Virtualization helps Texas association reduce its data storage space

In a December 16 piece for InformationWeek, Deni Conner, a founding analyst for Storage Strategies NOW, profiled one business’ successful attempt to reduce its physical storage space and become more flexible in the event of a natural disaster.

According to the report, the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB), which is based in Austin, Texas, was able to reduce the number of servers it needed to run its operations from 200 to around 60 physical servers by adopting the principals of virtualization. Virtualization provides businesses with the ability to utilize their storage space more efficiently by breaking down some of the cumbersome barriers presented by older models.

As a result, the TASB now keeps information on just 60 servers and an additional 140 virtual machines. Since the transition, its employees say it has been easier to make sure their new servers are being fully utilized than it was with its old direct-attached system.

We wanted a system that was simple to operate, with features such as snapshots that weren’t offered at a separate cost,” Tony Fowlie, technical architect for the TASB, told the news source regarding the decision.

According to TASB, if the system now faces a disaster situation, it can recover in as quickly as 15 minutes, meaning that the 4.7 million students and 600,000 employees the institution needs to provide for will be able to quickly access their essential data. Due to this benefit, businesses in other parts of the country that face disaster scenarios – whether they come from hurricanes, tornadoes or snow storms – may want to talk to a virtualization specialist.

By working with a provider of VoIP buisness phones that can also provide virtualization consultation, companies can streamline their internal data storage without transferring the burden of this transition directly to their employees. This may make it an attractive alternative to small businesses with overworked IT professionals.

Virtualization provides businesses with the ability to utilize their storage space more efficiently by breaking down some of the cumbersome barriers presented by older models.