Virtualization used to be straightforward: Partition the hardware, run more workloads, and watch the savings roll in. Unfortunately, that world is behind us.
Today’s reality is far more dynamic. Workloads run across datacenters, clouds, clusters, and edge locations. Virtual machines (VMs) still power mission-critical systems, but containers now drive the speed, automation, and scalability that modern apps demand. The separation between the two has blurred, but that’s not a problem; it’s progress.
According to the Flexera 2024 State of the Cloud Report, 89% of enterprises are already using multiple cloud providers, which reflects the widespread adoption of hybrid cloud environments and the growing need for flexible platforms and unified data protection.
This evolution is now commonly referred to as Modern Virtualization which is a unified operating model where VMs and containers coexist, evolve, and accelerate innovation together. At the center of this shift are the open-source technologies and platforms that make it possible, as well as the native data resilience tools that protect and enable it.
Modern Virtualization Trends that Shape IT Infrastructure
Several forces are reshaping how organizations deploy and manage applications and their data, including:
- Hybrid and multi-cloud everywhere: Workloads need to move seamlessly across on-premises, cloud, and edge platforms.
- Platform convergence: VMs and containers now run side-by-side under Kubernetes-native control planes.
- Automation as a foundation: Policies, GitOps, and declarative workflows reduce operational overhead.
- Resilience as a strategic priority: Data protection, mobility, and cyber recovery are now fundamental requirements, not addendums.
Enterprises don’t just need modern infrastructure. They need confidence that modernization won’t complicate things further or break what already works.
So, What is Modern Virtualization?
Modern virtualization abstracts more than hardware, it abstracts complexity. It’s the operational model that unifies compute, storage, and networking across every environment, regardless of whether the workload is virtualized, containerized, or something in between.
Keeping it simple, a modern virtualization stack needs to include:
- Hypervisors (KVM, AHV, VMware) for VM-based workloads.
- Container engines (Docker, CRI-O) for lightweight, portable application delivery.
- Orchestration platforms (Kubernetes, Red Hat OpenShift, SUSE Rancher Prime) for automation and scalability.
- Unified data resilience (Veeam Kasten) to protect, move, and recover workloads across the hybrid estate.
This is not a replacement for legacy infrastructure; it’s a connective layer that lets yesterday’s workloads coexist with tomorrow’s innovation.
The Role of VMs and Containers
VMs remain the backbone of enterprise IT since they’re stable, isolated, and reliable for critical apps.
Containers are built for speed and elasticity, powering microservices, and modern development pipelines. The idea that organizations must choose one or the other is outdated. In fact, modernization works best when both run together on platforms that are designed for hybrid operations.
Unified platforms give organizations:
- Freedom to modernize gradually at a controlled pace.
- Consistent visibility and governance across workloads.
- The ability to evolve a modern infrastructure stack on their own terms.
This is the pragmatic path to modernization, and it’s powered by the platforms that are leading this shift.
Partner Spotlight: The Platforms Powering Modern Virtualization
Modern virtualization isn’t theoretical. It’s driven by real, production-proven platforms from vendors like Red Hat and SUSE that unify VMs, containers, and hybrid operations.
Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization: A Unified Hybrid Platform
Built on Kubernetes and extended with KubeVirt, Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization is a feature of the OpenShift platform that lets teams run VMs and containers side-by-side under the same automation, networking, and security controls.
Key advantages:
- One platform for both VMs and container workloads with consulting and migration services.
- Unified security, policy, and observability.
- Developer self-service and GitOps automation.
- Consistency across self-managed OpenShift on-premises, and OpenShift service on AWS and Azure.
OpenShift gives organizations a modern platform for everything from legacy applications to cloud-native architectures.
SUSE Virtualization: Cloud-Native Flexibility for Modern Compute
Part of the Rancher Prime ecosystem, SUSE Virtualization brings a Kubernetes-native approach to managing VMs alongside containers. It delivers flexible, modular virtualization that fits hybrid and cloud-native environments.
Key advantages:
- Unified lifecycle for VM and container workloads.
- Native integration with Rancher for governance and automation.
- Scalability across datacenter, cloud, and edge.
- Open-source flexibility with enterprise-grade support.
