Hyper-V Intel VT

Hyper-V Explained: A Guide for IT Leaders

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Virtualization sits at the core of nearly every modern IT strategy, and Hyper-V remains one of the most widely deployed platforms for organizations running on Microsoft infrastructure. For IT Managers, CIOs, and business leaders evaluating where to invest their infrastructure budget, understanding what Hyper-V is, how it works, and where it fits into a broader IT strategy is essential to making an informed decision. At Forte Systems, we work with organizations every day to design, deploy, and manage virtualization environments that are secure, scalable, and cost-effective, and Hyper-V is frequently at the center of those conversations.

What Is Hyper-V?

Hyper-V is Microsoft’s native hypervisor, a type-1 (bare-metal) virtualization technology that allows a single physical server to run multiple virtual machines (VMs), each with its own operating system and applications. Built into Windows Server and available as a standalone product, Hyper-V enables organizations to consolidate workloads, reduce hardware footprint, and improve disaster recovery capabilities. According to Wikipedia’s overview of Hyper-V, the platform was first released with Windows Server 2008 and has since become a core component of Microsoft’s server and cloud ecosystem, including deep integration with Azure.

Because it operates at the hardware layer rather than on top of a host operating system, Hyper-V offers strong performance and isolation between virtual machines. This architecture is part of the broader category of hypervisor technology, a concept well documented in resources such as the Wikipedia entry on hypervisors, which explains how bare-metal and hosted hypervisors differ in design and use case.

Why IT Leaders Are Paying Attention to Hyper-V

For decision-makers balancing budget constraints against the need for resilient, flexible infrastructure, Hyper-V presents several strategic advantages worth evaluating:

  • Cost efficiency: Hyper-V is included with many Windows Server licenses, which can reduce the total cost of ownership compared to third-party virtualization platforms that require separate licensing.
  • Native Microsoft integration: Organizations already invested in the Microsoft ecosystem, including Active Directory, System Center, and Azure, often find that Hyper-V integrates more seamlessly with existing tools and workflows.
  • Scalability: Hyper-V supports features like live migration, dynamic memory allocation, and clustering, allowing infrastructure to scale as business needs grow.
  • Disaster recovery and business continuity: Virtualized environments make it easier to replicate workloads, take snapshots, and recover quickly from hardware failures or cyber incidents.
  • Hybrid cloud readiness: Hyper-V’s compatibility with Azure makes it a practical stepping stone for organizations pursuing a hybrid or cloud-first strategy.

These benefits are precisely why Hyper-V continues to be a common recommendation in our infrastructure assessments at Forte Systems, particularly for mid-sized organizations that need enterprise-grade capabilities without the overhead of unnecessary complexity.

Hyper-V vs. Other Virtualization Platforms

IT leaders frequently ask how Hyper-V compares to alternatives like VMware vSphere. Both are mature, well-supported platforms, and the right choice depends on your existing environment, in-house expertise, and long-term technology roadmap. VMware has historically been recognized for advanced enterprise features and a large ecosystem of third-party tools, while Hyper-V has closed much of that gap in recent years and offers a compelling advantage for organizations standardized on Microsoft technology. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) publishes guidance on virtualization security considerations that applies broadly across platforms, and it’s a useful reference point when comparing the security posture of any hypervisor you’re considering.

Rather than treating this as a one-size-fits-all decision, our approach at Forte Systems is to evaluate your current workloads, compliance requirements, and growth plans before recommending a platform. In many cases, a well-configured Hyper-V environment can meet or exceed the performance and reliability of alternative solutions, particularly when paired with sound architecture and ongoing management.

Common Use Cases for Hyper-V

Organizations across industries deploy Hyper-V for a range of purposes, including:

  • Server consolidation to reduce physical hardware costs and data center footprint
  • Test and development environments that need to be spun up or torn down quickly
  • Running legacy applications on modern hardware without a full rewrite
  • Supporting business continuity and disaster recovery plans through VM replication
  • Enabling hybrid cloud architectures that bridge on-premises infrastructure with Azure

Each of these use cases carries its own configuration and security considerations, which is why a thoughtful deployment strategy matters as much as the technology itself.

