Over the past few days I've worked on how we're going to migrate from a Window vCenter 5.5 to an appliance based vCenter 6.  I'll describe this process in a later post.  One of the workflows that came out of this is how to change a vCAC VM's compute reservation.

You will have to set the vCAC Host variable first and there are two inputs.  vcac:reservation and the vCAC:VirtualMachine.

I am using vCAC 6.2.1and vCO 6.  We are utilizing ASD to hide some of the details to create a VM.  At the end of the process I need to change the owner of the machine.  What was happening is the VM was built and had a cost associated to it.  When I changed the owner the cost would be set to $0.000 and the total cost to date would also be $0.000.  I was able to figure out three different ways to do this and all three would do the same thing.  I decided to file a ticket with VMware to see if there was a bug.  After a few days VMware provided me a workflow which engineering had used to test.  I tested it on a machine that I had and it worked just fine so I had VMware close the ticket.

Today, I was working on adding the change owner workflow to my post provisioning and am having the following issue.  On Friday I picked a VM it was Linux and it worked and didn't think to check both Windows and Linux guests.  It appears that this cost blanking problem is only on Windows guests.  But as before the owner does change.

The question I asked myself was would there be any reason a Windows guest would act differently than a Linux one in vCAC?  So I started looking at my blueprints.  The cost value in the Linux blueprint has nothing and is blank.  The cost value for the windows template was actually set to $0.000.   I removed the cost value of $0.000 and built a new VM.  Retested the change owner workflow and it works as expected.

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Data Protection Diaries: Are your restores ready for World Backup Day 2015?

This is part of an ongoing data protection diaries series of post about, well, data protection and what I'm doing pertaining to World Backup Day 2015.

In case you forgot or did not know, World Backup Day is March 31 2015 (@worldbackupday) so now is a good time to be ready. The only challenge that I have with the World Backup Day (view their site here) that has gone on for a few years know is that it is a good way to call out the importance of backing up or protecting data. However its time to also put more emphasis and focus on being able to make sure those backups or protection copies actually work.

By this I mean doing more than making sure that your data can be read from tape, disk, SSD or cloud service actually going a step further and verifying that restored data can actually be used (read, written, etc).

The Problem, Issue, Challenge, Opportunity and Need

The problem, issue and challenges are simple, are your applications, systems and data protected as well as can you use those protection copies (e.g. backups, snapshots, replicas or archives) when as well as were needed?

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The opportunity is simple, avoiding downtime or impact to your business or organization by being proactive.

Understanding the challenge and designing a strategy

The following is my preparation checklist for World Backup Data 2015 (e.g. March 31 2015) which includes what I need or want to protect, as well as some other things to be done including testing, verification, address (remediate or fix) known issues while identifying other areas for future enhancements. Thus perhaps like yours, data protection for my environment which includes physical, virtual along with cloud spanning servers to mobile devices is constantly evolving.

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My data protection preparation, checklist and to do list

Finding a solution

While I already have a strategy, plan and solution that encompasses different tools, technologies and techniques, they are also evolving. Part of the evolving is to improve while also exploring options to use new and old things in new ways as well as eat my down dog food or walk the talk vs. talk the talk. The following figure provides a representation of my environment that spans physical, virtual and clouds (more than one) and how different applications along with systems are protected against various threats or risks. Key is that not all applications and data are the same thus enabling them to be protected in different ways as well as over various intervals. Needless to say there is more to how, when, where and with what different applications and systems are protected in my environment than show, perhaps more on that in the future.

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Some of what my data protection involves for Server StorageIO

Taking action

What I'm doing is going through my checklist to verify and confirm the various items on the checklist as well as find areas for improvement which is actually an ongoing process.

Do I find things that need to be corrected?

Yup, in fact found something that while it was not a problem, identified a way to improve on a process that will once fully implemented enabler more flexibility both if a restoration is needed, as well as for general everyday use not to mention remove some complexity and cost.

Speaking of lessons learned, check this out that ties into why you want 4 3 2 1 based data protection strategies.

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Where to learn more

Here are some extra links to have a look at:

Data Protection Diaries
Cloud conversations: If focused on cost you might miss other cloud storage benefits
5 Tips for Factoring Software into Disaster Recovery Plans
Remote office backup, archiving and disaster recovery for networking pros
Cloud conversations: Gaining cloud confidence from insights into AWS outages (Part II)
Given outages, are you concerned with the security of the cloud?
Data Archiving: Life Beyond Compliance
My copies were corrupted: The 3-2-1 rule
Take a 4-3-2-1 approach to backing up data
Cloud and Virtual Data Storage Networks- Chapter 8 (CRC/Taylor and Francis)

What this all means and wrap-up

Be prepared, be proactive when it comes to data protection and business resiliency vs. simply relying reacting and recovering hoping that all will be ok (or works).

Take a few minutes (or longer) and test your data protection including backup to make sure that you can:

a) Verify that in fact they are working protecting applications and data in the way expected

b) Restore data to an alternate place (verify functionality as well as prevent a problem)

c) Actually use the data meaning it is decrypted, inflated (un-compressed, un-de duped) and security certificates along with ownership properties properly applied

d) Look at different versions or generations of protection copies if you need to go back further in time

e) Identify area of improvement or find and isolate problem issues in advance vs. finding out after the fact

Time to get back to work checking and verifying things as well as attending to some other items.

Ok, nuff said, for now...

Cheers gs

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Cloud Conversations: AWS S3 Cross Region Replication storage enhancements

Amazon Web Services (AWS) recently among other enhancements announced new Simple Storage Service (S3) cross-region replication of objects from a bucket (e.g. container) in one region to a bucket in another region. AWS also recently enhanced Elastic Block Storage (EBS)   increasing maximum performance and size of Provisioned IOPS (SSD) and General Purpose (SSD) volumes.  EBS enhancements included ability to store up to 16 TBytes of data in a single volume and do 20,000  input/output operations per second (IOPS). Read more about EBS and other recent AWS server, storage I/O and application enhancements here.

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The Problem, Issue, Challenge, Opportunity and Need

The challenge is being able to move data (e.g. objects) stored in AWS buckets in one region to another in a safe, secure, timely, automated, cost-effective way.

Even though AWS has a global name-space, buckets and their objects (e.g. files, data, videos, images, bit and byte streams) are stored in a specific region designated by the customer or user (AWS S3, EBS, EC2, Glacier, Regions and Availability Zone primer can be found here).

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Understanding the challenge and designing a strategy

The following diagram shows the challenge and how to copy or replicate objects in an S3 bucket in one region to a destination bucket in a different region. While objects can be copied or replicated without S3 cross-region replication, that involves essentially reading your objects pulling that data out via the internet and then writing to another place. The catch is that this can add extra costs, take time, consume network bandwidth and need extra tools (Cloudberry, Cyberduck, S3fuse, S3motion, S3browser, S3 tools (not AWS) and a long list of others).
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What is AWS S3 Cross-region replication

Highlightsof AWS S3 Cross-region replication include:

• AWS S3 Cross region replication is as its name implies, replication of S3 objects from a bucket in one region to a destination bucket in another region.
• S3 replication of new objects added to an existing or new bucket (note new objects get replicated)
• Policy based replication tied into S3 versioning and life-cycle rules
• Quick and easy to set up for use in a matter of minutes via S3 dashboard or other interfaces
• Keeps region to region data replication and movement within AWS networks (potential cost advantage)

To activate, you simply enable versioning on a bucket, enable cross-region replication, indicate source bucket (or prefix of objects in bucket), specify destination region and target bucket name (or create one), then create or select an IAM (Identify Access Management) role and objects should be replicated.

Some AWS S3 cross-region replication things to keep in mind (e.g. considerations):

• As with other forms of mirroring and replication if you add something on one side it gets replicated to other side
• As with other forms of mirroring and replication if you deleted something from the other side it can be deleted on both (be careful and do some testing)
• Keep costs in perspective as you still need to pay for your S3 storage at both locations as well as applicable internal data transfer and GET fees
• Click here to see current AWS S3 fees for various regions

S3 Cross-region replication and alternative approaches

There are several regions around the world and up until today AWS customers could copy, sync or replicate S3 bucket contents between AWS regions manually (or via automation) using various tools such as Cloudberry, Cyberduck, S3browser and S3motion to name just a few as well as via various gateways and other technologies. Some of those tools and technologies are open-source or free, some are freemium and some are premium for a few that also vary by interface (some with GUI, others with CLI or APIs) including ability to mount an S3 bucket as a local network drive and use tools to sync or copy.

However a catch with the above mentioned tools (among others) and approaches is that to replicate your data (e.g. objects in a bucket) can involve other AWS S3 fees. For example reading data (e.g. a GET which has a fee) from one AWS region  and then copying out to the internet has fees. Likewise when copying data into another AWS S3 region (e.g. a PUT which are free) there is also the cost of storage at the destination.

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AWS S3 cross-region hands on experience (first look)

For my first hands on (first look) experience with AWS cross-region replication today I enabled a bucket in the US Standard region (e.g. Northern Virginia) and created a new target destination bucket in the EU Ireland. Setup and configuration was very quick, literally just a few minutes with most of the time spent reading the text on the new AWS S3 dashboard properties configuration displays.

I selected an existing test bucket to replicate and noticed that nothing had replicated over to the other bucket until I realized that new objects would be replicated. Once some new objects were added to the source bucket within a matter of moments (e.g. few minutes) they appeared across the pond in my EU Ireland bucket. When I deleted those replicated objects from my EU Ireland bucket and switched back to my view of the source bucket in the US, those new objects were already deleted from the source. Yes, just like regular mirroring or replication, pay attention to how you have things configured (e.g. synchronized vs. contribute vs. echo of changes etc.).

While I was not able to do a solid quantifiable performance test, simply based on some quick copies and my network speed moving via S3 cross-region replication was faster than using something like s3motion with my server in the middle.

It also appears from some initial testing today that a benefit of AWS S3 cross-region replication (besides being bundled and part of AWS) is that some fees to pull data out of AWS and transfer out via the internet can be avoided.

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Where to learn more

Here are some links to learn more about AWS S3 and related topics

• Cross-Region Replication for Amazon S3
• Cloud conversations: If focused on cost you might miss other cloud storage benefits
• Data Protection Diaries
• Cloud Conversations: AWS overview and primer
• Eight Ways to Avoid Cloud Storage Pricing Surprises
• Cloud and Object Storage Center
• Are more than five nines of availability really possible?
• How do primary storage clouds and cloud for backup differ?
• What’s most important to know about my cloud privacy policy?  

What this all means and wrap-up

For those who are looking for a way to streamline replicating data (e.g. objects) from an AWS bucket in one region with a bucket in a different region you now have a new option. There are potential cost savings if that is your goal along with performance benefits in addition to using what ever might be working in your environment. Replicating objects provides a way of expanding your business continuance (BC), business resiliency (BR) and disaster recovery (DR) involving S3 across regions as well as a means for content cache or distribution among other possible uses.

Overall, I like this ability for moving S3 objects within AWS, however I will continue to use other tools such as S3motion and s3sfs for moving data in and out of AWS as well as among other public cloud serves and local resources.

Ok, nuff said, for now..

Cheers gs

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Gathering Transaction Per Minute Metrics from SQL Server and HammerDB

When using benchmark or workload generation tools such as HammerDB I needed a way to capture and log performance activity metrics such as transactions per minute. For example using HammerDB to simulate an application making database requests performing various transactions as part of testing an overall system solution including server and storage I/O activity. This post takes a look at the problem or challenge I was looking to address, as well as creating a solution after spending time searching for one (still searching btw).

The Problem, Issue, Challenge, Opportunity and Need

The challenge is to collect application performance such as transactions per minute from a workload using a database. The workload or benchmark tool (in this case HammerDB) is the System Test Initiator (STI) that drives the activity (e.g. database requests) to a System Under Test (SUT). In this example the SUT is a Microsoft SQL Server running on a Windows 2012 R2 server. What I need is to collect and log into a file for later analysis the transaction rate per minute while the STI is generating a particular workload.

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Understanding the challenge and designing a strategy

If you have ever used benchmark or workload generation tools such as  Dell/Quest Benchmark Factory (part of the  Toad tools collection) you might be spoiled with how it can be used to not only generate the workload, as well as collect, process, present and even store the results for database workloads such as  TPC simulations. In this situation,  Transaction Processing Council (TPC) like workloads need to be run and metrics on performance collected. Lets leave Benchmark Factory for a future discussion and focus instead on a free tool called  HammerDB and more specifically how to collection transactions per minute metrics from  Microsoft SQL Server. While the focus is SQL Server, you can easily adapt the approach for  MySQL among others, not to mention there are tools such as  Sysbench,  Aerospike among  other tools.

The following image (created using my  Livescribe Echo digital pen) outlines the problem, as well as sketches out a possible solution design. In the following figure, for my solution I'm going to show how to grab every minute for a given amount of time the count of transactions that have occurred. Later in the post processing (you could also do in the SQL Script) I take the new transaction count (which is cumulative) and subtract the earlier interval which yields the transactions per minute (see examples later in this post).

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The problem and challenge, a way to collect Transactions Per Minute (TPM)

Finding a solution

HammerDB displays results via its GUI, and perhaps there is a way or some trick to get it to log results to a file or some other means, however after searching the web, found that it was quicker to come up with solution. That solution was to decide how to collect and report the transactions per minute (or you could do by second or other interval) from Microsoft SQL Server. The solution was to find what performance counters and metrics are available from SQL Server, how to collect those and log them to a file for processing. What this means is a SQL Server script file would need to be created that ran in a loop collecting for a given amount of time at a specified interval. For example once a minute for several hours.

Taking action

The following is a script that I came up with that is far from optimal however it gets the job done and is a starting point for adding more capabilities or optimizations.

In the following example, set loopcount to some number of minutes to collect samples for. Note however that if  you are running a workload test for eight (8) hours with a 30 minute ramp-up time, you would want to use a loopcount (e.g. number of minutes to collect for) of 480 + 30 + 10. The extra 10 minutes is to allow for some samples before the ramp and start of workload, as well as to give a pronounced end of test number of samples. Add or subtract however many minutes to collect for as needed, however keep this in mind, better to collect a few extra minutes vs. not have them and wished you did.

-- Note and disclaimer:
--
-- Use of this code sample is at your own risk with Server StorageIO and UnlimitedIO LLC
-- assuming no responsibility for its use or consequences. You are free to use this as is
-- for non-commercial scenarios with no warranty implied. However feel free to enhance and
-- share those enhancements with others e.g. pay it forward.
--
DECLARE @cntr_value bigint;
DECLARE @loopcount bigint; # how many minutes to take samples for

set @loopcount = 240

SELECT @cntr_value = cntr_value
 FROM sys.dm_os_performance_counters
 WHERE counter_name = 'transactions/sec'
 AND object_name = 'MSSQL$DBIO:Databases'
 AND instance_name = 'tpcc' ; print @cntr_value;
 WAITFOR DELAY '00:00:01'
--
-- Start loop to collect TPM every minute
--

while @loopcount <> 0
begin
SELECT @cntr_value = cntr_value
 FROM sys.dm_os_performance_counters
 WHERE counter_name = 'transactions/sec'
 AND object_name = 'MSSQL$DBIO:Databases'
 AND instance_name = 'tpcc' ; print @cntr_value;
 WAITFOR DELAY '00:01:00'
 set @loopcount = @loopcount - 1
end
--
-- All done with loop, write out the last value
--
SELECT @cntr_value = cntr_value
 FROM sys.dm_os_performance_counters
 WHERE counter_name = 'transactions/sec'
 AND object_name = 'MSSQL$DBIO:Databases'
 AND instance_name = 'tpcc' ; print @cntr_value;
--
-- End of script
-- 

The above example has loopcount set to 240 for a 200 minute test with a 30 minute ramp and 10 extra minutes of samples. I use the a couple of the minutes to make sure that the system test initiator (STI) such as  HammerDB is configured and ready to start executing transactions. You could also put this along with your HammerDB items into a script file for further automation, however I will leave that exercise up to you.

For those of you familiar with SQL and SQL Server you probably already see some things to improve or stylized or simply apply your own preference which is great, go for it. Also note that I'm only selecting a certain variable from the performance counters as there are many others which you can easily discovery with a couple of SQL commands (e.g. select and specify database instance and object name. Also note that the key is accessing the items in sys.dm_os_performance_counters of your SQL Server database instance.

