SWsoft Moves To Virtualize Windows Servers

SWsoft on Tuesday expanded its server virtualization technology with software to allow multiple virtual Windows servers to share one physical server, and the Herndon, Va., company aims to build a U.S. solution provider channel to help with sales.

Virtuozzo for Windows creates multiple, isolated virtual private servers that can share hardware, software licenses and server management tools. SWsoft previously sold software to virtualize multiple Linux servers on a physical server, said Carla Safigan, senior product manager at the software vendor.

The Virtuozzo application is different from virtualization technologies by Microsoft and VMware, Safigan said. SWsoft leverages the Windows operating system already loaded on the server. It can run multiple virtual servers without the need to pay for extra OS licenses because each virtual server links to the OS on the physical server. Virtuozzo also supports any hardware that Windows supports, including up to eight-way and 16-way servers and as much as 64 Gbytes of RAM, she said.

Unlike Virtuozzo, VMware's technology has its own underlying operating system and relies on its own hardware emulation, increasing the overhead associated with it, Safigan said.

SWsoft has focused on direct sales in the United States but has built its European business on indirect sales, according to Safigan. However, the company has a small number of U.S. solution providers and aims to grow its U.S. channel base going forward, she said.The release of Virtuozzo for Windows comes during a time of growth for SWsoft. Two weeks ago, the company unveiled a $12.4 million round of venture-capital funding, its first outside funding since the firm launched in 1997, said Kurt Daniel, managing director of marketing and business development at SWsoft.

One of the investors in that round was Intel, with which SWsoft plans joint marketing and business programs, Daniel said. As a result of that investment, SWsoft will have early access to new Intel technology, and Intel will showcase SWsoft's technology in virtualization demos, he said.

As an example, Daniel pointed to Intel's upcoming Vanderpool virtualization technology, which is expected to be released this year. "We'll have early access to it and will build our technology around it," he said.