July 21st, 2010
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Came across this great article on setting up a scripted installation of vSphere 4.1.
Here is a quote from the article…
"Scripted installation is a new feature for ESXi which is introduced with the release of vSphere 4.1. In this article I’m describing the setup of my home lab in which I use this new feature. Please be advised that this article assumes some basic understanding of Windows and ESX and gives you some guidelines which you can alter for your own specific needs."
I highly recommend reading this guide if you are interested in scripting / automating you vSphere installations.
Full Article
July 8th, 2010
3 Comments
Egenera recently announced that they are launching a partner program in EMEA (story below). This could be a game changer if it catches on with the right partners and if it makes it to the US. For most of the past decade Egenera was the innovator that always seemed to be ahead of its time. Sure it had many high profile and successful customers, but most were still trying to figure out who they were. Many had reservations based on the fact that they were not only selling you a management system, but hardware as well (like Cisco UCS does now). Unfortunately the hardware was expensive and a small name it the world of proven server vendors.
That changed when the signed an OEM agreement with Dell. They finally separated the software from the hardware. However traction was still very difficult as it was an entirely new area for both Dell and Egenera and neither could really get the train moving fast enough. Ironically it was not until Cisco brought out UCS that most finally understood the identity of what Egenera was offering. It came at the expense of a giant in the networking area entering as a major competitor. Now there are many advantages for both systems and I will not get into that now.
The major problem with the Cisco UCS system is that it ties people not only to a software package, but a single hardware vendor as well. Not to mention that while Cisco is known in the networking world they are not known as a server vendor. Now while Egenera was able to separate the software from the hardware and enter OEM agreements with server vendors like Dell, it still seemed to be limited. With this announcement of a Partner Program this may be the first step to bringing this type of managed converged network to the masses. Only time will tell!!
June 9th, 2010
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Good article on Cloud as an enabler for small business from vAusTek.
Quote…
One of the hottest technologies around right now is Cloud computing. You think about how Google has been able to turn the tables on traditional office and email applications like Microsoft Office, Exchange, etc. Granted they are still just a small percentage you see the impact and realization from the giants that they are now changing their models to match.
Quote…
Many small businesses and specifically start-ups need to rely on technology just as much as larger businesses, but without the budget or personnel to do so. Both Cloud and SaaS have delivered models that can give the tools needed to compete and ran the day to day business at a much better value.
Read the full article here!
April 27th, 2010
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AUSTIN, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Virtual Bridges, makers of the VERDE™ suite that offers the industry’s lowest TCO for desktop management and provisioning solutions, today announced the immediate availability of VERDE 4. This major release sets a new industry standard for VDI with respect to simplicity, ease of deployment and management for administrators, as well as ease of use and a high-fidelity desktop experience for end users, often cited as major issues in VDI deployments.
There are quite a few new features in VERDE 4 to add to what may be the best kept secret in VDI.
Full Story (Business Wire)
April 1st, 2010
2 Comments
I will be working with Dell to deliver a seminar on Microsoft Hyper-V / System Center along with Dell EqualLogic SAN. This is targeted at the small and medium businesses. Read below for details and how to register.
Attend this complimentary technical seminar and learn how the Dell™ PowerEdge™ Servers and the Dell™ EqualLogic™ PS Series virtualized iSCSI SANs integrate directly with the Microsoft® Virtualization solution set. Our team will demonstrate Microsoft’s game-changing virtualization advantages highlighting the physical and virtual management features of the Systems Center family of products along with Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V™. The combination of our virtualized iSCSI SAN connected with Microsoft® Virtualization provides a fully virtualized infrastructure that simply and cost-effectively can deliver high availability, resiliency, flexibility, and scalability.
In this session, a live demonstration will show current Windows® Server 2008 Hyper-V™ capabilities, as well as the game changing combination of System Center Virtual Machine Manager and Operations Manager, Microsoft® Cluster Services and Live Migration that can enhance your virtualized storage and server infrastructure.
Attend this informative seminar for discussions on:
- Windows® Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V™ and the role of storage area networks (SANs)
- Core requirements to achieve high availability and resiliency in the virtual data center
- How a virtualized SAN infrastructure can simplify operations, reduce cost, and deliver scalability
- Microsoft® Virtualization / Dell Storage TCO and ROI
We will be giving away a Dell Mini 10!!
Hosted by: Dell & Microsoft
When: Thursday, April 8, 2010 from 11am to 2pm
Where:
Microsoft Corporation
N19 W24133 Riverwood Drive, Suite 150
Waukesha, WI, 53188
Click HERE to Register!!
March 30th, 2010
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It seems as the VDI buzz grows so does the competitors. Red Hat announced yesterday that they are entering the arena with their latest update to their REV (Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization).
Utilizing KVM for the backend and SPICE (Simple Protocol for Independent Computing Environments) plus providing a connection broker and web portal, this seems to be a complete package. They have announce support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux – Desktop, Windows XP, and Windows 7 within the environment. This would support most corporate customers needs.
I am not surprised by the announcement as Red Hat has always done a good job of offering a full suite for the enterprise. It will be interesting how this shakes out, especially for the smaller VDI developers.
For more information you can read the full article on PC World.
