PolyBase, a data virtualization feature for SQL Server, allows users to seamlessly query data from various external sources directly using T-SQL (Transact-SQL) without the need for separate client ...

In the complex and frustrating world of virtualization licensing, Microsoft has had its ups and downs and caused its fair share of IT aggravation. Licensing Microsoft products in a physical world has ...

I am dealing with a company (of 15-20 people) that is currently running a PE2900 (tower) that is on its last legs and long overdue for an upgrade. It used to handle Crystal Reports, Quickbooks, SQL ...

I was privileged to deliver a session entitled Managing SQL Server in a Virtual World at the PASS Summit 2012, the largest annual conference for Microsoft SQL Server ...

If you haven’t been paying a lot of attention, you might have missed the rise of a new form of virtualization, based at the operating system level, called “containers.” While there are many specific ...

A new report from research firm GigaOm indicated that SQL Server runs faster on virtual machines on Micrososft's Azure cloud than on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) compute instances (EC2). Sponsored by ...

Microsoft does it again. Just when you thought you were completely confused about Microsoft virtualization licensing, they do it again. Remember when Microsoft announced their virtualization license ...

Microsoft unveiled a set of improvements to Windows Azure this week. Four of the five new features are now generally available. One feature -- AutoScale support for Windows Azure -- is still at the ...

How many virtual machines can you fit on a host server? That's a frequently-asked question when IT pros consider which hardware options to purchase for their virtual hosts. In this tip, I share things ...

(1) See server virtualization. Contrast with virtual host. (2) A virtual machine environment from Microsoft for Windows servers. See Microsoft Virtual Server. (3) Multiple servers that appear as one ...