Security and Management Considerations

Like any virtualization platform, Hyper-V requires careful configuration to avoid introducing risk. Misconfigured network isolation between VMs, outdated host patching, and weak access controls are common vulnerabilities in virtualized environments generally, not unique to Hyper-V, but still critical to address. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) provides general guidance on securing IT infrastructure that’s relevant to any organization running virtualized workloads, including patch management practices and network segmentation principles that apply directly to Hyper-V hosts.

Beyond initial setup, ongoing management, monitoring, patching, and capacity planning are what determine whether a Hyper-V environment remains secure and performant over time. This is often where internal IT teams, already stretched thin with day-to-day support demands, benefit from a trusted partner who can handle the deeper technical lifecycle of the environment.

How Forte Systems Can Help

Deciding whether Hyper-V is the right fit for your organization, and then deploying it correctly, requires more than a checklist. It requires a partner who understands your business objectives, compliance obligations, and existing technology investments. Forte Systems works with IT Managers, CIOs, and business leaders to assess current infrastructure, design a virtualization strategy aligned with Hyper-V or other platforms as appropriate, and manage that environment on an ongoing basis so your team can focus on higher-value initiatives.

Whether you’re consolidating aging servers, building out disaster recovery capabilities, or planning a hybrid cloud migration, our team brings the technical depth to design a Hyper-V environment that supports your business rather than complicating it. If your organization is weighing its virtualization options, we’d welcome the opportunity to discuss how Hyper-V, or the right alternative, fits into your broader IT roadmap.

network security experts

Mandatory Security Baselines: What MSPs Must Require of Their Clients

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Mandatory Security Baselines: What MSPs Must Require of Their Clients

For years, managed service providers (MSPs) could treat security as a menu items:

  • Firewalls here,
  • Backups there,
  • Multi-factor authentication (MFA) if the client was willing to pay for it.

Why isn’t this still a good plan?

Regulators, cyber insurers, and federal guidance are converging on a simple expectation: MSPs are responsible for setting a mandatory security floor beneath every client relationship, not an optional upsell.

I want to tell you why “optional” security no longer works for our clients.

MSPs sit at the center of the supply chain, with privileged access into dozens or hundreds of client networks. That concentration of access is exactly why threat actors target providers directly, a risk the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) formally warned about in its joint advisory on protecting MSPs and their customers (CISA AA22-131A).

A single compromised MSP credential can cascade into ransomware across every client tenant it touches, which is why regulators increasingly hold the provider, not just the client, accountable for baseline hygiene.

That accountability is showing up in contract language and audit requirements.

HIPAA’s proposed 2026 Security Rule updates would require business associates — including MSPs — to prove MFA, encryption, and semiannual vulnerability scanning are actually operating, not merely documented. PCI DSS 4.0.1, mandatory since March 2025, now demands quarterly scans and continuous change-detection evidence. CMMC 2.0 is extending third-party assessment requirements to defense-sector clients starting in November 2026. Add in the FTC Safeguards Rule and a growing patchwork of state privacy laws, and the message is consistent: policies alone no longer satisfy anyone.

What belongs in the baseline

Across these frameworks, a common floor of controls has emerged as the practical minimum an MSP should mandate, not recommend, for every client, regardless of contract tier:

  • Phishing-resistant MFA on all administrative and remote-access accounts, moving beyond SMS or push-based approval.
  • Endpoint detection and response (EDR) with 24/7 monitoring, rather than legacy signature-based antivirus alone.
  • Centralized logging and SIEM coverage sufficient to reconstruct an incident timeline.
  • Documented, tested backups with offline or immutable copies and a defined recovery time objective.
  • Privileged access management, including just-in-time elevation instead of standing admin rights.
  • A patch management cadence with defined SLAs for critical vulnerabilities.
  • A written, exercised incident response plan — not a template that has never been tested.