The results

The output from the above is a list of cumulative numbers as shown below which you will need to post process (or add a calculation to the above script). Note that part of running the script is specifying an output file which I show later.

785
785
785
785
37142
1259026
2453479
3635138

Implementing the solution

You can setup the above script to run as part of a larger automation shell or batch script, however for simplicity I'm showing it here using Microsoft SQL Server Studio.

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Microsoft SQL Server Studio with script to collect Transaction Per Minute (TPM)

The following image shows how to specify an output file for the results to be logged to when using Microsoft SQL Studio to run the TPM collection script.

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Microsoft SQL Server Studio specify output file

With the SQL Server script running to collect results, and HammerDB workload running to generate activity, the following shows Dell Spotlight on Windows (SoW) displaying WIndows Server 2012 R2 operating system level performance including CPU, memory, paging and other activity. Note that this example had about the system test initiator (STI) which is HammerDB and the system under test (SUT) that is Microsoft SQL Server on the same server.

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Dell Spotlight on Windows showing Windows Server performance activity

Results and post-processing

As part of post processing simple use your favorite tool or script or what I often do is pull the numbers into Excel spreadsheet, and simply create a new column of numbers that computes and shows the difference between each step (see below). While in Excel then I plot the numbers as needed which can also be done via a shell script and other plotting tools such as  R.

In the following example, the results are imported into Excel (your favorite tool or script) where I then add a column (B) that simple computes the difference between the existing and earlier counter. For example in cell B2 = A2-A1, B3 = A3-A2 and so forth for the rest of the numbers in column A. I then plot the numbers in column B to show the transaction rates over time that can then be used for various things.

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Results processed in Excel and plotted

Note that in the above results that might seem too good to be true they are, these were cached results to show the tools and data collection process as opposed to the real work being done, at least for now...

Where to learn more

Here are some extra links to have a look at:

How to test your HDD, SSD or all flash array (AFA) storage fundamentals
Server and Storage I/O Benchmarking 101 for Smarties
Server and Storage I/O Benchmark Tools: Microsoft Diskspd (Part I)
The SSD Place (collection of flash and SSD resources)
Server and Storage I/O Benchmarking and Performance Resources
I/O, I/O how well do you know about good or bad server and storage I/Os?

What this all means and wrap-up

There are probably many ways to fine tune and optimize the above script, likewise there may even be some existing tool, plug-in, add-on module, or configuration setting that allows HammerDB to log the transaction activity rates to a file vs. simply showing on a screen. However for now, this is a work around that I have found for when needing to collect transaction activity performance data with HammerDB and SQL Server.

Ok, nuff said, for now...

Cheers gs

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If you are focused only on cost you might miss other cloud storage benefits

Drew Robb (@robbdrew) has a good piece (e.g. article) over at InfoStor titled Eight Ways to Avoid Cloud Storage Pricing Surprises that you can read here.

Drew start's his piece out with this nice analogy or story:

Drew extends his example in his piece to compare how some cloud providers may start with pricing as low as some amount only for the customer to be surprised when they did not do their homework to learn about the various fees.

Note that most reputable cloud providers do not hide their fees even though there are myths that all cloud vendors have hidden fees, instead they list what those costs are on their sites. However that means the smart shopper or person procuring cloud services needs to go look for those fee's and what they mean to avoid surprises. On the other hand if you can not find what extra fee's would be along with what is or is not included in a cloud service price,  to quote Jenny's line in the movie Forest Gump, "...Run, Forest! Run!...".

In Drew's piece he mentions five general areas to keep an eye on pertaining cloud storage costs including:

• Be Duly Diligent
• Trace Out Application Interaction
• Avoid Fixed Usage Rates
• Beware Lowballing
• Demand Enterprise Visibility

Beware Lowballing

In Drew's piece, he includes a comment from myself shown below.

As a follow-up to Drew's good article, I put together the following thoughts that appeared earlier this year over  at InfoStor titled Cloud storage: Is It All About Cost? that you can read here. In that article I start out with the basic question of:

I routinely talk with different people from various  backgrounds, environments from around the world, and the one consistency I hear  when it comes to cloud services including storage is that there is no consistency.

What I mean by this is that there are the cloud crowd  cheerleaders who view or cheer for anything cloud related, some of them  actually use the cloud vs. simply cheering.

What does this have to do with cloud costs

Simple, how do you know if cloud is cheaper or more  expensive if you do not know your own costs?

How do you know if cloud storage is  available, reliable, durable if you do not have a handle on your environment?

Are you making apples to oranges comparisons or simple  trading or leveraging hype and fud for or against?

For some of you perhaps cloud might be about lowering, reducing  or cutting storage costs, perhaps even getting some other service(s) in  addition to free storage.

On the other hand, some of you might be using cloud as another class of cloud storage (e.g. AWS EBS) are those intended or optimized to be accessed from within a cloud via cloud servers or compute instances (e.g. AWS EC2 among others) vs. those that are optimized for both inside the cloud as well as outside the cloud access (e.g. AWS S3 or Glacier with costs shown here). I am using AWS examples; however, you could use Microsoft Azure (pricing shown here), Google (including their new Nearline service with costs shown here), Rackspace, (calculator here or other cloud files pricing here), HP Cloud (costs shown here), IBM Softlayer (object storage costs here) and many others.

Not all types of cloud storage are the same, which is similar to traditional storage you may be using or have used in your environment in the past. For example, there is high-capacity low-cost storage, including magnetic tape for data protection, archiving of in-active data along with near-line hard disk drives (HDD). There are different types of HDDs, as well as fast solid-state devices (SSD) along with hybrid or SSHD storage used for different purposes. This is where some would say the topic of cloud storage is highly complex.

Where to learn more

Data Protection Diaries
Cloud Conversations: AWS overview and primer)
Only you can prevent cloud data loss
Is Computer Data Storage Complex? It Depends
Eight Ways to Avoid Cloud Storage Pricing Surprises
Cloud and Object Storage Center
Cloud Storage: Is It All About Cost?
Cloud conversations: Gaining cloud confidence from insights into AWS outages (Part II)
Given outages, are you concerned with the security of the cloud?
Is the cost of cloud storage really cheaper than traditional storage?
Are more than five nines of availability really possible?
What should I look for in an enterprise file sync-and-share app?
How do primary storage clouds and cloud for backup differ?
What should I consider when using SSD cloud?
What's most important to know about my cloud privacy policy?
Data Archiving: Life Beyond Compliance
My copies were corrupted: The 3-2-1 rule
Take a 4-3-2-1 approach to backing up data

What this means

In my opinion there are cheap clouds (products, services, solutions) and there are low-cost options as well as there are value and premium offerings. Avoid confusing value with cheap or low-cost as something might have a higher cost, however including more capabilities or fees included that if useful can be more value. Look beyond the up-front cost aspects of clouds also considering ongoing recurring fees for actually using a server or solution.

If you can find low-cost storage at or below a penny per GByte per month that could be a good value if it also includes many free access, retrieval GETS head and lists for management or reporting. On the other hand, if you find a service that is at or below a penny per GByte per month however charges for any access including retrieval, as well as network bandwidth fees along with reporting, that might not be as good of a value.

Look beyond the basic price and watch out for statements like "...as low as..." to understand what is required to get that "..as low as.." price. Also understand what the extra fee's are which most of the reputable providers list these on their sites, granted you have to look for them. If you are already using cloud services, pay attention to your monthly invoices and track what you are paying for to avoid surprises.

Shopping for cloud servers and storage is similar to acquiring regular servers and storage in that you need to understand what you are acquiring along with up-front and recurring fee's to understand the total cost of ownership and cost of operations not to mention making apples to apples vs. apples to oranges comparisons.

Btw, instead of simply using lower cost cloud services to cut cost, why not also use those capabilities to create or park another copy of your important data somewhere else just to be safe...

What say you about cloud costs?

Ok, nuff said, for now...

Cheers gs

How to test your HDD, SSD or all flash array (AFA) storage fundamentals

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Over at BizTech Magazine I have a new article4 Ways to Performance-Test Your New HDD or SSDthat provides a quick guide to verifying or learning what the speed characteristic of your new storage device are capable of.

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An out-takefrom the articleused by BizTech as a "tease" is:

Building off the basics, server storage I/O benchmark fundamentals

The four basic steps in the article are:

• Plan what and how you are going to test (what's applicable for you)
• Decide on a benchmarking tool (learn aboutvarious tools here)
• Test the test (find bugs, errors before a long running test)
• Focus on metrics that matter (what's important for your environment)

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What this means and where to learn more

To some the above (read the full article here) may seem like common sense tips and things everybody should know otoh there are many people who are new to servers storage I/O networking hardware software cloud virtual along with various applications, not to mention different tools.

Thus the above is a refresher for some (e.g. Dejavu) while for others it might be new and revolutionary or simply helpful. Interested in HDD's,SSD'sas well as other server storage I/O performance along with benchmarking tools, techniques and trends check out the collection oflinks here(Server and Storage I/O Benchmarking and Performance Resources).

Ok, nuff said, for now...

Cheers gs

VMware announces vSphere V6 and associated virtualization technologies

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VMware has announced version 6 (V6) of its software  defined data center (SDDC) server virtualization hypervisor called vSphere aka  ESXi. In addition to a new version of its software defined server hypervisor along with companion software defined management and convergence tools.

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VMware vSphere Refresh

As a refresh for those whose world does not revolve around  VMware, vSphere and software defined data centers (believe it or not there are  some who exist ;), ESXi is the hypervisor that virtualizes underlying physical  machines (PM's) known as hosts.

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The path to software defined data center convergence

Guest operating systems (or other hypervisors  using nesting) run as virtual machines (VM's) on top of the vSphere hypervisor host  (e.g. ESXi software). Various VMware management tools (or third-party) are used  for managing the virtualized data center from initial configuration,  configuration, conversion from physical to virtual (P2V) or virtual to virtual  (V2V) along with data protection, performance, capacity planning across  servers, storage and networks.

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VMware vSphere is flexible and can adapt to different  sized environments from small office home office (SOHO) or small SMB, to large  SMB, SME, enterprise or cloud service provider. There are a free version of  ESXi along with paid versions that include support and added management  tool features. Besides the ESXi vSphere hypervisor, other commonly deployed  modules include the vCenter administration along with Infrastructure Controller  services platform among others. In addition, there are optional solution  bundles to add support for virtual networking, cloud (public and private), data  protection (backup/restore, replication, HA, BC, DR), big data among other  capabilities.

What is new with vSphere V6

VMware has streamlined the installation, configuration  and deployment of vSphere along with associated tools which for smaller  environments makes things simply easier. For the larger environments, having to  do less means being able to do more in the same amount of time which results in  cost savings. In addition to easier to use, deploy and configure, VMware has  extended the scaling capabilities of vSphere in terms of scaling-out (larger  clusters), scaling-up (more and larger servers), as well as scaling-down  (smaller environments and ease of use).

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• Compute: Expanded support for new hardware, guest  operating systems and general scalability in terms of physical, and virtual  resources. For example increasing the number of virtual CPU (vCPUs), number of  cluster nodes among other speeds and feeds enhancements.

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• Storage: This is an area where several enhancements were made including updates for Storage I/O controls (Storage QoS and  performance optimizations) with per VM reservations, NFS v4.1 with Kerberos  client, Virtual SAN (VSAN) improvements (new back-end underlying file system) as  well as new Virtual Volumes (vVOLs) for Storage Policy Based Management.
• Availability: Improvements for vMotion (ability to live  move virtual machines between physical servers (vmware hosts) including long  distance fault-tolerance. Other improvements include faster replication, vMotion  across vCenter servers, and long distance vMotion (up to 100ms round trip time  latency).
• Network: Network I/O Control (NIOC) provides per VM and  datastore (VM and data repository) bandwidth reservations for quality of  service (QoS) performance optimization.
• Management: Improvements for multi-site, virtual data  centers, content-library (storage and versioning of files and objects including  ISOs and OVFs (Open Virtualization Format files) that can be on a VMFS (VMware  File System) datastore or NFS volume, policy-based management and web-client  performance enhancements.

What is vVOL?

The quick synopsis of VMware vVOL’s overview:

• Higher level of abstraction of storage vs. traditional SCSI LUN’s or NAS NFS mount points
• Tighter level of integration and awareness between VMware hypervisors and storage systems
• Simplified management for storage and virtualization administrators
• Removing complexity to support increased scaling
• Enable automation and service managed storage aka software defined storage management

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  How data storage access and managed via VMware today (read more here)

vVOL’s are not LUN’s like regular block (e.g. DAS or SAN) storage that use SAS, iSCSI, FC, FCoE, IBA/SRP, nor are they NAS volumes like NFS mount points. Likewise vVOL’s are not accessed using any of the various object storage access methods mentioned above (e.g. AWS S3, Rest, CDMI, etc) instead they are an application specific implementation. For some of you this approach of an applications specific or unique storage access method may be new, perhaps revolutionary, otoh, some of you might be having a DejaVu moment right about now.

vVOL is not a LUN in the context of what you may know and like (or hate, even if you have never worked with them), likewise it is not a NAS volume like you know (or have heard of), neither are they objects in the context of what you might have seen or heard such as S3 among others.

Keep in mind that what makes up a VMware virtual machine are the VMK, VMDK and some other files (shown in the figure below), and if enough information is known about where those blocks of data are or can be found, they can be worked upon. Also keep in mind that at least near-term, block is the lowest common denominator that all file systems and object repositories get built-up.

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How VMware data storage accessed and managed with vVOLs (read more here)

Here is the thing, while vVOL’s will be accessible via a block interface such as iSCSI, FC or FCoE or for that matter, over Ethernet based IP using NFS. Think of these storage interfaces and access mechanisms as the general transport for how vSphere ESXi will communicate with the storage system (e.g. their data path) under vCenter management.

What is happening inside the storage system that will be presented back to ESXi will be different than a normal SCSI LUN contents and only understood by VMware hypervisor. ESXi will still tell the storage system what it wants to do including moving blocks of data. The storage system however will have more insight and awareness into the context of what those blocks of data mean. This is how the storage systems will be able to more closely integrate snapshots, replication, cloning and other functions by having awareness into which data to move, as opposed to moving or working with an entire LUN where a VMDK may live.

Keep in mind that the storage system will still function as it normally would, just think of vVOL as another or new personality and access mechanism used for VMware to communicate and manage storage. Watch for vVOL storage provider support from the who's who of existing and startup storage system providers including Cisco, Dell, EMC, Fujitsu, HDS, HP, IBM, NetApp, Nimble  and many others. Read more about Storage I/O fundamentals here and vVOLs here and here.

What this announcement means

Depending on your experiences, you might use  revolutionary to describe some of the VMware vSphere V6 features and  functionalities. Otoh, if you have some Dejavu moments looking pragmatically at  what VMware is delivering with V6 of vSphere executing on their vision,  evolutionary might be more applicable. I will leave it up to you do decide if  you are having a Dejavu moment and what that might pertain to, or if this is  all new and revolutionary, or something more along the lines of  technolutionary.

VMware continues to execute delivering on the Virtual  Data Center aka Software Defined Data Center paradigm by increasing functionality,  as well as enhancing existing capabilities with performance along with resiliency  improvements. These abilities enable the aggregation of compute, storage,  networking, management and policies for enabling a global virtual data center  while supporting existing along with new emerging applications.

Where to learn more

If you were not part of the beta to gain early hands-on  experience with VMware vSphere V6 and associated technologies, download a copy  to check it out as part of making your upgrade or migration plans.

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Check out the various VMware resources including communities  links here
VMware vSphere Hypervisor getting started and general vSphere information (including download)
VMware vSphere data sheet, compatibility guide along with speeds and feeds (size and other limits)

VMware Blogs and VMware vExpert page

Various fellow VMware vExpert blogs including among many others vsphere-land, scott lowe, virtuallyghetto and yellow-bricks among many others found at the vpad here.
StorageIO Out and About Update – VMworld 2014 (with  Video)
VMware vVOL’s and storage I/O fundamentals (Storage I/O overview and vVOL,  details Part I and Part II)
How many IOPs can a HDD or SSD do in a VMware environment (Part I and Part II)
VMware VSAN overview and primer, DIY converged software defined storage on a budget

Wrap up and summary

Overall VMware vSphere V6 has a great set of features that support both ease of management for small environments as well as the scaling needs of larger organizations.

