Quoting TopTechNews

"Microsoft has recognized the growing influence of Linux in virtualization, with offerings from VMware and XenSource, and needs some level of support for platforms other than Windows," said Stephen Elliot, an IDC analyst. "There is a higher risk for Microsoft if they don't collaborate with the Linux community."

Microsoft is pushing further into virtualization, announcing that its Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) Image Format specification is now free to developers working on related technologies.

The release was made under Microsoft's Open Specification Promise (OSP), a license that the software giant introduced in September for an array of Web services in an effort to improve software interoperability.

The VHD file format is a primary component of Microsoft Virtual Server, Virtual PC, and Windows Server virtualization. It is designed to store a virtual operating system and its applications in a single file, making the virtualized servers easier to manage.

Embracing Virtualization

Virtualization is widely recognized as a way companies can slash I.T. infrastructure costs. By using the technology, businesses can replace larger, mostly unused servers with smaller, more efficient machines that run multiple operating systems.

The technology has increasingly become mainstream. A survey conducted earlier this year by Forrester found that, of 1,221 businesses with more than 1,000 employees, some 41 percent already had implemented or were planning to implement virtualization software.

Analysts have said it is only a matter of time before virtualization capabilities are commoditized, as chipmakers, including Intel and AMD, provide additional support for the technology at the motherboard level. This trend might mean that the battle for the virtualization market could shift entirely to software tools that help manage virtual environments and organize the systems to use the hardware more efficiently.

With the VHD format now a freely available specification, Microsoft hopes to establish common ground among all commercial and open-source software products.

Collaboration Is Key

Microsoft made a similar move in April, announcing that its Virtual Server 2005 R2 product would provide support for Linux and be available as a free download. With Virtual Server, organizations can run up to four virtual operating systems on one physical system.

"Microsoft has recognized the growing influence of Linux in virtualization, with offerings from VMware and XenSource, and needs some level of support for platforms other than Windows," said Stephen Elliot, an IDC analyst, in a recent interview. "There is a higher risk for Microsoft if they don't collaborate with the Linux community."

Still, Elliot noted that such support is indeed virtual in nature and that it will take years for Microsoft to develop strong ties with software developers working on non-Windows technology.

With virtualization, commodity is the name of the game, the analyst said, as businesses continue to define what the new technology means. "It's very popular among enterprises because they can save money through consolidation and disaster recovery," he said. "Microsoft has to get in on this and build a foundation for future data centers."