CISA’s Cross-Sector Cybersecurity Performance Goals restate much of this same list as a voluntary baseline for critical infrastructure organizations, and it’s increasingly the yardstick auditors and cyber insurers reach for even outside regulated sectors.

Making the baseline actually mandatory

The hardest part isn’t defining the baseline — it’s enforcing it. Two mechanisms are becoming standard practice among mature MSPs. First, contracts should state plainly that these controls are conditions of service, not add-ons, with any client refusal captured in a signed risk-acceptance waiver that shifts liability back to the client. Second, evidence should be continuous rather than annual: MFA coverage reports, scan results, and backup test logs generated on a recurring schedule, not produced only when an auditor asks.

That shift — from attestation to continuous, evidence-backed operation — is the throughline across every framework touching MSPs right now. Providers that build it into their service delivery model, rather than bolting it on before an audit, will be the ones still standing when the next regulatory deadline or the next ransomware advisory lands.

Sources
Protecting Against Cyber Threats to Managed Service Providers and their Customers — CISA AA22-131A
MSP Compliance: The Complete Guide to Meeting Security and Regulatory Standards in 2026 — Huntress

Expensive to Retrieve

VMware’s Price Revolution: How Broadcom’s Changes Are Reshaping Mid-Market IT Strategy

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Feeling Renewal Pain

Bottom Line: Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware has triggered dramatic price increases of 800-1,500% for many customers, forcing mid-market organizations to urgently evaluate alternatives like Microsoft Hyper-V to maintain cost-effective virtualization infrastructure.

Since Broadcom acquired VMware in November 2023, the virtualization landscape has undergone seismic shifts that are particularly devastating for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). What began as a strategic acquisition has evolved into a pricing revolution that’s forcing thousands of mid-market organizations to fundamentally reconsider their IT infrastructure strategies.

The Scale of the Price Shock

The numbers are staggering. Some customers report price increases ranging from 800% to 1,500%, while some organizations face even more dramatic hikes. AT&T claimed Broadcom offered them a 1,050% price increase, transforming their annual VMware costs from manageable to prohibitive overnight. For context, these aren’t modest adjustments—they represent a complete overhaul of the economic equation that made VMware attractive to mid-market clients.

The pricing transformation isn’t just about higher numbers. Broadcom has fundamentally restructured how VMware products are sold and licensed. The company eliminated approximately 8,000 individual product SKUs, consolidating them into just two primary bundled offerings: VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) and vSphere Foundation. This consolidation forces customers to purchase entire suites rather than selecting specific components they actually need.

The Mid-Market Squeeze

Mid-market organizations are caught in a particularly painful position. Unlike enterprise customers who might already use multiple VMware products and could potentially benefit from bundling, smaller companies typically relied on standalone solutions like vSphere Essentials Plus—which Broadcom has now discontinued. These organizations suddenly find themselves forced into enterprise-grade bundles that include features like NSX networking and vSAN storage they never requested or needed.

The new core minimums compound the problem. Starting April 2025, VMware enforces a minimum 72-core license subscription for products like vSphere Standard, up from the previous 16-core minimum. For organizations running smaller deployments or edge locations, this means paying for licenses that far exceed their actual needs. It’s like being forced to buy a truck when you only need a bicycle.

The transition from perpetual licenses to subscription-only models adds another layer of financial pressure. Many mid-market companies relied on the predictable, one-time costs of perpetual licenses that could be amortized over several years. The new subscription model transforms capital expenditures into ongoing operational costs, fundamentally altering budget planning and cash flow management.

We’ve actually run into instances where Broadcom is quoting OVER published list price for clients that they feel they can extort with a higher cost.

The Search for Alternatives

Faced with these dramatic changes, mid-market organizations are actively exploring alternatives, with Microsoft Hyper-V emerging as the most compelling option for many. The appeal is both strategic and economic.

