The Charlotte Observer Leverages Virtualization and Management Capabilities from Virtual Iron
North Carolina's Largest Daily Newspaper Will Utilize the Benefits of Virtual Iron on New Intel Quad-Core to Maintain Maximum Performance and Reliability for Mission-Critical Database Application
Lowell, MA, December 11, 2006 – Virtual Iron Software (www.virtualiron.com), a provider of enterprise-class software solutions for server virtualization and virtual infrastructure management, today announced that The Charlotte Observer, North Carolina’s largest daily circulation newspaper, is deploying Virtual Iron’s virtualization and management software to help support a Unix to Linux migration project for three mission-critical applications including their Oracle -based circulation database. The newspaper plans to transition from an expensive, proprietary hardware platform to an Intel-based, industry-standard platform. As a result of both initiatives, The Charlotte Observer will significantly reduce data center complexity and gain new levels of price performance while improving service levels for its readers.
With Virtual Iron Version 3.1, the newspaper is virtualizing its Oracle-based circulation system database while targeting top performance and reliability. In combination with the new Quad-Core Intel® Xeon® processor 5300 series, Virtual Iron’s solutions can be deployed to accelerate the processing of news items, supporting its goal of providing readers with the latest news and sports information every day. Virtual Iron is one of the first virtualization software providers to support the new Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor 5300 series.
“Virtualization has the potential to deliver huge advantages in data center cost savings and reduced complexity,” said Geoff Shorter, IT Infrastructure Manager, at The Charlotte Observer. “However, cost-savings alone are not enough. Virtual Iron’s enterprise-class solution, in combination with Intel Quad-Core, delivers this and more at less than 20 percent of the cost of alternative solutions.”
The Charlotte Observer will benefit from Virtual Iron’s advanced capabilities such as large memory support (up to 96 GB), large SMP capabilities (up to 8 simultaneous CPUs per virtual server) and the ability to virtualize server platforms with up to 32 physical CPUs. The software leverages Intel’s new hardware–assist (Intel® Virtualization Technology) to deliver near native performance and simultaneous support for 32 and 64-bit unmodified Linux and Windows operating systems. It also delivers sophisticated virtual management and policy-based automation capabilities. The Virtual Iron platform requires no installation or management of virtualization services on physical servers, further streamlining data center operations and costs.
“The bottom line for The Charlotte Observer is better performance and reliability for less cost,” said Mike Grandinetti, Chief Marketing Officer at Virtual Iron. “Our platform is designed to deliver enterprise-class capabilities and performance, and the newspaper has turned to us for that reason. We look forward to collaborating with The Charlotte Observer to extend the benefits of virtualization beyond the data center and positively impact how the newspaper serves its hundreds of thousands of readers every day.”
“The new Quad-Core Intel® Xeon® processor is enabling even greater levels of price/performance in enterprise data center virtualization,” said Jason Waxman, Director - Xeon Server Platforms, at Intel Corporation. “Virtual Iron’s ability to take full advantage of Intel Virtualization Technology to virtualize server platforms with up to 32 physical CPUs, gives their customers better ROI from the consolidation of mission-critical workloads.”
About The Charlotte Observer
The Charlotte Observer is the premier newspaper in the Charlotte region, which is the second largest banking center in the United States.
About Virtual Iron Software, Inc.
Virtual Iron provides enterprise-class software solutions for creating and managing virtual infrastructure. Its software enables companies to dramatically reduce the complexity and cost of managing and operating their enterprise data center. Virtual Iron delivers advanced virtualization capabilities that exploit industry standards, open source economics and built-in hardware-assisted acceleration. Organizations use Virtual Iron’s software for consolidation, rapid provisioning, business continuity, capacity management and policy-based automation to deliver significant improvements in utilization, manageability and agility. Virtual Iron is privately held and based in Lowell, Massachusetts. For more information, visit http://www.virtualiron.com or email info@virtualiron.com.
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