Forgotten data objects from virtual machines can clog up virtualized storage. Cleaning up this waste will reclaim storage that can then be reused.

Optimizing resource usage in a virtual environment is significantly more challenging than in a physical environment when it comes to efficiency. The ability to create virtual machines rapidly, while a key driver for enhanced agility and return on investment; is also the main cause of this challenge. Unused snapshots, templates, abandoned VM images and Zombie VMs all contribute to wasted CPU, memory, throughput and most importantly, storage resources.  Yet locating and reclaiming these resources is not always a simple task.  This whitepaper walks through each of the data objects that can create waste and describes how to clean up unused data objects so as to increase data center ROI.