Cost Advantages: Hyper-V is included with Windows Server licenses at no additional cost, providing immediate relief from VMware’s pricing pressure. For organizations already invested in Microsoft’s ecosystem, this represents enormous potential savings. While enterprises might need additional management tools like System Center Virtual Machine Manager, the base virtualization capabilities come without separate licensing fees.

Technical Maturity: Modern Hyper-V has evolved far beyond its early limitations. Windows Server 2025 includes significant enhancements to GPU partitioning for AI workloads and improved scalability that now supports up to 24TB of host memory—actually surpassing VMware in some specifications. Features like Live Migration, high availability clustering, and robust security through Shielded VMs provide enterprise-grade capabilities that match much of what VMware offers.

Integration Benefits: For organizations running Windows-centric environments, Hyper-V offers seamless integration with Active Directory, Group Policy, and Azure cloud services. This tight integration often translates to simplified management and reduced administrative overhead compared to managing separate VMware infrastructure alongside Microsoft systems.

Migration Feasibility: While migrating from VMware to any alternative requires careful planning, Hyper-V’s similarities in core virtualization concepts make the transition more approachable than some alternatives. Many organizations are discovering that their Windows-based workloads migrate relatively smoothly to Hyper-V environments.

Strategic Considerations for Mid-Market Leaders

The decision to migrate away from VMware shouldn’t be taken lightly, but the current pricing environment makes exploration essential. Organizations should conduct thorough assessments of their current VMware usage, identifying which features are truly necessary versus those that could be replaced with alternative solutions or eliminated entirely.

The migration window is critical. Existing VMware customers still operating under older support agreements have time to plan, but that window is closing. Organizations should begin testing alternatives immediately, even if they ultimately decide to remain with VMware under new terms.

For many mid-market companies, this crisis presents an unexpected opportunity to modernize their infrastructure approach. Some are discovering that moving workloads to public cloud platforms or adopting hybrid strategies provides better economics than either VMware or on-premises alternatives.

Looking Forward

Broadcom’s transformation of VMware reflects a deliberate strategy to focus on larger, more profitable customers while shedding smaller accounts. For mid-market organizations, this reality demands urgent action. The days of affordable, flexible VMware solutions for smaller deployments appear to be ending permanently.

The good news is that alternatives like Hyper-V have matured significantly and can now handle most workloads that previously required VMware. Combined with cloud-native solutions and modern infrastructure approaches, mid-market organizations have viable paths forward—but only if they act decisively.

The virtualization landscape is experiencing its most significant disruption in decades. Organizations that move quickly to evaluate and implement alternatives will be best positioned to maintain cost-effective, capable infrastructure. Those who delay risk being trapped in unsustainable licensing agreements that could constrain their growth and innovation for years to come.

The revolution is here. The question isn’t whether change is coming—it’s whether your organization will lead or follow in responding to it.

Microsoft confirms KB5036893 and KB5036892 patches break VPNs

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Microsoft’s recent patches, KB5036893 and KB5036892, released April 9th, 2024, has been impacting VPNs for both Windows 10 and Windows 11 machines.

This issue affects all currently supported versions of Windows: Windows 10 21H2 and 22H2; Windows 11 versions 21H2, 22H2, and 23H2; and Windows Server 2008, 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, 2016, 2019, and 2022.

Microsoft is working on a fix, but it seems to be impacting VPN connections backed by TPM certificates.

To uninstall the update, press the Start button and search for ‘Settings’. On the screen that appears, click on ‘Windows Update’ and find and tap on the ‘Update history’ option. Here, you will see a list of installed updates. If you are on Windows 11, find the KB5036893 update and uninstall it. However, those on Windows 10 will have to find and uninstall the KB5036892 update.

Alternatively, Use the command DISM /online /get-packages to find the name of the April update package (specifically the LCU “cumulative” package) and use the DISM/Remove-Package command line option to begin the uninstall process. Detailed instructions are listed at the bottom of Microsoft’s KB5036893 support page.

