Securing the Virtualized Server

Introduction

The IT industry’s focus on virtualization has increased considerably over the years. Its appeal sprung from the ability to run several virtual machines on one physical computer resulting in saving companies the cost of having to purchase additional computer systems or servers. Just like their physical counterparts, the task of securing a virtual computer environment poses many challenges for IT technical personnel. The benefits of server virtualization have been touted over and over again to include load balancing, lower power consumption, ease of management, isolation from attackers and malware. While the benefits of virtualization have made it a “must-have technology” that continues to evolve, there are a number of security challenges and best practices that must be carefully considered when considering implementation. This paper will address the virtual server platform and the challenges and best practices in securing virtualized servers.

The Evolution of Virtualization It is the theory that the concept of virtualization had its origins during the days of mainframe computers in the late 1960’s to early 1970’s, when IBM began developing time-sharing solutions for organizations. This endeavor was aimed at increasing the efficiency of both users and the expensive computer resources they shared by, in-effect, sharing usage of computer resources among a large group of users. This resulted in a breakthrough in the computer technology industry by reducing the cost of providing computers and it made using computers possible for organizations as well as individuals without actually having to own one (Oracle, 2006). Nowadays data centers use virtualization techniques to create abstractions of physical computer hardware, called ‘instances’, which include everything that a physical computer would have,