Microsoft to buy Connectix assets

Connectix is best known for its 14-year-old Virtual PC software, but has been trying to recast itself as a maker of server virtualization software, which lets a single machine perform like several independent machines running their own operating systems.

Microsoft, which plans to announce the deal on Thursday, declined to comment on financial terms. Some Connectix employees will join Microsoft, although the company did not provide details.

Representatives of the Redmond, Wash.-based software giant said Virtual PC for the Mac will continue to be sold and that Microsoft plans to continue developing the software, which has more than 1 million active users. A Microsoft executive said the company did not purchase the software to kill it, nor does Microsoft plan to stop developing its native Macintosh software, such as the Mac OS X version of Office.

"Mac OS X applications (are the) best solution for heavy access to applications (like Office)," said Tim McDonough, director of marketing for Microsoft's Macintosh Business Unit. "Virtual PC just takes that to the next level--you can now be compatible with applications that only run on the PC."

Microsoft also is interested in a server virtualization product that Connectix is developing.

VMware, Connectix's main rival in the server virtualization arena, has the early lead with a product that has been on the market for several years. VMware is profitable and plans to a new product next quarter that enables two-processor virtual machines instead of just single-processor models.

Dividing servers into several independent "partitions," each with its own copy of an operating system, was pioneered with mainframes and now is common on Unix servers as well. Intel servers running Windows are beginning to catch up.

Partitioning is useful for consolidating several lower-end machines onto a single larger machine, a cost-saving measure. It's also good for responding to spikes in processing demands because a partition under a heavy load can quickly be assigned more computing resources than a comparatively idle one. If Microsoft incorporates Connectix's virtualization technology into Windows, the its software could profit from these abilities.

As recently as the past few months, Microsoft executives said the company wasn't focused on partitioning. Rather, the company's strategy involves using a single operating system on each server but placing limits on how much of a computer's resources, such as memory, a specific application can use.

A Connectix representative declined to comment ahead of the official announcement.

Microsoft is acquiring some assets of Connectix, including software that permits Windows to run on a Macintosh and an unreleased server program.

Connectix is best known for its 14-year-old Virtual PC software, but has been trying to recast itself as a maker of server virtualization software, which lets a single machine perform like several independent machines running their own operating systems.

Microsoft, which plans to announce the deal on Thursday, declined to comment on financial terms. Some Connectix employees will join Microsoft, although the company did not provide details.

Representatives of the Redmond, Wash.-based software giant said Virtual PC for the Mac will continue to be sold and that Microsoft plans to continue developing the software, which has more than 1 million active users. A Microsoft executive said the company did not purchase the software to kill it, nor does Microsoft plan to stop developing its native Macintosh software, such as the Mac OS X version of Office.

"Mac OS X applications (are the) best solution for heavy access to applications (like Office)," said Tim McDonough, director of marketing for Microsoft's Macintosh Business Unit. "Virtual PC just takes that to the next level--you can now be compatible with applications that only run on the PC."

Microsoft also is interested in a server virtualization product that Connectix is developing.

VMware, Connectix's main rival in the server virtualization arena, has the early lead with a product that has been on the market for several years. VMware is profitable and plans to a new product next quarter that enables two-processor virtual machines instead of just single-processor models.

Dividing servers into several independent "partitions," each with its own copy of an operating system, was pioneered with mainframes and now is common on Unix servers as well. Intel servers running Windows are beginning to catch up.

Partitioning is useful for consolidating several lower-end machines onto a single larger machine, a cost-saving measure. It's also good for responding to spikes in processing demands because a partition under a heavy load can quickly be assigned more computing resources than a comparatively idle one. If Microsoft incorporates Connectix's virtualization technology into Windows, the its software could profit from these abilities.

As recently as the past few months, Microsoft executives said the company wasn't focused on partitioning. Rather, the company's strategy involves using a single operating system on each server but placing limits on how much of a computer's resources, such as memory, a specific application can use.

A Connectix representative declined to comment ahead of the official announcement.