Virsto Takes on Virtual I/O Challenge

Virsto Software today intends to take on both of those challenges with the launch of Virsto One, plug-in software that is initially available for Microsoft Hyper-V environments.

According to Virsto Software CEO Mark Davis, virtual servers are flawed in that they consume 30 percent more storage space than physical servers and they can reduce I/O performance by as much as 80 percent.
Virsto has re-engineered the way virtual servers manage files by creating “golden images” that can be shared by multiple virtual servers, rather than copying images on top of each virtual server. That model then allows Virsto to also deploy a more efficient mechanism for managing I/O across virtual servers in addition to provisioning storage, he said.

Davis said that while Virsto One will work with any virtual machine software, Virsto Software is partnering with Microsoft first because Microsoft as a challenger to VMware in this space is more receptive to working closely with third-party companies.

Davis said that over time he expects Virsto Software to develop a variety of policy-based management tools that will allow IT organization to optimize storage performance across heterogeneous virtual server environments.

Pricing for Virsto One starts at $1,250 per two-socket server.