Ok, nuff said, for now...

Cheers gs

Server Storage I/O Benchmarking 101 for Smarties or dummies Image may be NSFW.
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This is the first of a series of posts and links to resources on server storage I/O performance and benchmarking (view more and follow-up posts here).

The best I/O is the I/O that you do not have to do, the second best is the one with the least impact as well as low overhead.

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Drew Robb (@robbdrew) has a Data Storage Benchmarking Guide article over at Enterprise Storage Forum that provides a good framework and summary quick guide to server storage I/O benchmarking.

Drew's provides a good summary and overview in his article which is a great opener for this  first post in a series on server storage I/O benchmarking and related resources.

You can think of this series (along with Drew's article) as server storage I/O benchmarking fundamentals (e.g. 101) for smarties (e.g. non-dummies Image may be NSFW.
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Note that even if you are not a server, storage or I/O expert, you can still be considered a smarty vs. a dummy if you found the need or interest to read as well as learn more about benchmarking, metrics that matter, tools, technology and related topics.

Server and Storage I/O benchmarking 101

There are different reasons for benchmarking, such as, you might be asked or want to know how many IOPs per disk, Solid State Device (SSD), device or storage system such as for a 15K RPM (revolutions per minute) 146GB SAS Hard Disk Drive (HDD). Sure you can go to a manufactures website and look at the speeds and feeds (technical performance numbers) however are those metrics applicable to your environments applications or workload?

You might get higher IOPs with smaller IO size on sequential reads vs. random writes which will also depend on what the HDD is attached to. For example are you going to attach the HDD to a storage system or appliance with RAID and caching? Are you going to attach the HDD to a PCIe RAID card or will it be part of a server or storage system. Or are you simply going to put the HDD into a server or workstation and use as a drive without any RAID or performance acceleration.

What this all means is understanding what it is that you want to benchmark test to learn what the system, solution, service or specific device can do under different workload conditions.

Some benchmark and related topics include

• What are you trying to benchmark
• Why do you need to benchmark something
• What are some server storage I/O benchmark tools
• What is the best benchmark tool
• What to benchmark, how to use tools
• What are the metrics that matter
• What is benchmark context why does it matter
• What are marketing hero benchmark results
• What to do with your benchmark results

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Example of a step test results with various workers and workload

• What do the various metrics mean (can we get a side of context with them metrics?)
• Why look at server CPU if doing storage and I/O networking tests
• Where and how to profile your application workloads
• What about physical vs. virtual vs. cloud and software defined benchmarking
• How to benchmark block DAS or SAN, file NAS, object, cloud, databases and other things
• Avoiding common benchmark mistakes
• Tips, recommendations, things to watch out for
• What to do next

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Where to learn more

The following are related links to read more about server (cloud, virtual and physical) storage I/O benchmarking tools, technologies and techniques.

Drew Robb's benchmarking quick reference guide
Server storage I/O benchmarking tools, technologies and techniques resource page
Server and Storage I/O Benchmarking 101 for Smarties.
Microsoft Diskspd download and Microsoft Diskspd overview (via Technet)
I/O, I/O how well do you know about good or bad server and storage I/Os?
Server and Storage I/O Benchmark Tools: Microsoft Diskspd (Part I and Part II)

Wrap up and summary

We have just scratched the surface when it comes to benchmarking cloud, virtual and physical server storage I/O and networking hardware, software along with associated tools, techniques and technologies. However hopefully this and the links for more reading mentioned above give a basis for connecting the dots of what you already know or enable learning more about workloads, synthetic generation and real-world workloads, benchmarks and associated topics. Needless to say there are many more things that we will cover in future posts (e.g. keep an eye on and bookmark the server storage I/O benchmark tools and resources page here).

Ok, nuff said, for now...

Cheers gs

Server and Storage I/O Benchmark Tools: Microsoft Diskspd (Part I)

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This is part-one of a two-part post pertaining Microsoft Diskspd.that is also part of a broader  series focused on server storage I/O benchmarking, performance, capacity planning, tools and related technologies.

You can view part-two of this post here, along with companion links here.

Background

Many people use Iometer for creating synthetic (artificial) workloads to support benchmarking for testing, validation and other activities. While Iometer with its GUI is relatively easy to use and available across many operating system (OS) environments, the tool also has its limits. One of the bigger limits for Iometer is that it has become dated with little to no new development for a long time, while other tools including some new ones continue to evolve in functionality, along with extensibility. Some of these tools have optional GUI for easy of use or configuration, while others simple have extensive scripting and command parameter capabilities. Many tools are supported across different OS including physical, virtual and cloud, while others such as Microsoft Diskspd are OS specific.

Instead of focusing on Iometer and other tools as well as benchmarking techniques (we cover those elsewhere), lets focus on Microsoft Diskspd.

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What is Microsoft Diskspd?

Microsoft Diskspd is a synthetic workload generation (e.g. benchmark) tool that runs on various Windows systems as an alternative to Iometer, vdbench, iozone, iorate, fio, sqlio among other tools. Diskspd is a command line tool which means it can easily be scripted to do reads and writes of various I/O size including random as well as sequential activity. Server and storage I/O  can be buffered file system as well non-buffered across different types of storage and interfaces. Various performance and CPU usage information is provided to gauge the impact on a system when doing a given number of IOP's, amount of bandwidth along with response time latency.

What can Diskspd do?

Microsoft Diskspd creates synthetic benchmark workload activity with ability to define various options to simulate different application characteristics. This includes specifying read and writes, random, sequential, IO size along with number of threads to simulate concurrent activity. Diskspd can be used for testing or validating server and storage I/O systems along with associated software, tools and components. In addition to being able to specify different workloads, Diskspd can also be told which  processors to use (e.g. CPU affinity), buffering or non-buffered IO among other things.

What type of storage does Diskspd work with?

Physical and virtual storage including hard disk drive (HDD), solid state devices (SSD), solid state hybrid drives (SSHD) in various systems or solutions. Storage can be physical as well as partitions or file systems. As with any workload tool when doing writes, exercise caution to prevent accidental deletion or destruction of your data.

What information does Diskspd produce?

Diskspd provides output in text as well as XML formats. See an example of Diskspd output further down in this post.

Where to get Diskspd?

You can download your free copy of Diskspd from the Microsoft site here.

The download and installation are quick and easy, just remember to select the proper version for your Windows system and type of processor.

Another tip is to remember to set path environment variables point to where you put the Diskspd image.

Also stating what should be obvious, don't forget that if you are going to be doing any benchmark or workload generation activity on a system where  the potential for a data to be over-written or deleted, make sure you have a good backup and tested restore before you begin, if something goes wrong.

New to server storage I/O benchmarking or tools?

If you are not familiar with server storage I/O performance benchmarking or using various workload generation tools (e.g. benchmark tools), Drew Robb (@robbdrew) has a Data Storage Benchmarking Guide article over at Enterprise Storage Forum that provides a good framework and summary quick guide to server storage I/O benchmarking.

In addition to Drew's benchmarking quick reference guide, along with the server storage I/O benchmarking tools, technologies and techniques resource page (here), check out this companion post as a primer for benchmarking and associated topics titled Server and Storage I/O Benchmarking 101 for Smarties.

How do you use Diskspd?

Tip: When you run Microsoft Diskspd it will create a file or data set on the device or volume being tested that it will do its I/O to, make sure that you have enough disk space for what will be tested (e.g. if you are going to test 1TB you need to have more than 1TB of disk space free for use). Another tip is to speed up the initializing (e.g. when Diskspd creates the file that I/Os will be done to) run as administrator.

Ok, nuff said (for now)

Cheers gs

Server and Storage I/O Benchmarking and Performance Resources

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The following are a list of various articles, tips, post and other resources about server storage I/O performance benchmarking for legacy, virtual, cloud and software defined environments along with associated tools.

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The best server and storage I/O (input/output operation) is the one that you do not have to do, the second best is the one with the least impact.

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This is where the idea of locality of reference (e.g. how close is the data to where your application is running) comes into play which is implemented via tiered memory, storage and caching shown in the figure above.

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Server storage I/O performance applies to cloud, virtual, software defined and legacy environments

What this has to do with server storage I/O (and networking) performance benchmarking is keeping the idea of locality of reference, context and the application workload in perspective regardless of if cloud, virtual, software defined or legacy physical environments.

StorageIOblog: I/O, I/O how well do you know about good or bad server and storage I/Os?
StorageIOblog: Server and Storage I/O benchmarking 101 for smarties
StorageIOblog: How to test your HDD, SSD or all flash array (AFA) storage fundamentals
BizTech: 4 Ways to Performance-Test Your New HDD or SSD
EnterpriseStorageForum: Data Storage Benchmarking Guide
StorageSearch.com: How fast can your SSD run backwards?
OpenStack: How to calculate IOPS for Cinder Storage ?
StorageAcceleration: Tips for Measuring Your Storage Acceleration

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Spiceworks: Determining HDD SSD SSHD IOP Performance
Spiceworks: Calculating IOPS from Perfmon data
Spiceworks: profiling IOPs

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Vdbench example via StorageIOblog.com

StorageIOblog: What does server storage I/O scaling mean to you?
StorageIOblog: What is the best kind of IO? The one you do not have to do
StorageAcceleration: What, When, Why & How to Accelerate Storage
Filesystems.org: Various tools and links
StorageIOblog: Can we get a side of context with them IOPS and other storage metrics?

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BrightTalk Webinar: Data Center Monitoring - Metrics that Matter for Effective Management
StorageIOblog: Enterprise SSHD and Flash SSD Part of an Enterprise Tiered Storage Strategy
StorageIOblog: Has SSD put Hard Disk Drives (HDD’s) On Endangered Species List?

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Microsoft TechNet: Measuring Disk Latency with Windows Performance Monitor (Perfmon)
Microsoft MSDN: List of Perfmon counters for sql server
Microsoft TechNet: Taking Your Server's Pulse
StorageIOblog: Part II: How many IOPS can a HDD, HHDD or SSD do with VMware?
CMG: I/O Performance Issues and Impacts on Time-Sensitive Applications

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Virtualization Practice: IO IO it is off to Storage and IO metrics we go
InfoStor: Is HP Short Stroking for Performance and Capacity Gains?
StorageIOblog: Is Computer Data Storage Complex? It Depends
StorageIOblog: More storage and IO metrics that matter
StorageIOblog: Moving Beyond the Benchmark Brouhaha
Yellow-Bricks: VSAN VDI Benchmarking and Beta refresh!
 
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YellowBricks: VSAN performance: many SAS low capacity VS some SATA high capacity?
YellowBricsk: VSAN VDI Benchmarking and Beta refresh!
StorageIOblog: Seagate 1200 12Gbs Enterprise SAS SSD StorgeIO lab review
StorageIOblog: Part II: Seagate 1200 12Gbs Enterprise SAS SSD StorgeIO lab review
StorageIOblog: Server Storage I/O Network Benchmark Winter Olympic Games

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VMware VDImark aka View Planner (also here, here and here) as well as  VMmark here
StorageIOblog: SPC and Storage Benchmarking Games
StorageIOblog: Speaking of speeding up business with SSD storage
StorageIOblog: SSD and Storage System Performance
 
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  Various Server Storage I/O tools in a hadoop environment
 
  Michael-noll.com: Benchmarking and Stress Testing an Hadoop Cluster With TeraSort, TestDFSIO
  Virtualization Practice: SSD options for Virtual (and Physical) Environments Part I: Spinning up to speed on SSD
  StorageIOblog: Storage and IO metrics that matter
  InfoStor: Storage Metrics and Measurements That Matter: Getting Started
  SilvertonConsulting: Storage throughput vs. IO response time and why it matters
  Splunk: The percentage of Read / Write utilization to get to 800 IOPS?
 
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  Various server storage I/O benchmarking tools
 
  Spiceworks: What is the best IO IOPs testing tool out there
  StorageIOblog: How many IOPS can a HDD, HHDD or SSD do?
  StorageIOblog: Some Windows Server Storage I/O related commands
  Openmaniak: Iperf overview and Iperf.fr: Iperf overview
  StorageIOblog: Server and Storage I/O Benchmark Tools: Microsoft Diskspd (Part I and Part II)
  Dell/Quest: SQL Server Perfmon Poster (PDF)
  Server and Storage I/O Networking Performance Management (webinar)
  Data Center Monitoring - Metrics that Matter for Effective Management (webinar)
  Flash back to reality – Flash SSD Myths and Realities (Industry trends & benchmarking tips), (MSP CMG presentation)
  DBAstackexchange: How can I determine how many IOPs I need for my AWS RDS database?
  ITToolbox: Benchmarking the Performance of SANs
 
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  StorageIOblog: Dell Inspiron 660 i660, Virtual Server Diamond in the rough (Server review)
  StorageIOblog: Part II: Lenovo TS140 Server and Storage I/O Review (Server review)
  StorageIOblog: DIY converged server software defined storage on a budget using Lenovo TS140
  StorageIOblog: Server storage I/O Intel NUC nick knack notes First impressions (Server review)
  StorageIOblog & ITKE: Storage performance needs availability, availability needs performance
  StorageIOblog: Why SSD based arrays and storage appliances can be a good idea (Part I)
  StorageIOblog: Revisiting RAID storage remains relevant and resources

Interested in cloud and object storage visit our objectstoragecenter.com page, for flash SSD checkout storageio.com/ssd page, along with data protection, RAID, various industry links and more here.

Watch for additional links to be added above in addition to those that appear via comments.

Ok, nuff said (for now)

Cheers gs

Hi Folks,

I started by own blog/website to share the knowledge.

Please save the URL :   http://www.vmwareguruz.com/

Dear All,

Please help on the issue facing in vcenter 6.0 while insatllaing on windows 2012 server.

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Hi everyone, this week we have a special VMware TAM Blog posting to kick off the newsletter. I hope you enjoy it.

Capacity Management Using vRealize Operations

By Jason Gaudreau

In the physical world, we tend to overprovision because experience tells us when you have enough resources, there shouldn’t be problems. If you apply this mindset to a virtualized environment, you’ll negate the benefits of server consolidation.

What are some of the key goals of operations management?

If you are in the US we wish you a happy presidents day. Until next week, take care everyone.

