Using VM Software is an Option to Consider in an Upgrade
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With many companies upgrading their proprietary business software today, they are finding that the norm requirements for the hardware network includes a 3 server environment....this can be costly both upfront and for ongoing maintanence. I recently helped a local distributer select, purchase and implement a software product called Prophet 21 (P21) and by the time the whole upgrade is done, the cost will be around $250K.
By using VM software for the server needs, the cost could be reduced by as much as $20K-$30k not counting the on going support costs to maintain 3 servers in their LAN-WAN environment. I found a web site that I thought offered a ton of information and cut & pasted some of the info below, along with denoting the link for more data.
In simple English, this software enables you to consolidate and better manage your software & data into one remote server (versus 3 servers) and adds a much higher degree of security. For some small businesses this may be overkill but for those businesses that MUST upgrade to get into the 21st century, this is an option that should be explored.
A few highlights from the site:
http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/rms/inwd-1-19540731/
Optimize the Use of Your Technology Assets
Drastically reduce your server hardware spend by increasing the utilization of the hardware you already own while containing the number of servers you'll have to buy in the future through VMware virtualization. Repurpose existing hardware for other uses and increase the effectiveness of your overall IT environment. You'll get additional bottom line savings by drastically lowering the cost of heating and cooling fewer servers and minimizing datacenter space requirements.
Improve Staff Productivity
Virtualization lets you consolidate and centrally provision, manage and monitor servers, reducing your IT costs while increasing the productivity of IT staff. Spend less time managing the IT infrastructure while providing enhancements not available without VMware virtualization. You can better serve the needs of your business with capabilities such as instant provisioning to create test and development staging environments without additional hardware and dynamic allocation of IT resources to respond to changing business conditions.
Protect the data and IT environments that run the business
IT organizations of all sizes are concerned with improving server availability and disaster recovery. Through advanced technologies, VMware offers business continuity solutions that span the areas of improved disaster recovery, higher levels of availability and simplified backup and recovery. You'll also get better levels of security, increasing the resilience of your IT environment, as you increase responsiveness and protect your business.
If you're like most SMBs, you just don't have the resources or hardware to replicate production systems for application and patch testing-yet research indicates 80% of downtime is caused by application and production errors that could have been avoided with thorough testing. Virtualization will significantly simplify your server provisioning and allow thorough testing to take place quickly and without additional hardware expense.
