<div>
Thanks that's helpful. Is there a ratio of how many guests per host it takes to become cost effective?. E.g. If I have 2 servers that require 64Gb RAM and 4 x CPU's each and a host can only accomodate 2 servers based on those requirements, is it still cost effective to go virtual?
</div>


<div>
<div class="content wysiwyg-content">
Hi All,<br />
<br />
we have been having a discussion at my office about if there a point when it is cheaper for a machine to be physical rather than virtual?. Because if it requires a large number of CPU cores and/or a large amount of memory, it works to reduce the maximum number of machines that the host can support potentially destroying the overall cost effectiveness.<br />
<br />
Is there a &quot;sweet spot&quot; for CPU or RAM requirements that dictate a machine should be physical not virtual. What is it? How is it derived?<br />
<br />
Is there a design rule or method, based on worked and priced out examples that enable us to figure out if we should choose to have a Physical Machine instead of a Virtual Machine?<br />
<br />
thanks
</div>
</div>


Hi All,

we have been having a discussion at my office about if there a point when it is cheaper for a machine to be physical rather than virtual?. Because if it requires a large number of CPU cores and/or a large amount of memory, it works to reduce the maximum number of machines that the host can support potentially destroying the overall cost effectiveness.

Is there a "sweet spot" for CPU or RAM requirements that dictate a machine should be physical not virtual. What is it? How is it derived?

Is there a design rule or method, based on worked and priced out examples that enable us to figure out if we should choose to have a Physical Machine instead of a Virtual Machine?

thanks

The cost virtualizing resource intensive servers

Servers are computing devices that are similar to desktop computers in that they have the same basic components, but are significantly different in size, configuration and purpose. Servers are usually accessed over a network, and many run unattended, without a computer monitor, input device, audio hardware or USB interfaces. Many servers do not have a graphical user interface (GUI), and are configured and managed remotely. Servers typically include hardware redundancy such as dual power supplies, RAID disk systems, and ECC memory, along with extensive pre-boot memory testing and verification. Critical components might be hot swappable, and to guard against overheating, servers might have more powerful fans or use water cooling.

Server Hardware

Virtualization is the act of creating a virtual (rather than actual) version of something, including (but not limited to) a virtual computer hardware platform, operating system (OS), storage device, or computer network resources. Virtualization is usually the creation of a system that executes separate from the underlying hardware resources, or the creation of an entire desktop for systems located elsewhere, similar to thin clients.