Virtually Yours

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VMware TAM WEBCASTS

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  The Power of the VMware vCloud Air Network (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4928)Since the rebranding of the VMware Service Provider Program (VSPP) to the VMware vCloud Air Network last year, VMware has continued to deepen relationships with service providers. VMware vCloud Air Network service providers offer customers several benefits, including: A seamless transition to cloud for VMware customers Multiple compliance certifications, managed and application services, and vertical […]

   

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  Pop Quiz: Take the DR Challenge for a Chance to Win a Pass to VMworld 2015! (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4919)Have you mastered your organization’s disaster recovery plan? Think you know the answers to, “When did we last test our plan?” or “How much would an hour of downtime cost?” If so, we want to give you a chance to put your knowledge to the test. Last year, we launched the first DR Challenge and […]

   

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  Another VMware Cloud in Action – National Physician Services Saves $500,000 in Data Center Costs with vCloud Air (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4881)By migrating over to VMware vCloud® AirTM, National Physician Services (NPS) expects to save $500,000 over a three-year span in data center costs, as well as an additional cost savings of 15-20% through the adoption of VMware vCloud® AirTM Disaster Recovery. Bryan Graven, CEO of healthcare technology company NPS, understood the importance of improving the […]

   

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  New Networking Services Open Door to the Hybrid Cloud (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4912)For many organizations, networking is the key barrier that keeps them from fully realizing the benefits of the hybrid cloud. Until now, no public cloud has offered networking capabilities that allowed organizations to seamlessly combine the agility and flexibility of the cloud with the security and manageability that they have come to expect on-premises. VMware […]

   

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  Using CoreOS on vCloud Air OnDemand (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4887)By: Paco Gómez This is a repost from Paco Gómez’s personal blog. CoreOS is a popular Linux distribution for applications that use Docker Containers. The following article describes the steps to install CoreOS on VMware vCloud® Air™ OnDemand. The use of vCloud Air Command Line Interface makes the process easier to document and more convenient to follow. The guide assumes the […]

   

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  How to Work with Capacity Projects – vRealize Operations Tech Tips #10 (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6023)In our last blog post in the Tech Tips series, we talked about managing capacity in the virtual environment, which has long been a critical area for vSphere administrators.  It has also been, at times, a very challenging area! As you saw, that is now significantly simplified and enhanced with vRealize Operations through the use […]

   

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  vRealize Code Stream – Governance and Visibility into the Release Process (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6000)by Rich Bourdeau Automation is what makes the software delivery process go faster, but faster does not guarantee the software will be more stable and reliable.  Governance policies are the rails that assure your release train stays on track and that the software delivered will run reliably. Throughout the release delivery process you will also […]

   

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  Creating DISA STIG Checklists with vRealize Configuration Manager (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=5963)In my previous life as an InfoSec guy, I was responsible for assessing, enforcing, and ensuring continuous compliance with all the various baselines for which my organization was responsible. At the forefront of this list were a long list of DISA STIGs (Defense Information Systems Agency Security Technical Implementation Guides) – a daunting task in […]

   

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  Virtualized Hadoop Performance with vSphere 6 (http://blogs.vmware.com/performance/?p=2117)A recently published whitepaper shows that not only can vSphere 6 keep up with newer high-performance servers, it thrives on their capabilities. Two years ago, Hadoop benchmarks were run with vSphere 5.1 on a cluster of 32 dual-socket, quad-core servers. Very good performance was demonstrated, with the optimal virtualized configuration shown to be actually 2% […]

   

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  VMware Product Security White Paper has been published (http://blogs.vmware.com/security/?p=1314)A new VMware Product Security White Paper highlighting the various ways VMware minimizes product security risks for it’s customers has been published and is available via the VMware security web site: http://www.vmware.com/security

   

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  Say Hello to vMotion-compatible Shared-Disks Windows Clustering on vSphere (http://blogs.vmware.com/apps/?p=1128)As you dive into the inner-workings of the new version of VMware vSphere (aka ESXi), one of the gems you will discover to your delight is the enhanced virtual machine portability feature that allows you to vMotion a running pair of clustered Windows workloads that have been configured with shared disks. I pause here now […]

   

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DESKTOP

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  Mirage API White Paper Now Available (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7092)By Judy Wu, End-User-Computing Solution Engineer, VMware The Using the VMware Mirage API to Develop Your Own Front-End Interfaces white paper is now available. This paper introduces the new Mirage API feature that was released along with Mirage 5.1. Mirage API is a group of APIs which allows IT administrators to develop their own front-end […]

   

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  Updated Paper About Configuring Horizon with View in Kiosk Mode (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7084)By Karen Smith, Guest Technical Writer, End-User-Computing Technical Marketing, VMware The updated Configuring Kiosk Mode white paper provides instructions and references to more detailed material to help administrators design and implement virtual kiosks using VMware Horizon with View. The next time you use a kiosk at a library, trade show, or medical facility, consider that […]

   

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  Resolving Microsoft Office licensing errors (http://blogs.vmware.com/thinapp/?p=1816)One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.. VMware now have a tool that will finally correct Office licensing issues when virtual Office is deployed to some systems that have Office installed natively. Read all about it in the KB-article: Resolving licensing errors when deploying virtual Office to a system with Office […]

   

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  Enterprise mobility news recap: Feb 9 – 13 (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34513)AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress is just two weeks away, and the rumor mill is revving up. Follow the AirWatch Blog these next few weeks for coverage of all things enterprise mobility at Mobile World Congress. This week GSMA announced keynote speakers for MWC and AirWatch announced keynote speakers for AirWatch Connect Barcelona. The […]

   

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  AirWatch Connect Barcelona 2015 agenda is live! (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34495)The agenda for AirWatch Connect Barcelona is now available. For the third consecutive year, AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress will deliver informational sessions with leading industry analysts, executive leaders and innovative customers. All AirWatch Connect sessions are free to Mobile World Congress badge holders. The event will kick off Monday March 2 at the […]

   

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  AirWatch in Latin America: A new business director, analyst recognition and ecosystem growth (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34480)AirWatch opened operations in Latin America in 2011 and has grown significantly since then. Recent highlights include attendance at key regional events, the launch of the AirWatch Latin America Blog, a growing partner ecosystem and a Latin America-dedicated sales team led by new hire John Loparco, which enables AirWatch to focus on the unique needs […]

   

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  Through collaboration, medical college drives end-user adoption of MDM (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34354)Requiring 100 percent MDM enrollment for a campus of 1,200 students, as well as faculty and staff, can be quite a feat for any IT department. But David Hotchkiss, CIO at Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), was confident this was the best approach. So he helped create a strategy to gain end-user buy-in – and […]

   

  
  

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PARTNER

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  Now Available for Purchase through HP, VMware and HP EVO:RAIL (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1611)VMware EVO:RAIL is an all-in-one solution that can make it easier for businesses to deploy applications and services quickly and efficiently. Take a look at this overview to find out how you can leverage EVO:RAIL to improve their IT and reap the rewards of the Software-Defined Data Center, and/or simplify virtual machine (VM) deployments with […]

   

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  Learn how the Demand Center has Evolved (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1609)See below and register to attend an upcoming vmLIVE in your timezone to understand how the Partner ‘Demand Center‘ has evolved to include more than just customized marketing campaigns. It now includes Social Media Syndication and Website Content Syndication tools that your company can take advantage of for free. These sessions will showcase the newly […]

   

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  Announcing a Suite of Programs, Incentives, & Rewards for AirWatch (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1607)With the combination of AirWatch’s Gartner Magic Quadrant leadership and VMware’s world-class partner programs, you get the winning combination for success in the rapidly growing, multi-billion dollar Enterprise Mobility Management market. With the new Mobility Management Solution Competency, you will expand your customer footprint while up-levelling your trusted advisory status, and gain a competitive edge […]

   

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  New Certification Available: VCP6-DT (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1603)Learn more about the new VMware Certified Professional 6 – Desktop (VCP6-DT) certification that validates your skills implementing, installing, and configuring a Horizon with View 6.x environment deployed on vSphere.

   

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  Register Now for the Partner Enablement Event on 17th Feb. (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1601)All UK Enterprise and Professional Solution Provider Partners are invited to attend the ‘Partnering with VMware: Tools and Commercials for Success’ enablement event in Frimley on 17th Feb. At the event you’ll learn how to make more margin selling VMware, what the ‘perfect’ partner looks like, and also hear about key strategic solutions. UK Distributors […]

   

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  EVO:RAIL is Simple, Agile and Fast – Find out if it’s Right for Your Business (http://blogs.vmware.com/partner/?p=2380)Last week at VMware’s Partner Exchange 2015, partners just like you showcased their EVO:RAIL solutions, and other were able to hear from solution experts on the latest in hyper-convergence at the VMware EVO:Zone. If you’re customers are still laboring under the limitations and burdens of a legacy, siloed data center, there is no time to […]

   

  
  

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MORE NEWS AND DEVELOPMENTS FROM AROUND THE WEB

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  Top vBlog 2015 is happening now (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5432)The pre-voting category nominations have started and general voting will begin soon. For all the details check out the Top vBlog 2015 landing page and thank you to Infinio for sponsoring it this year. Bloggers don’t miss your chance to score one of these cool commemorative coins. [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  Technical Overview - VMware vSphere Replication 6.0 (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2857-guid.html)

   

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  Technical Overview - VMware vSphere Data Protection 6.0 (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2856-guid.html)

   

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  Performance Study - Virtualized Hadoop Performance with VMware vSphere 6 on HighPerformance Servers (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2855-guid.html)

   

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  Latest Fling from VMware Labs - VM Resource and Availability Service (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2854-guid.html)

   

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  New Training Course - VMware vRealize Automation: Install, Configure, Manage [V6.2] (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2853-guid.html)

   

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  Virtual SAN and ESXTOP in vSphere 6.0 (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15904)Today I was fiddling with ESXTOP to see if anything was new for vSphere 6.0. Considering the massive number of metrics it already holds it is difficult to find things which stand out / are new. One thing did stick out though which is a new display for Virtual SAN.I haven’t found much detail around this […] " Virtual SAN and ESXTOP in vSphere 6.0 " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my upcoming book Essential Virtual SAN via Pearson today!

   

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  HP ConvergedSystem 200–HC EVO:RAIL available now! (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15895)Yesterday I was informed by the EVO:RAIL team that the HP ConvergedSystem 200–HC EVO:RAIL is available (shipping) as of this week. I haven’t seen much around additional pieces HP is including, but I was told though that they are planning to integrate HP One View. HP One View is a management/monitoring solution that gives you a great high […] " HP ConvergedSystem 200–HC EVO:RAIL available now! " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my…

   

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  What is new for Storage DRS in vSphere 6.0? (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15888)Storage DRS must be one of the most under-appreciated features that is part of vSphere. For whatever reason it doesn’t get the airtime it deserves, not even from VMware folks which is a shame if you ask me. I was reading the What’s New material for vSphere 6.0 and I noticed that the “What is […] " What is new for Storage DRS in vSphere 6.0? " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my upcoming book Essential Virtual SAN via Pearson today!

   

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  Multi-Container Docker with YAML and Vagrant (http://blog.scottlowe.org/2015/02/11/multi-container-docker-yaml-vagrant/)In this post, I’ll provide an example of using YAML to create a multi-container Docker environment in Vagrant. I made a brief mention of this technique in my earlier post talking about how to use Docker with Vagrant , but wanted to provide an example. For me, I know that examples are often quite helpful when I’m learning something new. Since one of my primary goals here is to help enable others to learn these technologies, I figured an example would be helpful. So, to that end, here’s an example that…

   

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  Using Docker with Vagrant (http://blog.scottlowe.org/2015/02/10/using-docker-with-vagrant/)As part of my ongoing effort to create tools to assist others in learning some of the new technologies out there, I spent a bit of time today working through the use of Docker with Vagrant . Neither of these technologies should be new to my readers; I’ve already provided quick introductory posts to both (see here and here ). However, using these two together may provide a real benefit for users who are new to either technology, so I’d like to take a bit and show you how to use Docker with Vagrant. …

   

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  Technology Short Take #48 (http://blog.scottlowe.org/2015/02/10/technology-short-take-48/)Welcome to Technology Short Take #48, another installation in my irregularly-published series that collects links, articles, and thoughts from around the web. This time around, the content is a bit heavier on cloud management and applications/operating systems, but still lots of good content all the way around (I hope, anyway). Networking Matt Oswalt recently wrapped up his 3-part “DevOps for Networking” series. I referenced part 1 of the series back in TST #46 , and parts 2 and 3 are just as good as…

   

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  Internet Explorer Error After Windows Patches (http://longwhiteclouds.com/?p=10625)A while back after installing some Windows patches I noticed that Internet Explorer 10 stopped working (as described here). It would come up with a memory address error when I tried to load it. After a lot of digging around I found out that it was because ASLR was disabled for IE for some reason […]

   

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  Receiving alerts on if a VM has over a given number of snapshots (http://www.virtu-al.net/?p=3285)Last week I was asked if there was an easy way to get an alert once a VM had over a certain number of snapshots, this is a frequent request as it would seam... Receiving alerts on if a VM has over a given number of snapshots is a post from: Virtu-Al . Virtu-Al is one of the authors of VMware vSphere PowerCLI Reference: Automating vSphere Administration" Buy it now from: Amazon USA Amazon UK Sybex

   

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  Storage Field Day – I’ll be at SFD7 (http://www.penguinpunk.net/blog/?p=2476)If you haven’t heard of the very excellent Tech Field Day, head on over and check it out. They do all kinds of Field Days, including one for storage. Number 7 is happening in less than a month and, yes, I’ll be there again. Woohoo! Twice in 6 months. Look, you can see my picture on […]

   

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  Updated Articles page (http://www.penguinpunk.net/blog/?p=2473)It’s been too long since I wrote up a how-to article. But this one came from a really interesting problem. My colleagues were recently faced with an issue at a site where the customer wanted to upgrade from vSphere 5.1 to 5.5. Which was fine, but they’d forgotten / misplaced / couldn’t remember the SSO master password. So […]

   

  
  

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  What about the Windows C# Client for vSphere 6? (http://www.gabesvirtualworld.com/?p=3350)Let’s be honest, nobody has made the full swap to the vSphere Web Client yet. I’ve been pushing my colleagues and some customers to start using the Web Client, but it just isn’t up to par with the Windows Client. And I hate to admit but when a host or VM is down and I […] See full post at: What about the Windows C# Client for vSphere 6?

   

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  DCI#12 – EMC VSPEX Blue with Chad Dunn (http://techhead.co/?p=8268)In this episode I speak with Chad Dunn, EMC’s Senior Director of VSPEX, about VSPEX Blue, how hyper-converged architectures fit into the IT industry, what differentiates EMC’s EVO:RAIL based hyper-converged product, and also go into more depth on VSPEX Blue itself. EMC VSPEX Blue is a scale-out reference architecture based on EMC hardware and the […] The post DCI#12 – EMC VSPEX Blue with Chad Dunn appeared first on TechHead and was written by Simon Seagrave . Why not take a look at my other…

   

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  VMware vSphere 6 : What’s New – Multi-CPU Fault Tolerance (FT) (http://techhead.co/?p=8253)One of things holding many companies back from moving their tier 1 business critical applications across to VMware’s vSphere virtualized platform has been its inability to provide fault tolerance (FT) for virtual machines (VMs) running more than one virtual CPU (vCPU), which is a requirement for many applications, particularly those of the tier 1 variety. Up until […] The post VMware vSphere 6 : What’s New – Multi-CPU Fault Tolerance (FT) appeared first on TechHead and was written by Simon…

   

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  VMware vSphere 6 : What’s New – Maximums (http://techhead.co/?p=8241)  VMware vSphere 6 has finally been announced!  Yes, that’s right folks, after a 3+ year wait since the last major vSphere release, VMware have announced vSphere 6 which will be publically available sometime in Q1 of this year (2015). This is an evolutionary update to the widely adopted vSphere product, with over 650 new […] The post VMware vSphere 6 : What’s New – Maximums appeared first on TechHead and was written by Simon Seagrave . Why not take a look at my other related posts?: VMware…

   

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  VMware Integrated OpenStack - Cost Analysis (tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819640694385843490.post-8964225623912988567)VMware announced last week the launch of VIO and there are a number of things that I think people are missing and should be pointed out. The information I have taken is from the Datasheet and publicly available information. Networking A great part... This is a content summary only. Please visit my website for the full article, other content, and more...

   

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  My latest project - s3motion (http://kendrickcoleman.com/index.php/Node.js-Projects/my-latest-project-s3motion.html)This was originally posted on  blog.emccode.com --------------   “Object” is common place in new applications and many vendors are offering this new generation of object-based storage. The one thing that has made object storage so successful is the lowest common denominator of S3. You may know it as Simple Storage Service from AWS , but Amazon has followed a simple REST based approach that many vendors just refer to as “S3 Storage”. There are many S3 compatible storage vendors such as…

   

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  Win a vSphere Home Lab from VMTurbo! (http://kendrickcoleman.com/index.php/Tech-Blog/win-a-vsphere-home-lab-from-vmturbo.html)Do you need a home lab or just want to add on to your existing? Of course you do. Who the heck doesn't. So what's up for grabs? Intel NUC with Intel Core i5-4250U G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 16GB (2x8G) 204-Pin DDR3 Memory SAMSUNG 840 EVO 250GB SATA III TLC Internal Solid State Drive Synology DS415+ Diskless System DiskStation 4-Bay NAS 2x Dell 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive Cisco SG300-10 10-port Gigabit Managed Switch Rosewill 7ft. Cat 6 Network Cable   How do you enter?…

   

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  VMware KB Digest – New KB articles published for week ending 2/7/15 (http://vmwaretips.com/wp/?p=2610)In our effort to provide our viewers with up to the minute information on VMware related news and topics, we’re posting the following list of new KB Entries for this week, direct from VMware Support. http://bit.ly/1hiTmwM Desktop Error: mail.NO_SUCH_BLOB is seen when logging into Horizon Workspace (2106582) Date Published: 2/5/2015   VMware App Volumes A [...]

