Microsoft’s Virtualization becomes Hyper-V

During Microsoft’s TechEd IT Forum conference in Barcelona, Spain, the company finally named its upcoming hypervisor virtualization platform. What was once code-named Viridian and then announced as Windows Server Virtualization (WSV) will now be officially known as “Hyper-V”.

At the same time that Microsoft announced the new name for the virtualization hypervisor technology, it also announced packaging, licensing and pricing information. In addition, Microsoft also squeezed in an announcement about a complementary program called the Server Virtualization Validation Program that allows virtual machine vendors to validate their solutions with Windows Server operating systems.

In addition to shipping with Windows Server 2008, Microsoft will also offer Hyper-V as a separately shipped add-on product, available for an oddly priced fee of $28. Microsoft is also going to ship three other versions of Windows Server 2008 without the Hyper-V technology. All in all, Microsoft is expecting to have eight different versions of its Windows Server 2008 product which could leave customers dazed and confused.

Versions of the operating system will be available in both 32- and 64-bit editions, with the exception of an Itanium-based version. However, if you want to own and make use of Hyper-V, you are going to have to use a 64-bit version, as only that edition of Windows Server 2008 will support it.

When thinking about editions of the operating system without the Hyper-V technology, the question in my mind is why would someone want to purchase a version of Windows Server 2008 without it for a savings of a mere $28? The unbundling and the nominal fee for Hyper-V probably has more to do with government anti-trust issues as opposed to any customer related issues, although it still seems like it will ultimately cause more confusion to end-users in the end.

Officials have stated that Windows Server 2008 is still on track to meet its current delivery date of the first quarter of 2008. And Hyper-V is scheduled to ship within 180 days after the release of Windows Server 2008.

Much like the announcements from VMware, Citrix and others, OEM partners are also getting in the mix, ready to offer Hyper-V to their customers. Partners including Dell, Fujitsu Siemens, Hitachi, HP, IBM, Lenovo, NEC and Unisys are already committed to working with Microsoft to offer Hyper-V solutions once it is available.

And in response to industry and customer demands for more comprehensive technical support of virtual machines, Microsoft also announced the Server Virtualization Validation Program. Beginning June 2008, vendors will be able to self-test and validate certain technical requirements of their server virtualization software running Windows Server 2008 and prior versions. The program will enable Microsoft to offer cooperative technical support to customers running Windows Server on validated, non-Windows server virtualization software.