VDI infrastructure

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) adding security to your organization

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Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) has many benefits (among them):

  • A scalable infrastructure: Virtual desktops have become more appealing due to the cloud. By using adaptable infrastructure to provide resources as needed, the consolidation of the full VDI desktop infrastructure onto a host server lowers overall costs because businesses don’t have to purchase or maintain the necessary hardware.
  • Management structure: The virtual desktop infrastructure allows administrators to patch, maintain, and modify all virtualized desktops simultaneously. As a result, there is no need to repair and maintain the entire network of desktop computers on an individual basis. Moreover, in the event of a major disruption, the data center has all information backed up and supported.
  • Enhanced Security: VDI desktop services allow organizations to preserve and protect their sensitive information because the data isn’t stored on the users’ individual devices but within the data center. If the employee’s laptop, desktop, or other device is compromised, the hacker cannot access the organization’s data. Of course, the effectiveness of the security will depend upon the IT team’s vigilance regarding system management, and the authentication process for the remote users has to be rigid and scrupulously maintained.
  • Improved user experience. Employees are allowed to use the device of their choice in the manner of their choice, making the remote working experience easier and more convenient.
  • Lower cost. The overheads for maintaining legacy hardware will be lowered considerably due to the reduced need to upgrade and maintain in-office hardware.

Our team, in conjunction with our skilled engineers at GCSIT, can help your organization plan, procure, implement and support your VDI solution.

Microsoft NCE (New Commerce Experience) and how it will impact your organization

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Microsoft is releasing the details of the Microsoft NCE (New Commerce Experience) on January 10th, 2022.

This is a price increase for Microsoft 365 and a change in the commitment process.

New Commerce Experience

– January 10, 2022: Microsoft will launch the general availability of NCE for Modern Work and Dynamics 365 for indirect partners to offer to CSP re-sellers. Microsoft will also offer two time-bound promotions to incentivize users via their reseller partners, to migrate to NCE.

These promos are:

 5% off annual subscriptions January through March 2022 

Monthly subscriptions will be available at annual pricing from January through June 2022.  

So, this would require you to sign up with your reseller and change from a month-to-month contract to an annual contract. There is an option to stay month-to-month, but there is a 20% premium fee!

– March 1, 2022: There will be a price increase for the following products: 

Enterprise:  
Office 365 E1: $10 (from $8)

Office 365 E3: $23 (from $20) 

Office 365 E5: $38 (from $35) 

Microsoft 365 E3: $36 (from $32) 
 

SMB: 
Microsoft 365 Business Basic: $6 (from $5) 

Microsoft 365 Business Premium: $22 (from$20). 

Please note Microsoft is NOT changing pricing for Microsoft 365 E5, Microsoft Business Standard, or the Frontline SKUs.

– March 10, 2022: All new subscriptions for Modern Work and Dynamics will be required to be procured through the NCE Platform.

  

– July 1, 2022:  All renewal subscriptions for Modern Work and Dynamics will be required to be procured through NCE Platform. Pax8 will no longer allow partners to renew customer subscriptions on CSP legacy. 

– October 1, 2022: Incentives only available for NCE transactions (through MCI). 

  

– July 2023:  All non-migrated client subscriptions must be moved to the New Commerce Experience.  

  

What Does This Mean for You?

Moving to the New Commerce Experience will help you prepare for future growth thanks to improved revenue predictability, reduced licensing complexity, multiple term options, and features that enable new sales capabilities and operational efficiencies. You can expect: 

Term Options 

– Monthly term options at 20% premium – if you want to stay on month-to-month, there is a 20% premium in cost.

– Annual term options; upfront or monthly payments 

– Tri-annual term options; upfront, annual, or monthly payments  

– Cancelation period is now 3 days, including day of purchase. There will be a full refund issued if canceled on day 1, and a pro-rated refund if cancelled on days 2 and 3. 

Windows 365: Windows 365 subscriptions will only be available via the monthly term offer on NCE. Windows 365 subscriptions will not be subject to the 20% premium for monthly terms at this time.  

Nonprofit and Education: Nonprofit and Education licenses will not be offered on NCE at this time. Non- Profit and Education products will not be affected by the price increases in March.