   

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  2015-feb-12 #vBrownBag(LATAM) VCAN610-NV VMware Network Virtualization Objectivo 1 – @elnemesisdivina (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5288)The following content is in Spanish, the language in which the webinar is presented. El pasado 12 de febrero 2015 en ProfessionalVMware #vBrownBag LATAM se presentó el tema: VMware Certified Associate in Network Virtualization VCAN610-NV Objectivo 1 – @elnemesisdivina Raymundo Escobar

   

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  #vBrownBag vSphere 6 Introduction to VVOLs with Howard Marks (@DeepStorageNet) (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5284)Howard Marks joins the #vBrownBag podcast on the heals of the vSphere 6 announcement to talk about a new feature in vSphere 6 – Virtual Volumes or VVOLs. VVOLs Video #vBrownBag vSphere 6 Introduction to VVOLs with Howard Marks (@DeepStorageNet) from ProfessionalVMware on Vimeo. VVOLs Slides You can follow Howard on Twitter @DeepStorageNet and his […]

   

  
  

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KB ARTICLES

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Clik here to view.FROM THE EDITORS VIRTUAL DESK

Hi everyone, as a member of our TAM community there are many benefits that you are afforded from health assessment, virtualization reviews, support and escalation management and so much more. One of the other benefits is getting deep technical sessions from our internal VMware experts. This week we have a session coming up that I think is important for all to join. Here are all of the details again in case you missed it and still wish to register.

VMware Software Manager - Managing the Lifecycle of VMware's SDDC
Wednesday, February 25, 8:00 a.m. PST

Join us for an interactive discussion on how VMware’s SDDC will be downloaded, installed, upgraded, and patched in the future.  During this session, Bob Perugini, Senior Product Manager will share VMware’s Install and Update strategy, provide you with an early preview of the products, and participate in an active discussion on the user interface, features, functionality, and priorities.

Event Registration Link: https://event.on24.com/eventRegistration/EventLobbyServlet?target=reg20.jsp&eventid=937300&sessionid=1&key=71123B02BAB3221DE5F3F76750A59408&sourcepage=register

Virtually Yours

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Clik here to view.NEWS AND DEVELOPMENTS FROM VMWARE

GENERAL NEWS

• How to Take Charge of Incident Ticket Ping Pong (http://blogs.vmware.com/cloudops/?p=1415)By Pierre Moncassin When incident tickets are repeatedly passed from one support team to another, I like to describe it as a “ping pong” situation. Most often this is not a lack of accountability or skills within individual teams. Each team genuinely fails to see the incident as relevant to their technical silo. They each […]

   

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  Hybrid Cloud Will Enter the Professional Era in 2015. Here’s Why. (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3654)By Bill Fathers, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Cloud Services Business Unit I think it’s fair to characterize the last five or so years as an experiment in the merit and feasibility of cloud-based enterprise IT. To be sure, the notion of taking corporate workloads and data off-prem was hardly a guaranteed sell at the […]

   

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  New Videos: Elevator Pitches from VMware Partner Exchange 2015 (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3649)VMware Partner Exchange 2015 wrapped up last week and it was truly a fantastic event. We dared attendees to “Thrive” as we unveiled a major product launch, acquisitions and partnerships. During the Partner Exchange general session, VMware President and Chief Operating Officer Carl Eschenbach challenged three members of the company’s leadership team to describe the value proposition […]

   

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  Top Posts from Professional Services (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5270)Our friends from around the VMware blogosphere publish everything from how-to content to put your skills to the test, to strategic concepts that can help you think differently about how you work. Check out the latest posts and try something new! ISO Standards and the VMware Private Cloud Operating Model Operations Transformation Architect Craig Savage […]

   

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  From VCDX Candidate to Panelist (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5239)This post was written by Joe Silvagi. Joseph is a Systems Engineer at VMware in the Network & Security Business Unit. He has been in IT for 20 years, with 11 of those involving vSphere implementation and design going back to ESX 2. Over his career he has held a number of positions from administration […]

   

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  New Courses on vSphere 6, NSX, vRealize, and More (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5260)Check out the newest courses from VMware Education Services. Classroom and Live Online VMware vSphere: Install, Configure, Manage [V6] VMware vSphere: Optimize and Scale [V6] VMware vSphere: What’s New [V5.5 to V6] VMware vRealize Operations Manager: Install, Configure, Manage [V6.0] VMware NSX: Install, Configure, Manage [V6.1] Self-Paced eLearning VMware vCloud Air Fundamentals VMware Exam Preparation […]

   

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  vSphere Virtual Volumes Interoperability: VAAI APIs vs VVOLs (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16399)In 2011 VMware introduced block based VAAI APIs as part of vSphere 4.1 release. This APIs helped improving performance of VMFS by providing offload of some of the heavy operations to the storage array. In subsequent release, VMware added VAAI APIs for NAS, thin provisioning, and T10 command support for Block VAAI APIs. Now with […]

   

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  Storage Blog Recap: Top Blogs from January (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16396)The third week of every month, we will be compiling a list of the top vSphere Storage posts from the previous month for you to digest. Here are the top storage blogs from January: VMware Virtual SAN: File Services with NexentaConnect Rawlinson Rivera discusses NexentaConnect for Virtual SAN, a software-defined storage solution designed specifically to […]

   

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  Oracle Licensing On VMware Webinar (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16390)VMware is announcing the sponsorship of a webinar to address confusion on the subject of licensing Oracle Software running on vSphere. Database Trends and Analysis will host the webinar. Please use the link below to register. Don Sullivan will moderate a discussion between David Welch of House Of Brick and Daniel Hesselink of License Consulting. […]

   

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  Horizon View PCoIP issues? (http://blogs.vmware.com/kb/?p=6412)Here’s our latest top list of KB articles you should know about when encountering issues with PCoIP with Horizon View. It can be a tricky thing to configure and troubleshoot even for the best of us, so here’s some golden nuggets to help you on your way. Troubleshooting a black screen when logging into a […]

   

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  New Free Webinars (http://blogs.vmware.com/kb/?p=6405)VMware Support Delivery has announced a new series of webinars for our customers. Customers can join these live sessions on Thursdays. There is something for both beginners and more advanced customers. Anyone that is unable to attend the live events will be able to view the recorded versions of the sessions on the Friday of […]

   

   

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  VMware App Volumes™ with F5′s Local Traffic Manager (http://blogs.vmware.com/consulting/?p=2060)By Dale Carter, Senior Solutions Architect, End User Computing & Justin Venezia, Senior Solutions Architect, F5 Networks App Volumes™—a result of VMware’s recent acquisition of Cloud Volumes—provides an alternative, just-in-time method for integrating and delivering applications to virtualized desktop- and Remote Desktop Services (RDS)-based computing environments. With this real-time application delivery system, applications are delivered […]

   

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  Upgrading VMware Horizon View with Zero Downtime (http://blogs.vmware.com/consulting/?p=2040)By Dale Carter, Senior Solutions Architect, End-User Computing Over the last few years working with VMware Horizon View and doing many upgrades, two of the biggest issues I would hear from customers when planning for an upgrade was: “Why do we have to have so much downtime, and with seven connection brokers, why do we […]

   

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  vRealize Automation Content Pack for Log Insight Now Available! (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6046)I am happy to announce that the vRealize Automation (vRA) content pack for Log Insight (LI) is now available! You may be wondering why the announcement given that a vCAC content pack for Log Insight has been out for some time now. Is this just a rebranding update? No. This is a major update to […]

   

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  Catching up with Cricket World Cup 2015 using vRealize Operations Manager 6.0 (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6062)This post is to add a little fun to how we use the VMware management solutions in our day to day lives at our workplaces. We know the power of vRealize Operations Manager that allows us to capture structured and unstructured data from literally any object in your datacenter, run smart analytics on this data […]

   

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  Network Log Management with vRealize Log Insight Content Packs (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6032)This blog post is authored by Bill Erdman and Sudhir Bhatti. The use of unstructured data, for better understanding operational issues within the data center infrastructure, is fast becoming a mainstream technology. And where this data was once relegated to the propeller heads, who had intimate tribal knowledge of “machine generated data,” given the ability […]

   

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  Quick and Easy Provisioning on vCloud Air (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4907)By: Paco Gómez This is a repost from Paco Gómez’s personal blog. For those minimalist DevOps engineers out there, this post describes how to provision a virtual machine on VMware vCloud® Air™ the quickest way possible. The steps include adding a public SSH key and configuring the network to make the machine SSH-Ready. On my previous post, I […]

   

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  Active Directory and vCloud Air Disaster Recovery (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4849)A number of articles have been written in the past explaining how to setup and configure VMware vCloud® Air™ Disaster Recovery.  These range from how to deploy the vSphere Replication Appliance, through initiating a full failover test.  However some of the considerations involved in deploying a disaster recovery solution include how to protect your infrastructure […]

   

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  Join Sanjay Poonen’s Twitter chat on new trends in wearables and IoT (http://vmwareemeablog.com/uk/?p=1757)Join AirWatch and VMware’s vice president of end-user computing Sanjay … Read More

   

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  Recognising Women in Technology (http://vmwareemeablog.com/uk/?p=1752)According to a recent report, only one in 20 IT … Read More

   

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  Software-Defined, Hyper-Converged VDI with Nexenta (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7098)By Michael Letschin, Director of Products, Nexenta VDI has moved from an IT administrator’s pet project into a de facto standard for many enterprises, regardless of size, scale, or vertical industry. This acceptance might not have been the case previously, unless of course the IT admin was one of the early zealots and adopters who […]

   

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  Announcing VMware Mirage 5.3 (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7107)By Sachin Sharma, senior product marketing manager, End-User Computing, VMware Today, I am excited to announce VMware Mirage 5.3, the latest version of the product that includes enhancements that help IT administrators manage point of sale/point of service (POS) machines. The product is expected to be generally available later this quarter and it will be […]

   

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  Enterprise mobility news recap: Feb 16 – 20 (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34606)This week’s recap highlights Sao Paulo’s application of IoT and Chinese startup Xiaomi’s upcoming presence in the mobile market. Samsung is taking a swipe at the mobile payment system. This week Samsung acquired LoopPay, a mobile wallet software that is built on Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) technology and functions with card readers that already exist […]

   

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  Join Sanjay Poonen’s Twitter chat on new trends in wearables and IoT (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34588)Join AirWatch and VMware’s vice president of end-user computing Sanjay Poonen the week before AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress for a 30-minute Twitter Chat about wearables, the Internet of Things and enterprise security. The chat will offer a preview of the enterprise impact of these and other trends, all of which will be covered […]

   

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  Leading analysts to speak at AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34537)AirWatch announced today in a press release the lineup of analysts speaking at AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress March 2-5, 2015 in Barcelona. The enterprise mobility-focused event, which features exhibitors from the AirWatch mobile ecosystem and showcases new innovations in business mobility, will include sessions from the following analysts. Leif Olof-Wallin, Gartner Mobility in the Enterprise: […]

   

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  Re-launching vSphere with Operations Management Customer Promotions (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1619)To help convert customers to vSphere with Operations Management, effective Feb. 1st, customers will receive 25% off when upgrading to vSphere with Operations Management or free training when buying vSphere with Operations Management / EnterprisePlus Acceleration Kits. Not only do customers benefit, you can benefit too – from up to 20% in partner incentives. Learn […]

   

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  Updated Strategy and Roadmap Materials (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1616)Partner customers surveyed indicate they feel better aligned with our strategy and roadmap. Our Strategic Initiatives Overview presentation now includes Services and the product overview videos have been expanded to include vCloud Air, Software-Defined Data Center Storage, and End-User Computing. These materials are designed to help you provide strategic advice to your customers.

   

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  A New & Improved Partner Central (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1614)We’ve listened to your feedback and we’re happy to introduce a new and improved Partner Central. The newly designed home page will make it faster and easier to find the information and content that’s important to you. Log on today and enjoy the whole new user experience.

   

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  Your Destination for Partner Marketing Success (http://blogs.vmware.com/partner/?p=2390)Last year we invested time and resources into gathering feedback from partners worldwide to understand how to better address your needs. A few areas of improvement were highlighted to us: Increased diversification through additional campaigns flexibility and customization options. Ability to download campaigns content for execution via a partners’ marketing automation platforms. Focus on campaigns […]

   

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  Maximizing the Use of VMware vRealize Operations for Horizon (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2861-guid.html)

   

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  Application-Delivery Options in VMware Horizon 6.0 (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2860-guid.html)

   

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  Cool Tool - BaiBoard - Visualize, Create, Collaborate (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2858-guid.html)

   

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  Top vBlog Update (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5461)Just wanted to give everyone an update as I’m a little behind, the vSphere 6 launch coincided with the voting this year and I’m trying to keep up on my vSphere 6 link page as well. I’m still updating the vLaunchpad, so if you don’t see your blog up there yet it should be soon. … Continue reading » [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  New technical paper on implementing VMware Virtual Volumes (VVOLs) (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5458)Want to know more about the new VVOL storage architecture that is coming soon in vSphere 6? HP has just published a new Technical Implementation Guide for VVOLs on 3PAR StoreServ. I managed the creation, development and review of this paper and actually had a hand in writing some of it. So give it a … Continue reading » [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  Veeam slays the giant Symantec in patent court (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5447)  If you remember back a few years ago backup giant Symantec filed a lawsuit against up and coming start-up Veeam basically claiming that they invented virtualization backup and Veeam was violating several of Symantec’s patent’s, they also files a similar lawsuit against Acronis. Symantec’s claim was that Veeam was “free riding” on the backup technologies … Continue reading » [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  Big Moves by Big Players in a Big Week in Big Data (http://virtualgeek.typepad.com/virtual_geek/2015/02/big-moves-by-big-players-in-a-big-week-in-big-data.html)This week has seen big moves, big changes in the big data landscape – and that’s big :-) First, the industry took a dramatic turn – led by HortonWorks, Splunk, Pivotal and others with the creation of the Open Data...

   

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  Startup introduction: Springpath (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15917)Advertise here with BSA Last week I was briefed by Springpath and they launched their company officially yesterday, although they have been around for a long time. Springpath was founded by Mallik Mahalingam and Krishna Yadappanavar. For those who don’t know them, Mallik was responsible for VXLAN (See the IETF draft) and Krishna was one of the folks who was responsible […] " Startup introduction: Springpath " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB.…

   

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  vSphere 6.0: Breaking Large Pages… (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15852)Advertise here with BSA When talking about Transparent Page Sharing (TPS) one thing that comes up regularly is the use of Large Pages and how that impacts TPS. As most of you hopefully know TPS does not collapse large page. However, when there is memory pressure you will see that large pages are broken up in to small pages […] " vSphere 6.0: Breaking Large Pages… " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my upcoming book Essential Virtual SAN…

   

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  Enabling and Mounting NFS on CoreOS (http://blog.scottlowe.org/2015/02/20/config-mount-nfs-coreos/)I’ve written about CoreOS a fair amount (see here , here , and here ), but one of the things that is both good and bad about CoreOS is the automatic update mechanism. It’s good because you know your systems will stay up to date, but it’s bad if you haven’t taken the time to properly address how automatic updates will affect your environment (for example, you’ve manually started some Docker containers instead of using systemd unit files—when the CoreOS system reboots after an update, your Docker…

   

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  Presentations in Markdown Using Deckset (http://blog.scottlowe.org/2015/02/18/presentations-markdown-deckset/)Over the past couple of years, Markdown has become an important part of my computing landscape. I’ve transitioned almost all of my text-based content creation, including this blog, over to Markdown. I’d also been looking for ways that I might be able to extend my use of Markdown into creating presentations as well, but hadn’t—until recently—found a tool that fit into my workflow. Then I started using Deckset . The idea behind Deckset is not unique; there are other projects out there that do the…

   

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  Vagrant Box for Learning Open vSwitch (http://blog.scottlowe.org/2015/02/17/vagrant-box-ovs/)As you may have picked up from some of my recent posts, I’m focused on building content and tools that will help others learn new projects, products, and technologies that I think will be very relevant in the future. One such project is Open vSwitch (OVS) , which I’ve written about quite a bit (you can see all OVS-related posts here ). To help others work with and learn about Open vSwitch, I’ve published a new Vagrant base box. (In the event you’re not familiar with Vagrant, take a look at this…

   

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  A Quick Thought About Mesos-DNS (http://blog.scottlowe.org/2015/02/17/quick-thought-mesos-dns/)A colleague recently pointed me to the recent Mesosphere announcement of Mesos-DNS , a DNS-based service discovery mechanism for Apache Mesos clusters . A comment made in the announcement got me thinking, and I wanted to briefly share my thoughts. The comment that got me thinking was this: Mesos-DNS is simple and stateless. Unlike Consul and SkyDNS , it does not require consensus mechanisms, persistent storage, or a replicated log. If you’ve been following along here on my site, you know that I’ve…

   

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  Battle RA Royale: More VDI For Less Moolah (http://longwhiteclouds.com/?p=9376)The VDI market is heating up and it’s a real Battle Royale out there between all of the different VDI reference architectures that promise to deliver more VDI for less Moolah. There have been at least 4 major reference architectures published by different vendors in 2014 for Citrix VDI. All providing a scalable building block […]

   

   

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  DCI#12 – EMC VSPEX BLUE with Chad Dunn (http://techhead.co/?p=8268)In this episode I speak with Chad Dunn, EMC’s Senior Director of VSPEX, about VSPEX BLUE, how hyper-converged architectures fit into the IT industry, what differentiates EMC’s EVO:RAIL based hyper-converged product, and also go into more depth on VSPEX BLUE itself. EMC VSPEX Blue is a scale-out reference architecture based on EMC hardware and the […] The post DCI#12 – EMC VSPEX BLUE with Chad Dunn appeared first on TechHead and was written by Simon Seagrave . Why not take a look at my other…

   

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  vSphere 6 release date in KB? (http://www.gabesvirtualworld.com/?p=3357)Removed by request. Sorry. See full post at: vSphere 6 release date in KB?

