The top 10 tech startups for 2008

Hot tech startup: StackSafe

Founded: 2005 (as Revive Systems)

Tech breakthrough: The first virtualized staging and testing solution that allows meaningful testing of infrastructure changes in a safe environment.

Business problem addressed: Helping determine how changes to infrastructure software affect production.

What the technology does: It tests changes to infrastructure and operations such as patching, infrastructure software upgrades, and changes to settings -- but not applications. In effect, it is a virtual sandbox.

How the technology works: StackSafe imports x86-production systems into virtual partitions by performing a full-disk copy during a planned downtime period. It uses the Xen hypervisor to create the virtual partition. Physical and virtual systems are imported and test scenarios composed of open source and proprietary offerings are run. The scenarios test readiness, connectivity, configuration security, and performance. StakeSafe Test Center includes predefined tests and templates. "Test and reporting scenarios, as well as the focus on [infrastructure and operations] groups, are the main differentiators between StackSafe and virtual lab management solutions," says Gartner analyst Donna Scott.

Forward spin: StackSafe recently added support for Windows Server 2003 environments; at launch only Linux was supported. More environments will be added in the future, says the company.