By CIO
Publication Date: 2025-09-26 18:56:00
Large enterprises often struggle to integrate two beneficial technologies: virtualization for server infrastructure and containerization for application infrastructure. The reason is the differing needs of operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) teams.
These teams tend to see virtualization and containerization in terms of their own needs. That makes it difficult to mesh the two technologies.
The OT case for VM infrastructure
Virtualizing hardware architecture lets OT shift legacy operating systems and their mission-critical applications to modern, reliable, scalable hardware.
“You can’t run your business on used hardware from eBay,” says Rudy de Anda, head of strategic alliances, Penguin Solutions.
Virtualization offers other benefits for OT teams, such as workflow consolidation. “It also breaks up data silos and brings cybersecurity and other enterprise applications to the edge to reduce latency and improve user experiences,” says Ken Espiau, principal solutions architect at Penguin Solutions.
The IT case for container infrastructure
A main driver for containerizing applications is the rise of devops, an approach that adopts a microservices architecture to simplify and accelerate both software development and integration. A lightweight, portable container for each microservice simplifies software deployment.
“This approach lends itself to continuous innovation by IT,” says Espiau. “You only have to update…
