VMware says management safe in virtualization
VMware says management safe in virtualization
March/April Edition, 2008: VMware says a recent survey claiming customers deploying virtualization are running into management issues do not reflect their experience in the market – but if management is a problem, it’s often a matter of people no using the tools available.
A recent survey from Netuitive raised eyebrows around what was considered a reasonably content virtualization industry: The study found VMware users are unhappy with current management tools, with 94 percent admitting they aren’t confident using tools available to manage their virtual environments.
With the Netuitive survey failing to publish details on how their results were found, VMware dismissed the findings, stating they simply do not fit with their experience of the market.
“Who knows what the sample size is,” says Paul Harapin managing director of VMware “It’s so far removed from any real world experience. Maybe they asked the receptionist on the desk.”
Netuitive claims respondent cited specific areas of frustration as being around poor visibility into performance, difficulty in isolating root causes and increased administration times.
According to Daniel Heimlich, VP at Netuitive, problems arise when, “organisations start implementing VMware without first thinking about how they’ll be able to manage them.”
With the management of VMware environments put into question, VMware says the tools are available but it’s a matter of matter of utilizing processes to make them effective. “When the latest whiz thing comes out and management doesn’t put through processes around it, you’ll have problems where things are not as streamlined as you’d like them to be,” says Harapin.
Harapin finds that often server implementation procedures are abandoned when it comes to virtualization. “A lot of companies say ‘we’ll give access’ for a team to create a virtual machine, but then perhaps don’t put in the processes like what would happen in a physical ways,”
Measuring success
Basing his statements on a recent CA study, Steve Whichelo technology specialist with CA says many organisations believe they have been successful with virtualization, but don’t know how to measure it. “More companies than before are seeing the ROI,” he says. “51 percent of the companies surveyed are achieving the ROI.”
The CA study also highlighted some concerns on virtualization management with just 42 percent of APAC respondents claiming to be effectively managing their virtualization server environment. With 300 CIOs and IT executives surveyed from across APAC, the US and EMEA regions, 48 percent rated management of their virtual server environment as a critical or high IT priority, but still just 42 percent reported that their companies are doing an effective job in the area.
Whichelo says it’s important for organisations to look at their current tools in relation to broader management. “Don’t just look at virtual environment but look at the physical and look to extend these into virtualization,” he says. “If their tools don’t allow them to manage virtualization, then it might be time to look at replacing them.”