VMs are easily replicated across different hardware platforms. Each VM bundles an OS, the application and any of its dependencies. Using a Hypervisor, one piece of hardware can run multiple virtual machines (VMs). And these virtual machines are easily replicated across different hardware platforms are easy to scale up or down.” Fahrion added that Advantech B+B SmartWorx’s “virtual machines sit on top of that hypervisor so that each virtual machine bundles together an operating system, the application itself, and any of its dependencies, libraries, or configurations that are needed to run that application. A hypervisor allows one piece of hardware to run multiple virtual machines.
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In the world of data centers and servers, the way the virtual machine works is through the addition of a layer of software called a hypervisor that sits on top of a piece of computing hardware. “We've been doing it on servers and in data centers for years,” he said. And allows us to do this without big rip-and-replace cycles and it reduces vendor lock in.”įahrion noted that virtualization isn't something new. “This is ideal for today's environment of digital transformation because we not only reduce the quantity of the hardware we need to buy, but we also increase our agility and the adaptability such that we can more easily respond to changing business requirements. With this technology we have access to “software-defined appliances running in common hardware platforms when we want to add a function, we simply add another software application to extend the value and the flexibility of the hardware we already own,” he said. If you want to add another function, you add another appliance.” Then you have to figure out all the interconnections and integrations and it becomes a very linear relationship. “When you build a solution using dedicated appliances, you keep buying more and more appliances. Mike Fahrion, chief technology officer at Advantech B+B SmartWorx, during his presentation at Inductive Automation's virtual Ignition Community Conference 2020.“But when we use dedicated appliances to build industrial solutions, things get complex and expensive in a hurry,” said Fahrion.
These are all examples of dedicated appliances we once all bought to do specific things.
To help set the scene for his explanation of virtualization, Fahrion offered several examples, such as buying a camcorder back in the 1990s or early 2000s when you wanted to record something on video, or buying an alarm clock to ensure you woke up on time, or buying a GPS device if you were going on a remote hike. In this article, we’ll highlight the main points. To help clear up this confusion, Fahrion’s presentation provided plenty of straightforward explanations.
Though there has been plenty of coverage on the concept of virtualization in manufacturing applications (including articles published by Automation World), there remains a good bit of confusion around the topic. At the virtual 2020 Ignition Community Conference, held by Inductive Automation, Mike Fahrion, chief technology officer at Advantech B+B SmartWorx, conducted a session that explained the use of virtualization for industrial automation applications.
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