Enterprises using Linux virtualize roughly 30 percent more than those that prefer Windows. What this means for enterprises incorporating Linux into their environments is cost savings in hardware and licensing fees, and a significant advantage in total cost of ownership (TCO). These conclusions are based on a Gabriel Consulting Group survey conducted on predominantly mixed environments of Linux and Windows. CNET's Matt Asay shares more of the survey findings.

According to the survey, a primary reason Microsoft has been slow to embrace virtualization is money. Virtualization results in less Windows server licenses an enterprise has to buy. And although Microsoft offers its Hyper-V virtualization technology product freely, it is the pricing strategy for Microsoft servers that lessens the appeal of virtualizing for Windows users. The survey authors explain:

"With Microsoft, users who don't have volume agreements or who haven't purchased the more expensive Enterprise or Datacenter editions will have to purchase licenses for every system and each of the virtual machines running on those systems. Linux, on the other hand, can be essentially free, meaning that companies can deploy it on multiple systems or in virtual machines at no cost."

Other benefits for Linux adopters in regards to virtualization can be seen in the following survey results, Asay asserts:

• 77 percent of survey respondents reported greater hardware utilization rates through Linux virtualization, versus 56 percent of Windows users.

• Those who standardize on Linux find Linux virtualization much more manageable (62 percent) than Windows administrators who standardize on Windows virtualization (48 percent).

• Four times as many Windows standardizers (23 percent) find Windows virtualization hard to manage than the Linux standardizers, only 6 percent of whom find Linux virtualization hard to manage.

• Linux translates into higher server utilization and, hence, less power consumption and more physical space: 59 percent of Linux administrators disagreed with the "We are rapidly running out of data center electrical capacity" statement, compared to 38 percent of Windows administrators. When presented with the statement "We are rapidly running out of data center floor space", 60 percent of Linux administrators disagreed versus 45 percent of Windows administrators.

"While enterprises could realize even bigger cost savings by simply using free Linux versus paid Windows, most enterprises will buy commercial support for Linux through Red Hat, Novell, or Canonical," Asay writes. "Even factoring in this cost, however, Linux seems to lend itself more readily to virtualization and, hence, to cost savings that result therefrom."

More Information

Virtualization tips total-cost scales for Linux - Asay's blog

Virtualization & TCO: Linux vs. Microsoft Gabriel Consulting Group survey [...read more...]

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