SUSE Virtualization represents a bright future of modern application platforms: open, flexible, hybrid, and built for mixed workloads.
Both Red Hat OpenShift and SUSE Virtualization have emerged as leaders due to their open-source foundation, enterprise-grade support, and proven ability to unify VM and container workloads at scale. Their adoption by Fortune 500 enterprises and cloud service providers speaks to their reliability and flexibility in real-world, hybrid environments.
Resilience Equilibrium on Modern Platforms
Red Hat OpenShift and SUSE Virtualization are the engines of modern compute, and Veeam Kasten with its new features in Kasten v8.5 is the traction control system that can optimize performance and safety.
Veeam Kasten was born in the cloud and made for hybrid. It was purpose-built for Kubernetes and engineered to protect both containers and VMs on the platforms driving modernization too. It doesn’t sit outside these platforms; it’s integrated into them, leveraging native APIs, policies, and workflows.
What’s New in Veeam Kasten v8.5:
- Native file-level recovery for VMs: Meet operational and compliance requirements with fast, precise restores for files inside protected VMs without lengthy, full-VM recoveries.
- VM-aware protection policies: Define strategies that are tailored for VM workloads on OpenShift Virtualization or SUSE Virtualization, ensuring protection is automatic, consistent, and aligned to business needs.
- Restore point validation: Automatically verify the integrity and recoverability of VM backups so platform teams are confident that recovery will work when it matters.
Veeam Kasten v8.5 brings seamless, platform-native data protection to both VMs and containers, and is engineered for today’s hybrid, multi-cloud architectures. With certified integrations across Red Hat and SUSE products, Veeam Kasten also ensures consistent resilience wherever your workloads run.
Veeam Kasten capabilities to protect modern virtualization workloads include:
- Unified protection: Seamless backup, recovery, and app mobility for both VMs and containers.
- Policy-driven automation: VM-centric protection policies let you automate data protection at scale, tailored to your environment’s needs.
- Immutable backups: Safeguard data against ransomware and accidental loss, with immutability built into every backup.
- Multi-tenancy and RBAC: Granular access control and secure delegation empower platform teams in complex, shared environments.
- Effortless mobility: Move, recover, and replicate workloads across clusters, clouds, and platforms with a single solution.
- End-to-end resilience: Integration with Veeam Data Platform for seamless protection from traditional to cloud native environments.
This isn’t just a backup add-on. With Veeam Kasten, resilience is designed into your hybrid architecture to keep modernization safe, simple, and future-ready.
From Technology to Trust: Turning Modernization into Confidence
Modernization often brings new tools, new workflows, and new uncertainties. In addition to features, teams need clarity, reliability, and the confidence that comes from interoperable systems.
Unified protection changes more than the technical outcome. It changes the human outcome for practitioners:
- Engineers gain control instead of experiencing added complexity.
- Security teams get verifiable immutability, not assumptions.
- Leaders gain confidence that modernization won’t increase risk.
- Platform teams can adopt OpenShift or SUSE Virtualization without fear of data loss or downtime.
When resilience is unified by design, modernization doesn’t feel risky; it feels inevitable and attainable.
5 Best Practices for Deploying Modern Virtualization
- Design for hybrid-first architectures, not a single-destination infrastructure.
- Unify protection early before workloads spread across environments.
- Automate policy enforcement: Consistency is a function of automation.
- Adopt immutability and zero trust at every layer: Security must be built in. No exceptions.
- Modernize at your own pace: Platforms like OpenShift, SUSE Virtualization, and Veeam Kasten enable gradual, safe evolution.
The era of modern virtualization is here, and it’s transforming how infrastructure operates, scales, and stays protected irrespective of the workload type. As organizations continue to adopt platforms like Red Hat OpenShift and SUSE Virtualization, they’re not just modernizing compute; they’re modernizing what it means to evolve with confidence.
Veeam Kasten v8.5 is the data resilience layer built for this new world, born in the cloud, made for hybrid, and in lockstep with the platforms that power modernization.
Ready to unify protection for your VMs and containers across clouds, datacenter, and edge? Get started today!
- Reach out to your Veeam representative or book a live demo of Veeam Kasten v8.5
- Start your free trial and experience unified resilience
- Learn more about Veeam Kasten capabilities for modern virtualization