Server Virtualization - Infoworld

Cloudscaling set to offer OpenStack private cloud platform

admin — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 01:33:27 +0000

Cloudscaling plans to introduce on Monday an OpenStack-based platform that enterprises can use to build private clouds.

This will be the first product offering from Cloudscaling, which built its business as a services company that helped others design and create their cloud infrastructures.

VMware VCP5 certification upgrade deadline fast approaching

David Marshall — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:05:06 +0000

For many VMware administrators, having VMware certification is a badge of honor within the virtualization community. Being a VMware Certified Professional (VCP) says a lot about an individual's dedication to the technology and level of expertise. And as the demand for IT professionals with data center virtualization skills increases, it is essential to be able to distinguish yourself in the job market.

VMTurbo upgrade supports all three major virtualization platforms

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:20:27 +0000

VMTurbo has upgraded its operations management suite to support the three major virtual environments and to improve its capacity-planning tool.

With the new 3.0 version of Operations Manager, the software can now manage Citrix XenServer, Microsoft Hyper-V, and VMware's vSphere individually or in multi-hypervisor deployments, the company says. This version adds XenServer to its capabilities.

A tour of Microsoft System Center 2012

J. Peter Bruzzese — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

I admit it: I never liked Microsoft's System Center server management suite. If you are one of my long-time readers, you know I mention it only sporadically, and even then without enthusiasm. It's felt like a patch job of unrelated products. But the forthcoming System Center 2012 -- now available in the form of a release candidate -- might just change my mind.

VMware releases vCenter Operations Management 5.0 for virtualization and cloud infrastructures

David Marshall — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:50:06 +0000

VMware's latest move to help accelerate private cloud adoption came last week with the official announcement of VMware vCenter Operations Management Suite 5.0.

Microsoft ups the battle with VMware for the private cloud

J. Peter Bruzzese — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Many companies want to make their data centers into private clouds so they can get the advantages of faster, more flexible allocation of server, storage, and software resources. EMC VMware has long been the first stop for organizations looking for the virtualization component to help build that private cloud. But Microsoft wants to be the go-to provider, so it's amping up its Windows Server and System Center offerings this year to try to get that status.

Microsoft takes aim at VMware and the cloud with System Center 2012

David Marshall — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:15:27 +0000

The skirmish between VMware and Microsoft for greater control over the virtualization and cloud markets is only going to get bigger and more intense in 2012.

Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization pressed into action

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:50:33 +0000

Red Hat has released the third version of its RHEV (Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization) software package, which includes improvements that would make it suitable for larger deployments, and a new console for self-provisioning.

RHEV 3.0 represents a significant step forward for the readiness of KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) within the enterprise, and should be considered as a viable virtualization alternative to more widely used products from companies such as VMware and Microsoft, noted IDC cloud and virtualization analyst Gary Chen.

VMware 2011: The good, the bad, and the cloudy

David Marshall — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:10:06 +0000

VMware was a busy company in 2011. Instead of resting on its laurels, the currently crowned virtualization technology leader continued to be a mover and a shaker -- although not everything went its way.

Introducing Windows Server 8: The InfoWorld special report

uphan — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Hailed as one of Microsoft's broadest, deepest releases, Windows Server 8 will replace the current version of the OS, Windows Server 2008, in 2012 about the same time the new companion desktop OS, Windows 8, is released. Microsoft has a broad set of goals to reach with this release, such as cloud compatibility and automation of routine tasks across multiple machines. The new release also benefits from Microsoft's work building out its own Azure cloud service.

What's next with hypervisors?

admin — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 16:47:25 +0000

The world of hypervisors is complicated by the fact that there are proprietary and open source tools and the latter are often pressed into service in different ways, say nothing of the fact that the whole market is evolving quickly. To get a handle on recent developments, Network World Editor in Chief John Dix corralled a panel of experts to assess where we are today and where we're going.

Free VMware tools for virtualization admins are worth a 'fling'

David Marshall — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:08:56 +0000

If you are a VMware virtualization administrator and haven't been indoctrinated yet into the use of "flings," perhaps it's time you climbed on board. There is a community repository filled with golden nuggets created by VMware-employed developers and engineers -- and yes, they are offered for the low, low price of free.

Big data strains small-business bandwidth

Matt Prigge — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Sooner or later, small businesses encounter many of the same challenges big businesses face -- and it's happening now, big time, with rampant data growth. You'd think the burden of the data explosion would fall primarily on storage infrastructure. In fact, for many small businesses, WAN bandwidth is proving to be the biggest bottleneck.

InfoWorld's top 10 emerging enterprise technologies

Eric Knorr — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Everyone is a trend watcher. But at a certain point, to determine which trends will actually weave their way into the fabric of business computing, you need to first take a hard look at the technologies that gave life to the latest buzz phrases.

VDI: Not just for big business

Matt Prigge — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Time is the scarcest commodity for any IT pro. There's never enough to get everything done, whether you spend it fighting fires, rolling out new applications, or supporting the user base. And this scarcity affects IT shops of any size -- from the armies supporting Fortune 100 companies to the one beleagured employee supporting a small business.

6 ways to build SDNs without OpenFlow

admin — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 17:10:44 +0000

Although OpenFlow is stirring up all of the excitement around software defined networking (SDN), you can program a network with standard tools that have been around a while. Here are a few examples.

Will Quest's acquisition of VKernel shrink virtualization management ecosystem?

David Marshall — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:15:14 +0000

Quest Software announced today that it has acquired Boston-based VKernel, a provider of capacity management products for virtualized data centers and cloud environments. The official announcement was short on details and devoid of fanfare -- no purchase price was disclosed -- and I would anticipate that more information about the acquisition will be forthcoming down the road. VKernel did say it plans to expand its team and is already renovating its Boston headquarters for a first-quarter move-in date.

Blogosphere launches virtual 'Occupy VMware' campaign

David Marshall — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 17:50:08 +0000

As a software developer, tester, or someone just trying to learn and understand VMware's virtualization or cloud-related technologies, would a relatively inexpensive, nonproduction, annual subscription to its software prove beneficial to the task?

VMware may be losing dominance in server virtualization

David Marshall — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 18:36:27 +0000

Just when you thought you had a handle on the virtualization market, someone creates yet another survey that shakes things up a bit. These latest findings not only shine a light on some interesting new numbers; they also raise new questions worth asking.

The law of unintended storage consequences

Matt Prigge — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:00:00 +0000

The increasing complexity of modern storage arrays seems to know no bounds. While all of us are understandably excited when hot, new storage features arrive on the scene, it's important to remember that all of them come at a price. Their complexity tends to make these systems harder to troubleshoot -- and harder for storage vendors to test fully before they hit the market.