Fourty-four per cent of large businesses that have deployed server virtualisation technology were unable to declare their deployment a success, according to research by vendor CA.

The survey of 800 international organisations also reveals that 71 per cent of organisations that have moved ahead with virtualisation have installed, or plan to install, multiple server virtualisation technologies — including operating system and hardware virtualisation and operating system partitioning.

'While the market has yet to mature, it’s clear that significant benefits await those organizations that implement proven virtualization best practices,' said Paula Daley, director of product marketing at CA.

For organisations claiming success with virtualisation, the most important factor was being able to measure performance of the virtualised environment. Other key success factors cited in the study include diligent inventorying of server assets and load distribution, and thorough investigation of available technology solutions.

According to the study, organisations are primarily deploying virtualisation to improve server/system utilisation rates, increase server reliability and uptime, and enhance business continuity.