Full virtualisation and cloud storage will 'never' happen
Virtualisation and cloud computing are the key words on the trade floor at Storage Expo, but industry leaders today agreed that we will never have full commitment to both.


Vendors may encourage the idea, but not everything will end up virtualised or stored in the cloud.
This was the conclusion of senior research analyst Rene Millman from Gartner, who expressed his opinion during a panel discussion at Storage Expo.
"There are people and vendors out there that would love us to virtualise everything [but] that's never going to happen," he said.
"Lots feel the same with [putting everything in] the cloud as well, but that won't happen either," he added.
Fellow panellist Shawn Scott, head of IT Technical Strategy and Security for Burberry agreed that a hybrid environment is the most likely way forward, especially with the cloud.
"There is always going to be a situation where you need to keep your own data," he said.
"As it stands today we have to take the hybrid approach," he added.
Get the ITPro daily newsletter
Sign up today and you will receive a free copy of our Future Focus 2025 report - the leading guidance on AI, cybersecurity and other IT challenges as per 700+ senior executives
With all the concerns that hold people back from adopting the cloud specifically, Scott cited one area that needed real attention.
"The future [of cloud computing] depends on bandwidth capability. There is [data] I see where I will need GB bandwidth [to move or access it] but now that technology is very expensive," he said.
"Even with the discussion of moving our infrastructure to the cloud, we are still losing cloud potential as [to access it] we need those physical attributes in our internal infrastructure."
Click here for more news from Storage Expo 2009.
Jennifer Scott is a former freelance journalist and currently political reporter for Sky News. She has a varied writing history, having started her career at Dennis Publishing, working in various roles across its business technology titles, including ITPro. Jennifer has specialised in a number of areas over the years and has produced a wealth of content for ITPro, focusing largely on data storage, networking, cloud computing, and telecommunications.
Most recently Jennifer has turned her skills to the political sphere and broadcast journalism, where she has worked for the BBC as a political reporter, before moving to Sky News.
-
RSAC Conference 2025: The front line of cyber innovation
ITPro Podcast Ransomware, quantum computing, and an unsurprising focus on AI were highlights of this year's event
-
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei thinks we're burying our heads in the sand on AI job losses
News With AI set to hit entry-level jobs especially, some industry execs say clear warning signs are being ignored
-
Cloud investment “expected to continue” indefinitely after strong start in 2024, experts suggest
News The sector shows positive signs of growth as cloud infrastructure offerings and AI adoption projects ramp up
-
The end of the slowdown? Global cloud spending is set to surge by 20% in 2024 as enterprises ramp up migration plans and capitalize on generative AI
News Global cloud spending will surge in the year ahead, analysis shows, marking a shift away from a period of ruthless optimization
-
Budgets are still tight, but ‘cloud slowdown’ claims haven’t quite materialized in 2023
Analysis Positive cloud spending forecasts for 2024 suggest there’s light at the end of the tunnel for enterprises
-
Cloud to drive surge in European IT spending next year
News Investment in cloud security and IaaS is expected to to fuel a surge in IT spending
-
Harmful effects of “cloud concentration” now a key concern for IT leaders
News Overreliance on a single provider is a byproduct of intense efforts to consolidate complex IT estates
-
Two-thirds of firms will invest in big data this year, claims Gartner
News Majority of organisations will be using big data technology within the next two years, research suggests.
-
Gartner sets out cloud security market trends
News Market watcher claims compliance will be key cloud market driver to 2016.
-
Global SaaS deployments are rising sharply, research suggests
News Uptake across all geographies is rising, with Asia Pacific leading the way, claims Gartner.