When VMware, a leading virtualization provider, changed hands and its licensing model grew more complex, many IT teams began asking the same question: What are the alternatives? But switching to a new virtualization platform isn’t as simple as choosing different software.

Mobile device security is paramount in today’s IT landscape. There are plenty of ways to be sure your employees are accessing data safely away from the office, but there is one solution we recommend considering: combining mobile security efforts with virtualization technology.

A common reason for running the Windows operating system (OS) on a Mac computer is to bypass compatibility issues. Virtualization is the only way to efficiently install OS-specific software on any machine, so let’s go over some of the ways this solution creates synergy between the two platforms.

Virtualization allows you to eliminate dependency on physical hardware limitations and software requirements. Before you choose any one virtualization solution, it's a good idea to go over the different companies providing virtualization services. Below is a list of five popular vendors offering reliable virtualization platforms.

Microsoft isn’t always the first company that pops into mind when talking about virtualization, but it does offer one of the best solutions in the industry. In an ongoing effort to compete with companies like VMWare and Amazon Web Services, Microsoft has released a massive upgrade for its virtualization platform -- and it’s totally free!
Azure: Microsoft’s virtualization platform
As a full-service cloud solution, Azure is a secure and flexible data center that businesses of all sizes can benefit from.

Securing mobile devices is incredibly difficult. They often have privileged access to sensitive data that they connect to via unprotected network connections. Virtualization vendors are finding ways to include solutions to these problems in their products and they’re perfect for small businesses.

In a win-win move for virtualization vendors and end-users, two of the biggest names in the industry are making their platforms compatible with each other. Amazon Web Services (AWS) can now host virtual machines that use VMware, and that has huge implications for disaster recovery plans.

There are countless reasons to run the Windows operating system (OS) on a Mac computer, but the main one is so you can use apps designed for PC on an Apple machine. However, there are other benefits that make virtualizing Windows on your Mac worth it regardless of your software needs.