Q. How can I perform ROI calculations from my Microsoft Assessment and Planning (MAP) toolkit results?

A. Microsoft provides a neat tool to ascertain the utilization of our servers and the optimal consolidation approach, but it doesn't give direct ROI information. Microsoft has a separate calculator available online to calculate ROI, and the good news is that while you can manually enter server details in the tool, you can also import the XML file that's generated by the MAP report generation.

Go to the ROI site and create an account. Once you've logged on, select the Microsoft Integrated Virtualization Calculator that's part of the Core IO analysis reports. From the Options menu, select Metric Import... and select the XML file the MAP report generated. Click Import Metrics.

You still need to enter some information, such as company name and location, but the actual server information will have been generated for you. Click Next to view the ROI report.

A. Microsoft provides a neat tool to ascertain the utilization of our servers and the optimal consolidation approach, but it doesn't give direct ROI information. Microsoft has a separate calculator available online to calculate ROI, and the good news is that while you can manually enter server details in the tool, you can also import the XML file that's generated by the MAP report generation.

Go to https://roianalyst.alinean.com/microsoft/virtualization/ and create an account. Once you've logged on, select the Microsoft Integrated Virtualization Calculator that's part of the Core IO analysis reports. From the Options menu, select Metric Import... and select the XML file the MAP report generated. Click Import Metrics.

\[roiimportfrommap.jpg\]

You still need to enter some information, such as company name and location, but the actual server information will have been generated for you. Click Next to view the ROI report.