Hyper-V Server Virtualisation

Server virtualisation, also known as hardware virtualisation, is a hot topic in the IT world because of the potential for serious economic benefits. Server virtualisation enables multiple operating systems to run on a single physical machine as virtual machines (VMs). With server virtualisation, you can consolidate workloads across multiple underutilized server machines onto a smaller number of machines, and also efficiently run multiple different operating systems—Windows, Linux, and others—in parallel, on a single server, and fully leverage the power of x64 computing.  Fewer physical machines can lead to reduced costs through lower hardware, energy, and management overhead, plus the creation of a more dynamic IT infrastructure.

With Hyper-V, the next generation hypervisor-based server virtualisation technology from Microsoft, its now easier to take adavantage of the cost savings of virtualisation. 

Two products are available:-

Hyper-V Server 2008
Low cost option consisting of the Windows Hypervisor, driver model and virtualisation components. Providing a simplified, reliable, and optimized virtualisation solution. Used for test and development; basic server consolidation; branch office consolidation; hosted desktop virtualisation (VDI)

Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V.
Provided as part of the Windows 2008 operating system; with a set of rich and robust virtualisation features, such as Quick Migration, multi-site clustering, large memory support (greater than 32 GB of RAM), and more than four processors on the host server. If used optionally with System Center Virtual Machine Manager, provides integrated management of both physical and virtual servers.  

Pygmalion Services and Solutions. Pygmalion offers a range of services to assist companies to assess and implement Hyper-V server virtualisation. For further information see:  Hyper-V Service Offering.pdf