   

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  What about the Windows C# Client for vSphere 6? (http://www.gabesvirtualworld.com/?p=3350)Let’s be honest, nobody has made the full swap to the vSphere Web Client yet. I’ve been pushing my colleagues and some customers to start using the Web Client, but it just isn’t up to par with the Windows Client. And I hate to admit but when a host or VM is down and I […] See full post at: What about the Windows C# Client for vSphere 6?

   

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  2015-ene-15 #vBrownBag LATAM VMware Network Virtualization– @ercruzv Randall Cruz (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5305)The following content is in Spanish, the language in which the webinar is presented. El pasado 15 de enero 2015 en ProfessionalVMware #vBrownBag LATAM se presentó el tema: VMware Network Virtualization – @ercruzv Randall Cruz #vBrownBag, en Español, LATAM, podcast, professionalvmware.com, recording, Spanish, vbrownbaglatam2015feb19, Virtualization, VMware

   

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  #vBrownbag “What Is Required In A #VCDX Submission?” Follow Up (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5302)On the 17th of February 2015 , the EMEA #vBrownbag covered the second session in the VCDX series with a discussion around “What is required in a VCDX submission?”. The session was hosted by Rene van den Bedem and myself Gregg Robertson. The recording of the session is below and the previous session can be […]

   

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  #vBrownBag vRealize Automation Custom Properties with Brian Ragazzi (@brianragazzi) (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5300)Brian Ragazzi talks how you can use custom properties in VMware vRealize Automation vRealize Automation Custom Properties Video You can follow Brian on Twitter @brianragazzi and his blog http://brianragazzi.com/ where he blogs about vRealize Automation, vRealize Orchestrator, and many other VMware related topics. Originally published at http://ProfessionalVMware.com– Sign up for the live #vBrownBag broadcast at http://professionalvmware.com/brownbags/ where you […]

   

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  #vBrownBag Sharing and Managing vCO Workflows using FlowGrab with Kaido Kibin (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5297)vRealize Orchestrator is one of the best kept secrets in VMware. It is the orchestration solution playing a central role in the vRealize and vCloud product family. Although it is very powerful, it is relatively unknown among the virtualization community. FlowGrab is a repository and collaboration tool for vRealize Orchestrator. During this session Kaido Kibin […]

   

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KB ARTICLES

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Clik here to view.FROM THE EDITORS VIRTUAL DESK

Hi everyone, this week we are pleased to bring you a new VMware TAM Blog. This latest blog post is entitled "Documenting Your IT Security Posture”, by our Senior Technical Account Manager, Jason Gaudreau. Here is an excerpt.

The VMware Security Hardening Guides contain recommended processes for deploying and operating VMware products in a secure manner given a specified risk profile. You may not need, or may not be able, to follow each step in the security Hardening Guides because of the balance of operational efficiency, cost, risk tolerance and security requirements. The security hardening practices are recommended by VMware, but equally important is having a security controls document that incorporates VMware best practice recommendations combined with your specific security policies. It can be an invaluable tool during an audit.

[Read More…]

Thanks for supporting the VMware TAM Source Newsletter and the VMware TAM Blog. We hope to have further news for you on the VMware TAM Social Media services in the coming weeks so stay tuned.

I hope you have a very productive week.

Virtually Yours

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VMware TAM WEBCASTS

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GENERAL NEWS

• 4 Steps to Better Market Your Cloud Services (http://blogs.vmware.com/cloudops/?p=1423)By Alberto Martinez Successful cloud providers invest in marketing their services: promoting them, showing the value to customers, implementing strong pricing campaigns—and they understand how to rapidly adapt to changing market demands. But what prevents your internal IT organization from defining an effective marketing strategy to be more competitive and foster your cloud investments? And […]

   

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  Relevance of POSIX in the Big Data Era? (http://blogs.vmware.com/cto/?p=3307)Let’s start with a thought exercise: imagine your application issues a write() call followed by a read(). What would you expect to get back in the read operation? Here are your options: Always get back the latest update Get back either the latest update or the previous value, but never partial updates Always get back the latest update if the read is issued from within the same session Once the latest value is returned by the read, the subsequent reads will never return the old stale value i.e., monotonic…

   

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  VMware Virtual SAN 6.0: Bootstorm Demonstration (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16422)Since the official announcement of VMware Virtual SAN All-Flash architecture, most of the conversations have been focused about the solutions incredible performance capabilities and attributes with regards to IOPS, predictable performance, sub-millisecond latencies. All of those attributes are great and part of the reason as to why Virtual SAN 6.0 as a storage platform and […]

   

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  What’s All the Buzz About Software-Defined Storage? (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16420)By now, you’ve more than likely heard something about Software-Defined Storage. With every mention of the term, you may be wondering, “What does it mean for me?” Wonder no longer! The VMware Software-Defined Storage approach enables a fundamentally more efficient operational model, driving transformation through the hypervisor, bring to storage the same operational efficiency that […]

   

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  vSphere 6 Feature Walkthroughs (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16416)The Technical Marketing team has put out a series of vSphere 6 related feature walkthroughs. We’re covering vCenter Server install and upgrades for many different scenarios as well as vSphere Data Protection and vSphere Replication. These are available now here: vSphere 6 Feature Walkthroughs keep an eye out for many more to be added in the […]

   

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  Documenting Your IT Security Posture (http://blogs.vmware.com/tam/?p=1994)By Jason Gaudreau The VMware Security Hardening Guides contain recommended processes for deploying and operating VMware products in a secure manner given a specified risk profile. You may not need, or may not be able, to follow each step in the security Hardening Guides because of the balance of operational efficiency, cost, risk tolerance and […]

   

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  3 Common Myths About Training (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5286)It’s a busy world and training is often the last thing on your list. Who has the time or money when there’s so much else to do? The real question is, “Can you afford not to?” Training may be the most important thing you do this year and, with new options, it’s now faster and […]

   

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  Answering Your Questions about the Network Virtualization Certifications (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5264)Over the last couple of weeks there have been several questions raised about the Network Virtualization certifications that we wanted to address.   What’s the deadline for earning a VMware Network Virtualization certification holding a Cisco certification?   Due to its popularity, we have extended this program until January 31, 2016. You can earn your VMware Certified […]

   

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  Free Webinar: Designing a Virtual Infrastructure Architecture (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5279)Join a free VMware webinar on March 4 on designing a virtual infrastructure architecture

   

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  Congratulations to the Newest VCDXs (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5275)Congratulations to the four newest VMware Certified Design Experts (VCDXs): Richard Anderson, VCDX-Cloud Amanda Botsko-Wilson, VCDX-Cloud Thomas Brown, VCDX-DT Amin Naserpour, VCDX5-DCV VMware Certified Design Experts are part of an elite group of architects leading virtualization implementations around the world. The highest level of certification offered by VMware, the VCDX Program validates a candidates enterprise-class skills in […]

   

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  Celebrating Engineers Week 2015 | #eweek2015 (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3673)Happy Engineers Week! Here at Tribal Knowledge we believe that Engineers Week is more than a single event. It’s a year-round commitment to celebrate how engineers make a difference in our world. In partnership with the VMware Careers Blog, Tribal Knowledge is using this special week to kick off the VMware Innovation Series. Each month we’ll […]

   

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  VMware Heads to Mobile World Congress (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3677)If you happen to find yourself in Barcelona next week, the lineup for Mobile World Congress this year includes Mark Zuckerberg and Tom Wheeler, as well as industry leaders like Samsung and Nokia. In addition to stalwarts of the mobile world, VMware will again be participating in 2015, with a number of exciting announcements. Last […]

   

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  New Research Report: The Strategic Impact of Mobile Transformation on Business Value (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3668)Navigating the Future of Work amid Cultural and Technological Shifts in the Mobile Enterprise The rise of mobile and cloud computing is driving a cultural and technological transformation in which people expect anytime, anywhere access to colleagues, products and services. To react to this transformation, companies have to rethink the tools and business processes they provide […]

   

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  The Payment Industry Enters Technology Revolution Akin to the 1990’s Internet (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3661)By Sanjay Poonen, EVP and GM, End-User Computing, VMware The payment industry is at a crossroads today as the traditional players face a choice to reinvent themselves or risk being displaced through a metronomic drift from relevance. Similar to the early days of the Internet where the promise and possibilities were evident but the broader […]

   

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  Disrupt Panel: Innovation Across Industries (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3656)Coinciding with VMware’s One Cloud, Any Application launch event on Feb. 2, CEO Pat Gelsinger joined thought leaders from across industries to delve into the topic of market disruption. The panel, moderated by Quentin Hardy, deputy tech editor for the New York Times, also included Geoffrey Moore, managing director of Geoffrey Moore Consulting, Casey Gerald, […]

   

   

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  Use Horizon View to Access Virtual Desktops Remotely – Without a VPN (http://blogs.vmware.com/consulting/?p=2075)  By Eric Monjoin and Xavier Montaron VMware Horizon View enables you to access a virtual desktop from anywhere, anytime. You can work remotely from your office or from a cybercafé, or anywhere else as long as there is a network connection to connect you to Horizon View infrastructure. It’s an ideal solution – but […]

   

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  SDDC Architectures: Faster and Reliable BCDR for your cloud using NSX, SRM and vRealize Suite (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6166)This is a repost from Hany Michael‘s personal blog, Hypervizor.com. Nearly six years ago, when VMware first introduced Site Recovery Manager (SRM), it was quite a big hit in the world of enterprise customers. Being a VMware customer myself at that time, I remember how this represented a significant improvement in how we handle our DR scenarios. Specifically, we […]

   

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  Abu Dhabi Department of Transport Accelerates IT Service Delivery (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6051)by Rich Bourdeau The Abu Dhabi Department of Transport (DoT) was established to deliver an effective transport system that contributes to the economic growth, quality of life and environmental sustainability of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. DoT serves the public interest by enhancing mobility and delivering safe, secure and environmentally responsible aviation, maritime, public transport […]

   

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  Exploring the vRealize Automation 6.1+ Content Pack for Log Insight (http://blogs.vmware.com/management?p=6058&preview_id=6058)The recently released vRealize Automation 6.1+ Content Pack was designed based on versions 6.1 and 6.2. See the announcement made by Steve Flanders last week. Given the many different possible components of a vRealize Automation implementation, collecting and collating logs can be a challenge. This content pack will help bring views of all logs together and […]

   

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  Arista Network Log Management with vRealize Log Insight Content Pack (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6133)One of the biggest challenges for virtual and network administrators is monitoring and analyzing the status of their network; specifically for detecting any impacts to their virtual servers. The Arista Networks Log Insight Content Pack gives operators a powerful tool to monitor their Arista network with vSphere specific event triggers. Using the powerful graphing and […]

   

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  VMware pushes the envelope with vSphere 6.0 vMotion (http://blogs.vmware.com/performance/?p=2128)vMotion in VMware vSphere 6.0 delivers breakthrough new capabilities that will offer customers a new level of flexibility and performance in moving virtual machines across their virtual infrastructures. Included with vSphere 6.0 vMotion are features – Long-distance migration, Cross-vCenter migration, Routed vMotion network – that enable seamless migrations across current management and distance boundaries. For the first […]

   

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  Changes to Transparent Page Sharing completed and updated VMware Security Advisories (http://blogs.vmware.com/security/?p=1317)As previously posted (Oct 16, Nov 24, Dec 4 and Jan 27), VMware has introduced new TPS (Transparent Page Sharing) management options. Today’s ESXi 5.0 patch restricts TPS to individual VMs and disables inter-VM TPS by default unless an administrator chooses to re-enable it. Please see KB 2097593 for full details on the functionality. Additionally VMware has today updated advisory VMSA-2015-0001.1. Customers should review […]

   

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  From Your Workstation to the Cloud (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4754)If you’ve used VMware Workstation lately you might have noticed something a bit new since version 11 was released: native, built-in integration with VMware vCloud® Air™. A little while back I wrote a post on how to migrate a VM built in VMware Fusion to vCloud Air.  In this post, I’ll be doing something similar, […]

   

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  Powered by VMware, Singtel Delivers a Scalable, Safe Solution to Singapore’s Leading Federation of Trade Unions (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=5003)Today’s businesses must be able to provide their consumers with the information they need whenever and wherever they request it. That means utilizing a powerful, flexible network capable of deploying services as they’re needed. To power that on-demand capability businesses require today, service providers are offering VMware-based public and hybrid cloud services through the VMware […]

   

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  Get Started with VMware vCloud Air: Extend Existing Applications to the Cloud (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4823)In our last segment in this series, we discussed how you can use VMware vCloud® Air™ for various dev/test scenarios. Now, we’ll explain how you can extend existing packaged applications to vCloud Air, to deliver applications more efficiently and cost-effectively. Packaged applications are critical to supporting business processes and operations, but they are often not […]

   

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DESKTOP

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  Delivering Secure and Scalable Desktop as a Service (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7113)Guest Blog by Dwayne Lessner, Technical Marketing Engineer, Nutanix, @dlink7  Security and flexibility don’t often end up in the same sentence, especially when it comes to delivering IT as a service. But VMware Horizon Air and Nutanix hyper-converged infrastructure together are able to deliver the same value proposition with our validated reference architecture for desktop […]

   

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  Workspace Environment Management with Horizon (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7193)By Sachin Sharma, Product Marketing, End-User Computing, VMware A constant theme I hear when talking to customers about managing their virtual, physical, and cloud-hosted environments tends to center around the challenges they face with applications and users. In particular, the questions that customers are looking to solve are ones like how can I simplify management […]

   

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  Finding the Ideal Match With A New Desktop Assessment Service for VMware Horizon (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7167)By Ben Goodman, VMware Horizon evangelist, End-User Computing, VMware When looking to make an important investment such as buying a house, having informative data matters. Web-based solutions like Realtor.com, Trulia and Zillow offer information that helps people make intelligent buying decisions. These tools take into consideration a variety of variables such as location, the number […]

   

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  Socialcast and the Annual Performance Review (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7162)by Inna Fabrikant, Sr. Client Development Manager, Socialcast With 2014 in our rearview mirrors, many workplace conversations are turning to performance reviews. Employees are racking their brains trying to document all of their accomplishments over the past 12 months, while managers have the equally daunting task of acknowledging the successes of all direct reports. At […]

   

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  Five Analytics Features Every Socialcast Admin Should Use (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7151)by Jeff Sato, Sr. Business Intelligence Analyst- Statistician Social Business Intelligence (SBI), Socialcast’s in-app analytics platform, is enabled for all Socialcast communities and has many great features that add tremendous value for community administrators. Today, we would like to highlight some of the most useful SBI features that we think every admin should leverage to increase […]

