If you thought virtualization was confusing, wait until you hear about hyperconvergence. By consolidating a number of virtualization services into a single piece of hardware, that runs a single piece of software, small- and medium-sized businesses can enjoy the simplicity, cost effectiveness, and security of a cloud infrastructure, in one on-site “box.

Virtualizing your desktops comes with a number of benefits, one of which is improved security. Unfortunately, nothing perfect lasts forever, and the virtualization industry is facing a frightening new form of malware. Although this threat is nothing more than a facelift on an old virus, it is just as dangerous as it was the first time it made headlines.

It’s a new year, and it’s time to start thinking about what information technology will look like in 2017. That could mean anything from forecasting the costs of adopting new technology to upgrading your products to better integrate with new trends.

We’ll just go ahead and say it: cloud migration is a smart business move and we highly recommended it. The potential for greater efficiency, more manageable storage capacity, and cost savings are all but guaranteed. Virtualization, however, is not a walk in the clouds.

Virtual containers have incrementally increased the ability of users to create portable, self-contained kernels of information and applications since the technology first appeared in the early 2000s. Now, containers are one of the biggest data trends of the decade — some say at the expense of the virtual machine (VM) technology that preceded them.

VMware’s vSphere has been adding virtual space to servers for more than a decade. The vSphere 6.5 is the newest update to the popular hypervisor program, which pulls together different operating systems onto one shared hardware location. This update promises to improve user security and experience.

When it comes to doing business today, it is all about computers and virtual platforms. The idea of a virtual desktop or virtual machine has long been a major component of doing business and providing employees individualized access to the information and programs necessary to do their work.

There is a trend toward the use of ‘containers’ as a virtualization strategy within the IT world. And it’s one that seems to be gaining popularity. Virtual containers work in similar fashion to shipping containers, which have made transport of bulky goods uncomplicated and uniform.

Microsoft’s Edge browser has enhanced its security features with new virtualization protocols. By running the browser inside a virtual container, it keeps web content totally separate from the Edge browser and your hard drive. Although it’s a much smaller scale than what we are used to seeing out of Microsoft’s virtualization strategies, this is a gigantic boost to Windows’s native internet browser.

Almost every day, the virtualization industry takes a giant leap forward. Although this industry has been reserved for only the most technologically advanced of businesses over the years, it’s spreading like wildfire with advances in cloud computing.