With a 10-year lag behind VMware in the virtualization realm, Microsoft certainly had its work cut out for it with the release of its next-generation virtualization technology, Hyper-V. But now that it has been released, just what does Hyper-V have to offer?

In this podcast, senior enterprise IT architect Nelson Ruest breaks down the seven different layers of the server virtualization architecture, and explains the role the hypervisor plays in the success of that infrastructure. You'll also get details on the key features included with Hyper-V for Windows Server 2008, as well as what's missing from the initial release.

Other topics covered include:

• Hyper-V vs. Microsoft Virtual Server
• The two different flavors of Hyper-V
• The benefits of running Hyper-V with Server Core
• Details on the Windows Server Hyper-V structure

Interested in this topic, but prefer alternative content formats? Try:

• Videocast: Best of Breed Virtualization Scenarios and Hyper-V Features