   

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  Keep your workforce productive, even when disaster strikes (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7143)If there’s one thing that’s certain, besides death and taxes, it’s the unpredictability of Nature. I was reminded of this recently, when my colleagues in Boston were buried under piles of snow, and thousands of people couldn’t drive into the office. Has your organization ever experienced anything like this? Has a storm, earthquake, power outage or […]

   

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  Maximizing Use of vRealize Operations for Horizon 6.0: Newly Updated Deployment Guide (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7133)By Cindy Heyer, Technical Writer, Technical Marketing, End-User Computing at VMware The newly updated Maximizing the Use of VMware vRealize Operations for Horizon 6.0 (formerly the VMware vCenter Operations for View Deployment Guide) is now available. The new version is full of tips on how to make the most out of your Horizon with View […]

   

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  See How VMware is Keeping your workforce productive, even when disaster strikes ()Keep your workforce productive, even when disaster strikes If there’s one thing that’s certain, besides death and taxes, it’s the unpredictability of Nature. I was reminded of this recently, when my colleagues in Boston were buried under piles of snow, and thousands of people couldn’t drive into the office. Has your organization ever experienced anything like this? Has a storm, earthquake, power outage or cybersecurity attack ever separated your workers from their desktops and applications? No…

   

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  Enterprise mobility news recap: Feb 23 – 27 (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34732)The hourly countdown has begun for Mobile World Congress as technology journalists line up their predictions for new releases and anticipate keynote sessions from Mark Zuckerberg and Tom Wheeler of the FCC. The public sector had its fair share of industry news considering new FCC regulations and the U.S. Department of Treasury’s newly accepted monetary […]

   

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  AirWatch to integrate with Android for Work (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34693)AirWatch is working with Google to integrate with Android for Work, a Google program that brings together OEMs, ISVs and EMMs to ensure organizations can confidently manage devices running Android. Android for Work securely separates business and personal data and applications – and simplifies management of work-related policies, profiles and data – on tablets and […]

   

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  VMware and AirWatch, one year later (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34624)Today marks the one year anniversary of VMware’s acquisition of AirWatch. Over the past year, AirWatch and VMware have integrated across mobile and desktop to deliver a unified end-user computing solution – one of many industry trends VMware is helping shape, as highlighted earlier last year. In the Q4 VMware earnings call last month, VMware […]

   

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  Introducing AirWatch 8 (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34615)Whether you use AirWatch’s administrative console to secure and manage your company’s mobile fleet or you rely on it to get work done on your mobile devices, AirWatch 8 will help you be more productive. The latest version of the enterprise mobility management platform — the most significant update since VMware acquired AirWatch a year […]

   

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  Lenovo’s Acquisition of IBM x86 and VMware (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1634)With Lenovo’s acquisition of the IBM x86 server portfolio effective January 1, 2015, we now have the opportunity to deliver a wider scope of joint solutions to our customers. Learn more.

   

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  The Americas Virtual Partner Town Hall is March 4th @ 8am PT (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1631)If you haven’t already, register now to join this virtual Town Hall.  Frank Rauch, VP Americas Partner Organization, and other key Business Unit leaders will share product updates and key announcements released at Partner Exchange. They will also cover the 2015 selling motions and how your company can drive revenues and increase profitability within these […]

   

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  You May be Grand-fathered into the SDS Competency…. (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1629)If you earned both the Desktop and the Business Continuity competencies prior to Sep. 30, 2014, then you have been automatically grand-fathered in to the Software-Defined Storage Solution Competency. You will have until Sep. 30, 2015 to complete the competency requirements.

   

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  Extending the Value of vCloud Air Services (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1627)Read the press release to find out how you can now drive adoption and optimize consumption with the new Disaster Recovery features, the general availability of Virtual Private Cloud On Demand, and the enhanced networking and security capabilities.

   

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  Workspace Suite Extended to the Channel (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1623)With the rising customer demand for a holistic end-user computing solution, Workspace Suite is a profitable addition to your portfolio. It combines AirWatch’s leading enterprise mobility management platform and the latest release of Horizon to power virtual workspaces. Start selling today.

   

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  VSPEX BLUE, the new Hyper-Converged Infrastructure Appliance (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1621)During Partner Exchange 2015, EMC launched VSPEX BLUE powered by VMware EVO:RAIL. EMC VSPEX BLUE redefines simplicity by delivering compute and storage virtualization in an agile, scalable, easy to manage hyper-converged infrastructure appliance. EMC VSPEX BLUE offers the fastest, lowest-risk path to the private/hybrid cloud.

   

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  F5 – Technical Partner of the Year ! (http://blogs.vmware.com/tap/?p=1002)At VMware Partner Exchange 2015 earlier in February, F5 was named the “Technical Partner of the Year” for both the Americas Geo and Globally. This award and recognition is for Partners that have demonstrated excellence and achievement throughout the year. As an Elite member of TAP, F5’s list of achievements spans all VMware business units, […]

   

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Clik here to view.MORE NEWS AND DEVELOPMENTS FROM AROUND THE WEB

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  vSphere 6 Feature Walkthroughs (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2862-guid.html)

   

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  How do I get to the next level? (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15941)Advertise here with BSA Every week I get an email from someone asking if I can mentor them, if I can help them get to the next level, if I can help them become a VCDX, if I can explain to them what I did to progress my career. I figured I would write an article for those who wonder what I […] " How do I get to the next level? " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com. Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my upcoming book Essential Virtual SAN via Pearson today!

   

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  Virtual Volumes and queueing (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15936)Advertise here with BSA I was reading an article last week by Ray Lucchesi on Virtual Volumes and queueing. In that article (and podcast) Ray (and friends on the podcast) describe Virtual Volumes and the benefits they bring but also a potential danger. I have written about Virtual Volumes before and if you don’t know what it is or does then I recommend reading […] " Virtual Volumes and queueing " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my…

   

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  Trouble in the Federation re ScaleIO and VSAN? (http://virtualgeek.typepad.com/virtual_geek/2015/02/trouble-in-the-federation-re-scaleio-and-vsan.html)Is there fighting in the family? Actually, that’s just an intentionally inflammatory, eye-ball grabbing headline – everything is actually great, and even getting better :-) I just wanted to try on for size how it would feel to build a...

   

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  Last chance before Top vBlog begins – don’t miss out (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5483)  The vLaunchpad is all up to date with additions and changes so if you are not listed on there right now you won’t be part of the voting so make sure you go look. Note I did add a few late additions to the bottom of the Virtualization Blogs column that are out of … Continue reading » [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  You might have 99 problems but vSphere 6 links ain’t one… (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5478)My vSphere 6 link collection continues to grow so get caught up on everything you need to know about this exciting new release before vSphere 6 GA’s soon.   [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  SDDC Architectures: Faster and Reliable BCDR for your cloud using NSX, SRM and vRealize Suite (http://www.hypervizor.com/?p=1525)Nearly six years ago, when VMware first introduced Site Recovery Manager (SRM), it was quite a big hit in the world of enterprise customers. Being a VMware customer myself at that time, I remember how this represented a significant improvement in how we handle our DR scenarios. Specifically, we shifted from long and exhausting runbooks

   

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  2015-feb-26 #vBrownBag LATAM #VMware Network Virtualization #NSX– @ercruzv Randall Cruz (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5316)The following content is in Spanish, the language in which the webinar is presented. El pasado 26 de febrero 2015 en ProfessionalVMware #vBrownBag LATAM se presentó el tema: VMware Network Virtualization – @ercruzv Randall Cruz Esta presentación es una continuación de la serie #vBrownBag, en Español, LATAM, podcast, professionalvmware.com, recording, Spanish, vbrownbaglatam2015feb19, Virtualization, VMware Originally […]

   

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  #vBrownBag DevOps Follow-Up Provision VM’s in vCenter using Ansible w Jonathan Frappier (@jfrappier) (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5308)#vBrownBag crew member Jonathan Frappier demos using Ansible to provision virtual machines to vCenter. Ansible supports creating, cloning, and reconfiguring virtual machines in vCenter. Example playbooks can be found at www.virtxpert.com& github Ansible & vCenter Video You can follow Jonathan on Twitter @jfrappier and his blog www.virtxpert.com   Originally published at http://ProfessionalVMware.com– Sign […]

   

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KB ARTICLES

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Clik here to view.FROM THE EDITORS VIRTUAL DESK

Hi everyone and welcome to this weeks newsletter. This week’s I would like to introduce you to a new TAM Service offering we have called the NSX TAM. This has been captured in this weeks featured blog posting.

Ensuring Success with VMware NSX TAM Services
By Curtis Miller

For networking, VMware NSX is a game-changer in the same way VMware vSphere was for data center servers. NSX virtualizes and consolidates legacy networking functionality back into a hypervisor. As a result, adding or changing network capabilities no longer requires the costly replacement of networking gear. It’s all software based—so upgrades are now just a right-click away.

The resulting cost savings are dramatic because network hardware is replaced far less often and used more efficiently. Deployment times and scalability improve substantially because networks can be created in minutes instead of weeks; and if demand falls, those resources can just as easily be reclaimed. Enhanced security via NSX’s micro-segmentation capabilities is another important benefit as well.

[read more…]

I hope you have a very successful week everyone and I look forward to chatting to you all again next week.

Virtually Yours

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VMware TAM WEBCASTS

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Clik here to view.NEWS AND DEVELOPMENTS FROM VMWARE

GENERAL NEWS

• 50 articles that fix EVERYTHING in Horizon View! (http://blogs.vmware.com/kb/?p=6432)Ok, our title may exhibit a teenie-tiny hint of hyperbole, but seriously the following list of articles covers the majority of issues that you can solve yourself. We’ve posted these lists before but limited the number to twenty, but why do that? Your problem might be number twenty one. Manually deleting linked clones or stale […]

   

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  KBTV Webinars – Journey to the Horizon (http://blogs.vmware.com/kb/?p=6428)This video is the first in a new series of free Webinars that we are releasing in which our Technical Support staff members present on various topics across a wide range of VMware’s product portfolio. The topic of this Webinar is Journey to the Horizon and it goes through several aspects of the Horizon View, […]

   

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  Top 20 Articles for February 2015 (http://blogs.vmware.com/kb/?p=6420)Here is our Top 20 KB list for February 2015. This list is ranked by the number of times a VMware Support Request was resolved by following the steps in a published Knowledge Base article. ESXi host cannot initiate vMotion or enable services and reports the error: Heap globalCartel-1 already at its maximum size. Cannot […]

   

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  QCT to Demo VMware’s EVO:RACK Technology Preview at Open Compute Project U.S. Summit 2015 (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3701)By Edward Hsu, director of product marketing, Integrated Systems, VMware Next week, QCT (Quanta Cloud Technology) will demonstrate VMware’s EVO:RACK technology preview on Open Compute Project (OCP) certified hardware next week at OCP U.S. Summit 2015 (March 10-11) in San Jose, Calif. Read QCT’s press release to learn what they will showcase at the event. […]

   

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  VMware Named to FORTUNE’s 2015 “Best Company to Work For” List (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3705)By Betsy Sutter, Corporate Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer I am thrilled to announce that VMware has been named one of FORTUNE’s “Best Companies to Work For.” The competition was fierce, and VMware took the no. 65 spot. 2015 marks VMware’s first time applying for the designation and we’re delighted to have made […]

   

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  Explain It Like I’m Four: Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3695)In our new series “Explain It Like I’m Four,” we explore some of the more technically nuanced innovations taking place in cloud computing and enterprise IT. Our goal is to break them down and explain as plainly as possible what they mean and why they matter. This week at Mobile World Congress 2015 (#MWC15), VMware unveiled vCloud […]

   

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  Ask Away! Four FAQs on One Cloud, Any App, Any Device (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3689)With the launch of One Cloud, Any Application, Any Device in the beginning of February, VMware executives Pat Gelsinger, Raghu Raghuram, Bill Fathers and Ray O’Farrell met with members of the tech press for an open Q&A. Some of the topics covered include VMware Integrated OpenStack, Google Apps on vCloud Air and the future of […]

   

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  The CSP Cloud of Tomorrow Has Arrived (http://blogs.vmware.com/tribalknowledge/?p=3665)Not since the first dot-com boom has the pace of data center innovation so rapidly transformed and disrupted old ways of doing business, engendering entirely new ways of consuming content, products and services. There are few mediums where this is more apparent than our mobile devices, but while the Googles and Amazons of the world […]

   

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  Asymmetry (http://blogs.vmware.com/cto/?p=3319)Another week, another trip! :o)  One of things I truly love about my job is the opportunity to get out into the field and spend time with our customers, our partners, and our own field.  I get to spend some time talking about my favorite topic– disruption at the intersection of business and technology (more on this in a moment)– and I get to learn all about where our customers are on their technology journey, and the amazing, and sometimes unnatural, things that our customers do with our products. On…

   

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  VMware Announces its Membership in SAFECode (http://blogs.vmware.com/cto/?p=3314)By Iain Mulholland, VP R&D, CTA Team, VMware We are proud to announce our associate membership in the Software Assurance Forum for Excellence in Code (SAFECode) . The forum is exclusively dedicated to increasing trust in information and communications technology products and services through the advancement of effective software assurance methods. SAFECode is a global, industry-led effort to identify and promote best practices for developing and delivering more secure and reliable software and…

   

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  Top Posts from VMware Global Support Services (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5312)Each month, we’ll share the top VMware Global Support Services (GSS) news, alerts, and announcements from our sister blog VMware Support Insider. Read on to find out what you might have missed last month. “Ghost” Vulnerability Disclosed On January 27, a buffer overflow vulnerability in the glibc gethostbyname() function was identified and given the name […]

   

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  Carl Eschenbach on the Value of VMware Training (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5299)Technology continues to evolve to meet the needs of a hybrid cloud world. This is creating unprecedented opportunity for organizations – and creating a strong demand for trained IT professionals. Training from VMware Education Services enables you and your team to take advantage of the benefits of game-changing technology such as VMware NSX and VMware Virtual […]

   

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  Save 50% off VCP-NV Certification Exam (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5329)The future of networking is virtual. Keep your skills relevant and future-proof your career by earning your VMware Certified Professional – Network Virtualization (VCP-NV) certification for half price through June 30. Whether you are earning your first VMware certification or seeking recertification this is a terrific opportunity to discover cutting-edge NSX technology and save on […]

   

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  Clarification on VCAP Certification Exam Retirements (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5315)Hi Everyone, I wanted to provide some clarification on the recent VCAP exam retirements that we announced this week. 1. The most popular tracks are not impacted: The VCAP5-DCD v5.5 (Data Center Design), the VCAP5-DCA v5.5 (Data Center Administration) and VCIX-NV exams are not being retired and remain available. These three exams are the most […]

   

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  VCDX Workshop Online Webinar (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5283)Last week I announced the first online VCDX Workshop for 2015 would be held on Friday, March 13th, 2015.  Yes, I picked that date on purpose….I just wanted to see what might happen. I wanted to take a minute just to set expectations for this versus the live, in-person sessions. I wanted to also thank […]

   

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  Exam Retirement Announcement (http://blogs.vmware.com/education/?p=5289)Effective March 2, 2015 the following certification exams will be retired and no new registrations accepted: VCID510 – VMware Certified Advanced Professional 5 – Cloud Infrastructure Design VCIA510 – VMware Certified Advanced Professional 5 – Cloud Infrastructure Administration VDTA510 – VMware Certified Advanced Professional 5 – Desktop Administration VDTD510 – VMware Certified Advanced Professional 5 – […]

   

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  VMware Virtual SAN Alarms for vCenter Server with PowerCLI (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16512)I was recently involved in a couple customer conversations where the main topics were focused on monitoring and troubleshooting events in vCenter particularly for Virtual SAN. I know that particular topic has been covered a few times in the past, not only on the VMware corporate storage blog but also by other community blogs. To […]

   

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  vCenter Server 6.0 Deployment Guide (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16501)Over the course of the last few months I’ve been working on a pretty massive deployment guide for vCenter Server 6, the result turned into a 100 page guide. Before getting scared off by the size the guide it goes into details for installing and upgrading many different scenarios including new installs and upgrades from […]

