Hyper-V Switch Improvements Include Extensibility

Hypervisors, such as Hyper-V in Windows Server 2012, include a virtual network switch to securely connect and isolate network traffic between the physical network and virtual machines (VMs) running on the hypervisor. In Windows Server 2012, the Hyper-V Extensible Switch offers additional capabilities to improve network isolation, and it can run third-party extensions so the virtual network switch can better manage and secure the network. These changes make Windows Server 2012 a better platform for hosting VMs for different departments or organizations on the same physical server, and customers can acquire third-party extensions to add additional capabilities beyond those included from Microsoft.

The Hyper-V Extensible Switch

Hypervisors need a virtual network switch to ensure that network packets arriving at the physical network interface card (NIC) are forwarded to the VM for which they are intended. This role requires a switch because of the following:

• A VM running on the hypervisor