Virtualization has disrupted the IT department and put network administrators in a position to service the technology without full reach into all of the networking components. The virtualization software, which is layered with networks in every virtual machine, puts an uncontrolled piece of network equipment into each host. In The Essentials Series: Best Practices for Virtual Network Management, Eric Beehler offers a strong understanding of virtualization so that IT departments may create a consensus for managing the virtual network.