TABLE OF CONTENTS This article written by Brien M. Posey first appeared on TechGenix s WindowsNetworking Web site (www.windowsnetworking.com). For more information, see the note at the end of this appendix.
Microsoft s Virtual Server 2005 helps cut hardware cost by allowing you to simultaneously run multiple virtual machines on a single server. Before you consider deploying Virtual Server 2005, though, you need to understand the various caveats and implications associated with virtual machines.
In this article, I discuss some of the pros and cons associated with using Virtual Server 2005. In case you aren t familiar with Virtual Server, it is a product that is designed to allow you to create multiple virtual servers on a single Windows Server 2003 box. Each of these virtual servers functions as an independent computer running its own operating system and individual set of applications. You can learn more about Virtual Server 2005 by visiting www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/virtualserver/evaluation/vsoverview.mspx.
Virtual Servers are handy for a variety of reasons. Primarily, though, they are used in development environments and are also used for server consolidation. The reason why Virtual Server works so well in development environments is because it allows developers to test potentially buggy software on a variety of different operating systems without having to worry about crashing the system.
While it s true that the virtual machines are running on top of Windows, Virtual Server is designed in a way that isolates each virtual machine from the core operating system, and from other applications and virtual machines...
