Financial services group Standard Life is testing desktop virtualisation to manage office capacity, reduce power consumption costs and improve efficiency.

The technology pilot involves hosting operating systems on a central server that allows staff remote access to their PC from any desktop.

Virtualisation has traditionally been used to consolidate physical servers to cut operating costs, but the trend towards a broader virtual IT infrastructure is bringing a rise in desktop, application and storage virtualisation.

Standard Life adopted server virtualisation three years ago after determining that its servers were not being used to their full capacity, says technology infrastructure manager Andrew Gordon.

‘We had one server for every application and felt we could consolidate and simplify it to improve efficiency within the business,’ he said. ‘We have now migrated more than 50 per cent of servers to virtual servers.’

Standard Life runs 362 operating system instances on 37 VMware ESX virtual servers and has a ratio of one physical server to nine operating systems.

‘Server virtualisation is now mainstream technology – where once it was the exception it is now the default option,’ said Gordon.

Benefits include cost savings from needing fewer servers, energy savings from reduced power and cooling needs, and better management control of the infrastructure through centralisation. New servers can also be deployed in hours rather than up to 15 days as before, says Gordon.

The success of the server project has now led Standard Life to branch out into desktop virtualisation.

‘We want to consolidate some PCs to make the most of our office space,’ said Gordon. ‘So we have moved to a hotdesk situation, where we have more staff than desks.

‘But few people are at their desk 100 per cent of the time and it also be nefits some as they can remotely access a desktop and work where they are needed in the business.’

Virtualisation has not been used to its full potential, but that is set to change, according to industry analysts.

Forrester Research says 35 per cent of European businesses are using or piloting virtualisation technology, with a further 16 per cent expressing interest.

But this still trails the level of interest globally.

Virtualisation is a technology whose time has come, says Butler Group senior research analyst Roy Illsley.

‘Server virtualisation was just the start but there are a whole range of possibilities from desktop to storage and application virtualisation,’ he said.

‘We have seen the benefits of server virtualisation, from cost and energy savings to greater management control of the server estate.’

Illsley predicts that a virtual desktop infrastructure will challenge traditional desktops and laptops within five to seven years, as it also reduces power usage by removing individual desktop processing units.

This approach is also more secure, as data is held on a central server and not a desktop or laptop, and centralisation reduces support needs. Increased agility in deploying new servers and environmental benefits are other key drivers.

Environmental concerns are rising rapidly up the business agenda, helping to increase virtualisation adoption, but Illsley says it remains just one of many considerations.

‘I still do not think environmental issues are the top issue when businesses consider virtualisation,’ he said.

‘Business factors still drive take-up, but virtualisation does add to a company’s green credentials without much effort.’

However, environmental benefits were a significant factor in the decision of department store group John Lewis to adopt server virtualisation earlier this year.

Each IT project requires an analysis of its green credentials, says John Lewis’ IT systems manager Crispin Hobbs, and virtualisation is an ‘absolute no brainer’ as it reduces power use and data centre space requirements.

‘We began having capacity problems in one of our two data centres last year,’ he said.

‘So we began using VMware virtual servers in January – we virtualised 57 servers onto nine physical machines.

‘We have already relieved pressure on the data centre and it has become our default choice for new servers since March. From July, we will look to convert our existing servers to virtual machines.’

John Lewis will convert servers that have basic functions and low use first, before converting more complex systems. Hobbs says the retailer will then consider desktop, application and storage virtualisation in time.

‘We would not replace every desktop, for example, but there may be some easy wins,’ he said.

‘It is still a new technology and we will keep a close eye on it before dipping our toes in.