Software virtualization company VMware Inc. is extending the hybrid cloud capabilities of its flagship products to make it easier for customers to manage data across information technology environments.

The company unveiled new versions of its server virtualization and software-defined storage products today, with an emphasis on hybrid cloud deployments and broader support for applications. In addition, in the case of vSphere, there’s a threefold memory usage reduction and resulting performance boost thanks to new persistent-memory capabilities.

VMware’s vSphere is a virtualization platform used by enterprises to eke out better performance from their hardware. It works by allowing software applications to be deployed via multiple virtual machines on a single server. Virtualization is currently under threat from newer application deployment technologies such as software containers, which allow applications to run on multiple kinds of hardware and operating systems, and serverless computing. However, VMware maintains a commanding presence in the data center thanks to the investments customers have made in its technology.

With vSphere 6.7, VMware is hoping to maintain its leading position with significant performance upgrades. The company is adding support for persistent memory, which is a new kind of memory that can be accessed even after the process that created it has ended. With this addition, vSphere 6.7 uses a third of the memory than older versions of the software, while its distributed-resource scheduler runs three times faster.

Persistent memory provides “DRAMlike performance with flashlike prices,” Himanshu Singh, VMware’s group manager for cloud platform product marketing, told Enterprise Tech.

Another new feature is the “hybrid-linked mode,” which is aimed at users running vSphere both on-premises and through the new VMware Cloud on AWS service. Hybrid-Linked mode allows users to make sure they’re running the same configuration within both environments, thereby ensuring unified visibility and management. It also allows users to use the latest features from Amazon Web Services Inc. without needing to upgrade their on-premises deployments each time.

There’s also a new rebooting technology integrated with this vSphere release that allows users to restart systems to apply security patches quickly, minimizing downtime.

As for vSAN, VMware’s virtualized storage product, the company is adding HTML5 client support and a new browser-based user interface that provides greater functionality and better options for optimizing workflows.

“VMware is investing into its key products and moving them forward with better administration capabilities and new features,” said Holger Mueller, vice president and principal analyst at Constellation Research Inc. “It is positive to see product progress, especially in managing public cloud loads, which VMware has only been offering for a few quarters.”

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