Virtualization in Higher Education
Colleges and universities are adopting virtualization to improve data center efficiency, consolidate servers, save money, and reduce energy consumption. Here you'll find articles showcasing institutions that are moving to virtualized computing environments, along with news stories covering the latest technology developments.
Virtualization has allowed Miami Dade College to eke more out of its existing equipment, save on some kinds of expenses, and in some cases improve service. The cons? As CIO Karl Herleman explained in this interview, juggling the sprawling virtualized mass of server and desktop software can be a real chore. And for cost savings, virtualization hasn't always been the winner.
A company that has developed technology for desktop virtualization has released a new version of its product with expanded hypervisor support. Pano Logic's Pano System 3.5 adds support for Microsoft Hyper-V along with VMware.
As part of their virtualized infrastructure strategy, network security and IT virtualization teams at Bryant University have implemented a Network Access Control (NAC) virtualization deployment with VMware.
Citrix Systems has gone into business with Cisco to deliver a packaged setup that promises to help organizations deploy virtualized computing environments more easily. The solution, which combines Cisco's Unified Computing System with Citrix XenDesktop, will, the companies claimed, reduce the cost per desktop by 20 percent by lowering data center infrastructure expense through high user density per server and tight integration of hardware and software.
Microsoft last week described a different way to use desktop virtualization to maintain legacy applications and still move users to Windows 7.
With colleges in the United States averaging about 97 physical labs and about 1,100 lab desktops, Dell has introduced a new product line that's designed to save institutional customers management time and hassle by taking labs virtual.
Students are moving away from their institutions in terms of their online “center.” They engage independently in learning conversations using applications of their own choosing, and they create their own digital identity--all without using campus-based technology.
In a move aimed at extending its Open Cloud infrastructure, Citrix Systems Inc. has agreed to acquire VMLogix Inc.
Virtualization is helping three universities keep campus technology up-to-date despite tightening budgets.
Microsoft provided more information about security for Windows Azure, publishing a talk and white paper.