VMware looks to SMBs to extend reach

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VMware is looking to make it easier and cheaper for small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) to virtualise.

At its annual conference in San Francisco today, the virtualisation giant announced a new partnership with Intel, which will see it distribute the vSphere 4 suite with its products via channel resellers, to make it easier and cheaper for SMBs to virtualise.

Any company with fewer than 20 physical servers can use vSphere 4 for under $166 per processor using the Essentials edition, while Essentials Plus will cost $499.

The announcement came alongside another targeted at SMBs. Chief executive Paul Maritz also unveiled VMware Go, a free web-based tool for installing and configuring the ESXi hypervisor.

IDC analyst Jean Bozman suggested VMware was making a wise move, as SMB is a very big segment. She told IT PRO that individual firms may not have as many computers, but there were a lot of such companies out there, and it's a big area for growth.

That said, don't expect VMware to lose its enterprise focus. Asked about the swing to SMBs, Maritz told a press conference: "We want your business, it's as simple as that."

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