Virtual machines (VMs) draw a lot of confusion because “machine” implies moving parts. In reality, virtual machines are nothing more than software existing only in code.

Because VMs are code-only, running off a multi-gig file, you can think of them as code-only computers or “computers within computers”.

Why use a virtual machine?

VMs are independent of physical computers, letting us run apps separate from the host machine from a multi-gig file. This sandboxed environment is safe and secure, and we can even roll back VMs to previous states.

The most common uses for VMs include:

  • Building, deploying and testing apps
  • Trying new software
  • Running legacy software and operating systems
  • Handling malware
  • Cloning a system to another machine
  • Backup and recovery

For these tasks, we use VMs because they are secure, scalable and offer predictable performance. However, the biggest reason we use them is portability – the hypervisor, a piece of software that manages the virtual machine, makes it easy to instantly move running Virtual Machines from one Hyper-V host to another.

5 Business benefits of virtual machines

The five business benefits of virtual machines include:

  1. Secure computing environments. VMs are sandboxed environments that run independently from the Hyper-V host. You can use these isolated environments to run potentially dangerous stuff like malware.
  2. Agile development. VMs let developers use snapshots to try various development models. The environment can then be restored instantly. VMs have no performance penalty when set up right so long as you have enough RAM.
  3. Improved uptime. When a disaster affects your physical server, you have to replace or fix it, which takes time. With a virtualised environment, you can replicate or clone the virtual machine that’s been affected instantly.
  4. Unbeatable scalability. It’s easy to create and manage multiple VMs, and you can allocate resources to different virtual machines. For example, if an app grows quickly while another is underutilised, you can reallocate resources.
  5. Slash your IT hardware costs: When you virtualise one server, you transform it into many virtual machines. By consolidating applications, OSs and other environments, you spend less money on dedicated machines.

Overall

There are hundreds of good reasons why your business should use VMs from running software that’s not compatible with your current machine to slashing IT hardware costs by consolidating multiple systems into one console.

With virtual machines, you have a golden opportunity to break free from the limitations of physical infrastructure.