Citrix, Microsoft in server virtualisation pact

BANGALORE: Extending its 20-year partnership in application and desktop virtualization, Citrix Systems, Inc.  today announced “Project Encore,” in collaboration with Microsoft targeting the server virtualization market. 

As part of this strategic alliance, Citrix unveiled the availability of a new solution called Citrix Essentials  for Microsoft  Hyper-V, offering advanced virtualization management capabilities for Microsoft Windows Server  2008 Hyper-V to help customers create highly scalable, manageable and agile virtual infrastructures.

The new solution will extend the enterprise management capabilities of Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V and System Center in the areas of storage management, provisioning services, and lab automation. To accelerate broad availability to Microsoft Hyper-V customers, Citrix will make Essentials for Microsoft Hyper-V available to both Citrix and Microsoft resellers worldwide and collaborate with Microsoft on marketing and training activities.

“Citrix Essentials for Hyper-V will enable Microsoft customers to obtain even more value from their investments in the Windows platform and Microsoft virtualization solutions,” said Mike Neil, general manager, virtualization strategy at Microsoft Corp.  “We see Citrix Essentials as a powerful extension that enables customers to accelerate their Hyper-V adoption in the enterprise in much the same way Citrix XenApp has extended the Windows Server platform for nearly 20 years in the application delivery arena.  Microsoft also will work to ensure that a future release of Microsoft System Center will support Citrix XenServer for customers with mixed Hyper-V and XenServer environments.”

Citrix Essentials for Hyper-V includes:

·Advanced Storage Integration using Citrix StorageLink technology makes it easy for Hyper-V and Microsoft System Center customers to fully leverage all the native power of their existing array-based storage systems.

·Dynamic Provisioning Services lets customers centrally manage a common set of master images, which can be streamed on-demand into Hyper-V virtual machines or physical servers.

.Hypervisor Interoperability makes it easy for customers to manage virtual machines across heterogeneous Hyper-V and XenServer environments.

·Automated Lab Management enables Hyper-V customers to develop, test, and deliver applications faster by automating and simplifying the entire virtual machine lifecycle, including movement across virtualization platforms.

“Citrix and Microsoft have a long track record of working together to add value on top of the Windows platform,” said Frank Artale, group vice president, worldwide business development, Citrix Systems.  “Our partnership on the client side has improved desktop computing for 200,000 companies and more than 100 million end users worldwide.  We are excited to officially extend this partnership into the server virtualization arena today, opening the next chapter in one of the most successful partnerships in industry history.”

Citrix Essentials for Hyper-V will be available through channel partners on April 7, 2009.  Suggested retail pricing will begin at $1,500 per physical server.  Microsoft Hyper-V is currently available as part of Windows Server 2008 Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter editions, as well as a standalone hypervisor Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008.