If knowing is half the battle, virtualization is one for the ages. With more than a decade of history, it’s a tough topic that business owners would be hard-pressed to ignore. Over the years, the terminology has changed and capabilities have gotten even more confusing.

Although data storage is only one of the many ways to benefit from virtualized hardware, it’s still the most common use of the technology. Despite this popularity, virtualized storage is susceptible to a number of mismanagement catastrophes. We’ve outlined the three most common mistakes when utilizing this technology, right here.

If you thought virtualization was confusing, wait until you hear about hyperconvergence. By consolidating a number of virtualization services into a single piece of hardware, that runs a single piece of software, small- and medium-sized businesses can enjoy the simplicity, cost effectiveness, and security of a cloud infrastructure, in one on-site “box.

Virtualizing your desktops comes with a number of benefits, one of which is improved security. Unfortunately, nothing perfect lasts forever, and the virtualization industry is facing a frightening new form of malware. Although this threat is nothing more than a facelift on an old virus, it is just as dangerous as it was the first time it made headlines.

We’ll just go ahead and say it: cloud migration is a smart business move and we highly recommended it. The potential for greater efficiency, more manageable storage capacity, and cost savings are all but guaranteed. Virtualization, however, is not a walk in the clouds.

2016 saw containerization (container-based virtualization) take off as a way for companies to utilize virtual platforms more efficiently. While containers use less resources than their virtual machine (VM) counterparts, performance differences are subtle and don't necessarily make containers better.

VMware's vSphere has been adding virtual space to servers for more than a decade. The vSphere 6.5 is the newest update to the popular hypervisor program, which pulls together different operating systems onto one shared hardware location. This update promises to improve user security and experience.

When it comes to doing business today, it is all about computers and virtual platforms. The idea of a virtual desktop or virtual machine has long been a major component of doing business and providing employees individualized access to the information and programs necessary to do their work.

There is a trend toward the use of ‘containers’ as a virtualization strategy within the IT world. And it's one that seems to be gaining popularity. Virtual containers work in similar fashion to shipping containers, which have made transport of bulky goods uncomplicated and uniform.