows users I see have to “fire up” their system.

Solid-state drives can help, but feel like more of a band-aid than a true solution. I think desktop virtualization has some very interesting technology that can help solve the “fire up” use case and may be reason enough to give it a hard look and factor into the investment.

Users are naturally going to migrate to the path of least resistance and we are already seeing this with the usage of smartphones and tablets as mentioned above, but is IT ready to support the proliferation of these devices? Have they considered the impact to the way they currently deploy and maintain applications? Have they thought through security challenges? I suspect in 2012 this will be a hot item for business to address. We are already seeing some leaders in IT stand out ahead of the curve, but for the most part, we are just getting started on a major transformation in the way we design, develop, deploy, maintain, consume, and pay for applications. This is very exciting and a tremendous opportunity for IT technology innovators!

You can read Mark’s other blog entries at Liquefying IT.

At a high level, the research identified these trends and opportunities:

• Forecast for greater use of SaaS/Cloud
• Remote/mobile user support increasing
• Desktop virtualization deployments expected
• WAN optimization important

Specific to desktop virtualization, ESG discovered that 25% of respondents currently leverage a desktop virtualization solution and an additional 42% plan to in the next 12 to 24 months, while 31% report no plans.

It should come as no surprise that desktop virtualization is gaining momentum in ROBOs. The question that arises is how do the additional 42% plan to adopt desktop virtualization solutions in the next 12-24 months. Market players focused on desktop virtualization solutions should consider specific solutions, product offerings, and go to market campaigns to specifically address this significant market opportunity.

You can read Mark’s other blog entries at Liquefying IT.

In the future, I anticipate that there will be more business specific applications leveraged and organizations will each have their own app stores to enable even more productivity from mobile devices and remote workers. Think of a virtual desktop that contains all relevant business apps delivered to a mobile device. However, the key to driving adoption will be to ensure that the end-user “experience” is a positive one. We have all had the frustration of trying to pull up a site or app that is loading or responding slowly. For me that prompts a quick thumb strike to the button on the bottom of my iPhone to cancel the app.

Businesses need to be more aware of the user experience when working from a mobile device or from a remote location. Most organizations have taken steps to optimize connections between data centers and to remote offices, but there is still more to be done to guarantee optimal performance to mobile devices and remote workers. Many WAN optimization companies are now extending those technologies to include PCs, MACs, and mobile devices based on Android and IOS. With ESG research indicating that the number of remote workers will be steadily increasing over next few years, it may be well worth an organization’s time to explore options for optimizing the connectivity for remote workers and mobile devices.

You can read Bob’s other blog entries at Data Center Continuum.

Not surprisingly, as a first effort, it wasn’t as ginormous as some–just under a couple of thousand of the faithful came to worship–but that’s to be expected (and I believe was also a function of hotel space). Nonetheless, there was a stellar cast of guest keynote luminaries speaking (Michael Dell had clearly made a few calls!) which gave the event the necessary ‘sheen.’ As you would expect, there was a nicely put-together expo hall, which managed to look very ‘Dell’ branded even though it was full of other partners. I liked the way the breakout/track sessions (‘Idea Exchanges’ as Dell called them) were genuinely two-way affairs and not just sermons. Of course, it’s hard not to make comparisons to some other big events. Take, for example, VMWorld in Vegas recently–there, you are just awash in IT-humanity and the scale of everything is simply huge; conversely, at Dell World, it was possible to walk around in a personal space and actually get to the buffet. Oracle Open World closes a portion of a San Francisco street for the week, whereas the Dell event had a block-party in downtown Austin for an evening social event.

None of this is to complain…indeed, quite the opposite. First there are some advantages to smaller events; you can see–or quite likely bump into–the people you want to see, for instance. Second, Dell will want this to be bigger next year, of course. Third, I for one want to encourage them to concentrate on making this a strong event. Why? Partly because creating a strong event is still a defining aspect of our industry, especially for the large players within it: just look at IBM, HP, EMC, SalesForce.com and so on. Also, it’s because Dell needs to be more ‘out there’ and more assertive. Every time I write words like this I feel strange, because of course I’m writing about a $60 billion company. But I’m often struck that Dell is different from other behemoths. Sure, it still makes a ton of money in the lower–even consumer–end of the business, but in terms of its enterprise capabilities I often find it an organization that can do more than it says (which is very different from–sometimes even the reverse of–most vendors). And this strikes me as odd. If you’ve ever had the joy (not the first word I thought of using!) of working to be an OEM supplier to Dell–as I have–then you’ll know what an aggressive, detailed, stoic, pedantic and determined side of its culture it can demonstrate. Personally I’d like to see more of this in its high-end business. Which is why the event in Austin this week is indeed a DELLiberate step in the right direction.

You can read Mark’s other blog entries at The Business of Storage.