Category: Virtualization

Q: What are some advantages of virtualization?

12/28/2012

A:

Cost savings through server consolidation.
Enhanced availability of network services.
Faster provisioning of new services.
Increased utilization.
Leverage the security of virtual networks.

Q: What are some disadvantages of virtualization?

12/27/2012

A:

Creates new costs.
Magnifies the impact of hardware failures.
Server sprawl.
Software pricing/licensing issues.
Possible performance issues due to hardware bottlenecks.

Q: What are some best practices?

12/26/2012

A:

Use virtual savings to fund security gaps in physical world.
Use the same tools and procedures to manage the virtual world as you do in the physical world.
Don't allow less security in the virtual world than you have in the physical world.
Carefully consider configuration management of the virtual machines.

Q: Where can I go for more information?

12/22/2012

A:

Q: Are there any additional considerations?

12/20/2012

A:

Hypervisor security configuration.
Virtual network security.
Security of server images.
Denial of Service (DoS) attacks on underlying hardware.
Loss of separation of duties among server administrators.
Disaster recovery scenarios.
Access control to host & guest servers.
Building configuration, security and corporate standards into common virtual server images.
Remote access/configuration issues on headless servers.