The world of IT is a fast moving one. There is always something new to learn about and take advantage of. For example, more people are realising that they can benefit by using a virtual machine in the workplace.
Before I go into detail about the benefits, it is probably best if I briefly explain what a virtual machine (VM) is. By far the easiest way to think of it is as a 2nd PC that is resident on your hard disk, server, in the cloud or on a remote server. This 2nd virtual PC is sandboxed from the rest of your system. This means that it works independently, a fact that brings me to the first benefit of virtual machines.
You can run multiple operating systems
Because you can run multiple virtual machines on one server allows you to run multiple operating systems side-by-side. This is great if you want to try something out in more than one operating system. It is ideal for software developers, but can also be beneficial for other businesses. For example, you may want to see if your workers work more efficiently when you use another operating system.
Compatibility
You can run virtual machines on any x86 standard computers. This means that they are compatible with all of the software you could possibly want to use.
Each VM is isolated
Despite the fact that you are running multiple virtual machines on one physical computer each one is separated from the other. It is almost as if each of them was running on its own physical machine. This has the potential to protect your system from IT attacks.
More robust systems
This is great news because if you want to you can have several copies of your system on one physical server. If one gets corrupted in some way you can very quickly switch to another version. This means that your business need not suffer extended periods of downtime. You will need to keep your backup virtual machines up to date to fully benefit from this feature.
You can learn more about the importance of creating robust backup systems for your business from this article. It is quite in-depth, but is well worth a read, especially if you do not yet have a proper system in place.
Portability
If you set your virtual machines up in the right way they can be highly portable. You can run them virtually anywhere, which means you can take them with you. It is really easy to copy or move them. This means if you have workers on the road they can work in exactly the same environment as their colleagues in the office. It is also great if you like to let your people work from home on occasion.
Hardware independence
You can create virtual components for your machines. This is part of the reason you can move your virtual machines to different computers and servers, so this capability is important.
As you can see there are many potential benefits of using virtual machines for your business. Once you get the hang of them you can take things to the next level and start to build a virtual infrastructure. An approach that can revolutionise the way you work.
