Customers Find Value & Savings with Windows Server Hyper-V

Microsoft Private Cloud Solutions Drive IT and Business Agility for Academic and Financial Services Organizations

Three Microsoft customers have seen impressive gains in operational efficiency and business agility through private cloud solutions provided by using Windows Server and System Center. Each organization initially considered other providers, including VMware, but ultimately chose the Microsoft solution because it provided a powerful virtualization solution, improved overall performance of key applications and trimmed IT costs.

Business and technology executives at ING Commercial Banking, American University of Beirut, and Florida Atlantic University all sought to strengthen their organizations through virtualized private cloud environments based on Microsoft technologies. In each instance, they saw returns through reduced overheads and increased responsiveness to IT service requests.

ING Commercial Banking ING Commercial Banking needed a more intuitive virtualization platform to replace the VMware ESX solution already in place. The bank wanted a private cloud environment that offers flexibility to use resources and provide better service to clients through faster processes and optimized server performance. By switching to Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V, the company was able to increase performance, achieve greater integration with other products in its infrastructure and reduce costs by 200 to 300 percent.

“We were attracted to the support available with System Center and PowerShell 3.0, which automates many tasks and provides precise control of the virtualization layer,” says Manuel Moro, CIO of ING Commercial Banking. “In addition, Hyper-V management tools are the same for the virtualization platform as they are for the Windows operating system and for services including email and database management.”

American University of Beirut

The IT department at the American University of Beirut experienced continuous requests for additional services. “By building a private cloud with Windows Server with Hyper-V, we saved at least 50 percent in terms of hardware, software, and power consumption costs,” says Samih Ajrouch, Associate Director for IT Customer Success at the American University of Beirut. “As a result, we achieved all of our goals and satisfied the requirements of all business users.”

Florida Atlantic University

At Florida Atlantic University, multiple rounds of state-level cuts left the organization short of funding to support its growing student body. It adopted a Microsoft cloud solution that uses Windows Server with Hyper-V, replacing its VMware virtualization solution. The implementation helped the school to improve the performance and availability of key applications and trim IT costs by up to $600,000. In the process, the university’s IT staff has created 149 virtual servers and rolled out 40 IT application services. “Our virtualized environment allowed us so much cost savings and flexibility that we didn’t need to buy 149 servers at $5,000 each,” says Mehran Basiratmand, Director of Enterprise Computing Services and Chief Technical Officer at Florida Atlantic University. “Under increased budget pressure, Hyper-V is giving us additional room to grow while saving money at the same time.”