   

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  vSphere Replication 6.0 Compression (http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16477)VMware recently introduced vSphere version 6.0. One of the features of vSphere 6.0 is vSphere Replication 6.0, which is included in the Essentials Plus Kit and higher editions of vSphere. The reason I mention that explicitly is there are still many VMware customers and partners that do not realize they have access to a mature, […]

   

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  VMware Certificate Authority overview and using VMCA Root Certificates in a browser (https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/?p=16457)  With vSphere 6.0 the vCenter Virtual Server Appliance (VCSA), now has a component called the Platform Services Controller (PSC). The PSC handles things like SSO and the License Server and ships with its own Certificate Authority called VMware Certificate Authority (VMCA). In this blog post we’ll quickly go over some of the modes of […]

   

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  Ensuring Success with VMware NSX TAM Services (http://blogs.vmware.com/tam/?p=2002)By Curtis Miller For networking, VMware NSX is a game-changer in the same way VMware vSphere was for data center servers. NSX virtualizes and consolidates legacy networking functionality back into a hypervisor. As a result, adding or changing network capabilities no longer requires the costly replacement of networking gear. It’s all software based—so upgrades are […]

   

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  The Cloud Architect: Change Champion for the New IT (http://blogs.vmware.com/cloudops/?p=1429)By Rohan Kalra “What direction should I take my career with all the changes happening in IT?” I get this question a lot when working with my clients’ IT teams. The old way of doing things needs to change for the new IT. From an IT operating model standpoint, that means becoming more service-focused. And […]

   

  
  

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  Top 5 Tips When Considering a VMware Virtual SAN Storage Solution (http://blogs.vmware.com/consulting/?p=2095)By Mark Moretti Is a software-defined storage platform right for you? How do you approach evaluating a virtualized storage environment? What are the key considerations to keep in mind? What are VMware customers doing? And, what are the experts recommending? We recently asked our VMware Professional Services consultants these questions. We asked them to provide us […]

   

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  VMware Announces its Membership in SAFECode (http://blogs.vmware.com/security/?p=1322)VMware is proud to announce it’s associate membership in the Software Assurance Forum for Excellence in Code (SAFECode). The forum is exclusively dedicated to increasing trust in information and communications technology products and services through the advancement of effective software assurance methods. SAFECode is a global, industry-led effort to identify and promote best practices for […]

   

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  Capturing vCloud Air Edge Gateway Data with Syslog (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=4954)A key element of designing a secure hybrid cloud is getting visibility into the network traffic of your cloud-based applications. VMware vCloud® Air™ supports the ability for customers to collect information about traffic coming to and from their edge gateway through the use of a syslog server. Powered by VMware network virtualization, the edge gateway provides […]

   

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  How Confident Are You in Protecting Your Apps? (http://blogs.vmware.com/vcloud/?p=5024)Planning for disaster recovery (DR) is exactly like buying insurance. You know you need it, but it may fall off your list of top priorities, you may buy less than what you really need, or you can’t afford a solution that meets your requirements. If you’ve experienced any of these set backs, you’re not alone. […]

   

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  Improvements in Network I/O Control for vSphere 6 (http://blogs.vmware.com/performance/?p=2215)Network I/O Control (NetIOC) in VMware vSphere 6 has been enhanced to support a number of exciting new features such as bandwidth reservations. A new paper published by the Performance Engineering team shows the performance of these new features. The paper also explores the performance impact of the new NetIOC algorithm. Later tests show that NetIOC offers […]

   

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  Failover Time for vCenter Server 6.0 Protected by vSphere HA (http://blogs.vmware.com/performance/?p=2208)By Jianli Shen, Kimberly Wang, and Lei Chai There are many advantages to virtualizing vCenter Server over installing it on physical devices; these have been blogged about already. VMware best practice also recommends the deployment of vCenter Server as a virtual machine and to use vSphere High Availability (HA) to provide this functionality. The typical scenario […]

   

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  Configuring vCNS Edge Load Balancer for vRealize Operations HA Cluster (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6187)With its new architecture, vRealize Operations unified UI is expected to get lots of HTTPS requests traffic, so it makes a lot of sense to load balance it, no?! Virtualization, storage and network admins, NOC teams, application owners and more are your potential vRealize Operations users. With VMware consistent UI improvement initiative and HTML5 roadmaps, […]

   

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  Comparing vRealize Automation and vRealize Orchestrator (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6206)by Rich Bourdeau One of the questions I occasionally hear is: What is the difference between vRealize Automation and vRealize Orchestrator.  The objective of this blog post is to help you understand the difference in their capabilities and how when used together they complement each other.   Rather than a lengthy blog I thought it would […]

   

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  Introduction to vRealize Code Stream Video (http://blogs.vmware.com/management/?p=6181)by Rich Bourdeau In recent years, in order to improved application delivery, many companies have implemented agile development processes with continuous integration and smaller more frequent releases.  While developers are getting faster at turning out code, getting that code through all the different stages from development and into production remains a huge challenge for most […]

   

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  VMware NSX Webcast – Creating Agile Networks (http://blogs.vmware.com/networkvirtualization/?p=1813)You may have seen Joey Logano speed to his first Daytona 500 win this week. Keeping your network in racing shape takes a similar level of patience, stamina, and quick reflexes. Using VMware NSX network virtualization means that you can unlock the full potential of a Software-Defined Data Center, to create and run entire networks […]

   

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  Updated availability guide for vCenter 5.5 with Microsoft Clustering support now available (http://blogs.vmware.com/apps/?p=1152)The original vCenter Server 5.5 Availability Guide was published in December 2014. With the End of Availability of vCenter Server Heartbeat guidance was provided on how to monitor and protect vCenter. Due to the need for additional protection, we have internally validated using Windows Server Failover Clustering for protection of vCenter services. Improved SLAs can […]

   

  
  

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DESKTOP

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  AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress – It’s a wrap! (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34756)Last year at Mobile World Congress, we saw enterprise mobility emerge as a central theme, and it’s clear the enterprise space is only picking up steam. Many of this year’s biggest headline-makers, from device launches to educational sessions, demonstrated that enterprise demand is now driving the mobile market. As Forrester analysts note, it’s clear the enterprise mobile […]

   

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  At AirWatch Connect, Sanjay Poonen highlights VMware’s plans to drive business innovation (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34762)According to Sanjay Poonen, the app ecosystem and VMware’s three core pillars of desktop, mobile and content, will help VMware customers successfully navigate an economy of digital disruption. The EVP of End-user Computing at VMware spoke to a full house at AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress this week. AirWatch TV sat down with Poonen […]

   

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  AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress day three: Android for Work and the enterprise mobile mind shift (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34876)Mobility is truly transforming the way we communicate, work and access information. The market is increasingly driven by enterprise demands, as demonstrated by Google’s presentation today at AirWatch Connect. At the enterprise mobility-focused event, Google product manager James Kelly explained that with the company’s recent Android for Work release, the search giant aims “to make […]

   

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  AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress day two: Digital disruption, convergence and the importance of working together (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34858)Can a business model be based on disruption? According to Ray Wang, founder and principal analyst at Constellation Research, it can and it should, no matter what business you’re in. Disruption happens when companies use new technology to create strategies, and then services, that can turn a market on its head. Take Uber, for example. […]

   

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  AirWatch, Box, Cisco, Workday and Xamarin aim to standardize enterprise app configuration (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34723)Today a collaborative group of software companies launched App Configuration for Enterprise (ACE), an open-standards approach to building management and security features into enterprise apps. Founding members include AirWatch, secure file sharing service Box, networking and collaboration software provider Cisco, financial and HR software vendor Workday and the app development platform Xamarin. ACE provides a […]

   

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  AirWatch Connect at Mobile World Congress day one: New devices, mobile identity and enterprise mobility (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34819)Day One of Mobile World Congress did not disappoint. Many new devices emerged and conversations focused on new tech, 5G and IoT – and also, notably, on the users of these technologies. The bustling day was full of flashy devices and stimulating sessions surrounding all things mobile. Prior to Keynote 1 of MWC, Samsung and […]

   

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  AirWatch offers instant support for new Microsoft Lumia devices and the latest version of Windows Phone 8.1 (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34792)Microsoft introduced two new devices today at a press event at Mobile World Congress: the Lumia 640 and Lumia 640 XL, which run a new version of Windows Phone 8.1 known as the Lumia Denim update. The update introduces several new in-demand, enterprise capabilities. AirWatch is offering instant support for the following new capabilities: Fully […]

   

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  AirWatch will support Samsung’s new flagship Galaxy S6 device and KNOX 2.4 (http://blogs.air-watch.com/?p=34768)Today at Samsung Unpacked in Barcelona, Samsung Electronics CEO JK Shin shared details about the latest version of the company’s mobile enterprise security platform, Samsung KNOX. The new, enterprise-ready Samsung Galaxy S6, also unveiled today, will ship with KNOX 2.4. AirWatch will support the following new features in Samsung KNOX 2.4: Authentication using the Samsung […]

   

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  VMware App Volumes – What About Performance? (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7266)By Tristan Todd, End-User Computing Architect, VMware With significant contributions from Fred Schimscheimer, Staff Engineer in the Office of the CTO, VMware, and Stephane Asselin, Architect on the End-User-Computing Technical Enablement Team, VMware In a previous blog post, VMware App Volumes Deployment Guide Is Now Available, I discussed how easy it is to deploy App Volumes. Today, […]

   

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  VMware Mirage 5.3 Now Generally Available – Go Download Now! (http://blogs.vmware.com/euc/?p=7258)By Sachin Sharma, senior product marketing manager, End-User Computing, VMware A couple weeks ago, we announced the new VMware Mirage 5.3 solution and its new capabilities. Today, I’m happy to announce that VMware Mirage 5.3 is now generally available and current customers can download the solution from my.vmware.com. For those who want to try the […]

   

  
  

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PARTNER

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  We Will be at the HP Global Partner Conference – March 16-18th (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1646)And you should join us!  Don’t miss this golden opportunity to get key sales plays and marketing materials on joint VMware and HP solutions such as the the HP ConvergedSystem HC-200 for EVO:RAIL. Start building your schedule now.

   

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  EMEA Partners, Don’t Miss these Next 2 EUC Spotlight Sessions (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1643)End-User Computing (EUC) at VMware is constantly evolving, so we’ve dedicated the 2nd Tuesday of every month to help you understand the latest updates and how they affect your business. Register now for the 10th March session focusing on the Mirage Retail Solution.  You’ll learn how VMware Mirage provides a proven, scalable and differentiated solution […]

   

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  Partner Exchange 2015 Highlights (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1641)Over 4,000 VMware partners, from over 80 countries around the globe, gathered together and Dared to Thrive in this ever growing and evolving high tech industry. Day one of Partner Exchange opened with a General Session keynote led by Pat Gelsinger, Carl Eschenbach, Bill Fathers, Raghu Raghuram, and Sanjay Poonen. They highlighted the importance of […]

   

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  HP ProLiant Gen9 Servers Whitepaper (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1639)If your customers are looking to adopt or enhance virtualization and cloud, be sure to point them to this in-depth review of how HP 3PAR StoreServ is designed to provide faster time-to-service.

   

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  Incentives to Advance Your Skills – Act Now (http://blogs.vmware.com/partnernews/?p=1637)Register for one of our most popular Open Enrollment courses and, for a limited time only, you will receive an Apple iPad Air in addition to your standard partner discount. These offers are only valid until March 20th.

   

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  Post Partner Exchange 2015 Wrap-Up (http://blogs.vmware.com/partner/?p=2400)Partner Exchange 2015 has come and gone, but not without making it the most successful partner event to date. We hope you enjoyed the increased high-touch opportunities, enabling you to interact with VMware executives, and the tailored content necessary to accelerate your business. With unique Hands-on Labs, Boot Camps, 170+ Breakout Sessions, General Sessions and […]

   

  
  

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MORE NEWS AND DEVELOPMENTS FROM AROUND THE WEB

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  It’s time to cast your vote! (http://virtualgeek.typepad.com/virtual_geek/2015/03/its-time-to-cast-your-vote.html)It’s that time of year! The vSphere-land “Top vBlog” voting is open! The voting runs through 3/19 – so vote now! I’m sure that I speak for many of the other bloggers – writing the blog is a labor of...

   

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  Performance Evaluation of Network I/O Control in VMware vSphere 6 (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2869-guid.html)

   

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  VMware vCenter Server 6.0 Deployment Guide (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2868-guid.html)

   

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  KEMP has released a Free LoadMaster (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2867-guid.html)

   

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  Latest Fling from VMware Labs - VCS to VCVA Converter (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2866-guid.html)

   

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  Please vote for NTPRO.NL at the top vBlog 2015 (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2859-guid.html)

   

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  Technical White Paper - VMware Product Security (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2864-guid.html)

   

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  New Book: VMware vRealize Orchestrator Cookbook (http://www.ntpro.nl/blog/archives/2865-guid.html)

   

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  New Year: New Product Page: New Guides (http://www.mikelaverick.com/?p=5995)Well, it’s March the 4th I’m not sure whether it still counts as the “new” year – are we properly into the year its lost its new-ness? Anyway, the new March has ushered in a new product landing page for EVO:RAIL. It’s been redesigned by our new PMM (that’s Product Marketing Manager for those who […]

   

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  Vote! Vote! Vote! Top vBlog 2015 (http://www.mikelaverick.com/?p=5965)Here’s a quick little post to remind you to vote for you top bloggers for 2015 – and of course, I’m hoping I will make the cut again this year. This years Top vBlog is sponsored by Infinio – and voting opened today and will be open until the end for Feb. The Top vBlog […]

   

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  Virtual Volumes – A closer look at Storage Containers (http://cormachogan.com/?p=4647)There are a couple of key concepts to understanding Virtual Volumes (or VVols for short). VVols is one of the key new storage features in vSphere 6.0. You can get an overview of VVols from this post. The first key Continue reading →

   

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  Join Me at Interop in Las Vegas 2015 (http://wahlnetwork.com/?p=12845)Don't miss out on my snazzy Interop sessions on virtual disaster recovery and hyperconverged infrastructure - plus a 25% registration discount code! The post Join Me at Interop in Las Vegas 2015 appeared first on Wahl Network . Related posts: Wahl Network at VMworld: Sessions, Books, and Charity SpiceWorld Session and Discount Code Advance Your Tech Career with Advice from IT Pros Installing vCenter SSO 5.5 in a vCenter 5.1 Environment VMware Embraces NFS 4.1, Supports Multipathing and Kerberos…

   

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  New Pluralsight Course – Upgrading Your vSphere Environment (http://wahlnetwork.com/?p=12606)Learn how a solid planning process can make upgrading your vSphere environment a snap with my latest Pluralsight course, available now! The post New Pluralsight Course – Upgrading Your vSphere Environment appeared first on Wahl Network . Related posts: Installing vCenter SSO 5.5 in a vCenter 5.1 Environment vSphere 4.x Approaching End of General Support Upgrading The Home Lab to Synology’s Latest DSM 5.0 Final CCNA DC Course is Now Live on Pluralsight Thoughts, Rants, and Suggestions on vSphere…

   

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  vSphere HA respecting VM-Host should rules? (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15985)Advertise here with BSA A long time ago I authored this white paper around stretched clusters. During out testing the one thing where we felt HA was lacking was the fact that it would not respect VM-Host should rules. So if you had these configured in a cluster and a host would fail then VMs could be restarted on […] " vSphere HA respecting VM-Host should rules? " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my upcoming book Essential Virtual SAN via…

   

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  Vote for the 2015 Top vBloggers now! (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15976)Advertise here with BSA Eric Siebert just opened up the voting for his “Top vBlog” again. Last year over 1400 people voted, and I am hoping that we will see an increase this year. I just went through the motion myself, and it only takes about 2 minutes. You select your 10 favourite blogs and put them in the right order, […] " Vote for the 2015 Top vBloggers now! " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order my upcoming book Essential Virtual SAN…

   

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  What happens at which vSphere memory state? (http://www.yellow-bricks.com/?p=15963)Advertise here with BSA I’ve received a bunch of questions from people around what happens at each vSphere memory state after writing the article around breaking up large pages and introducing a new memory state in vSphere 6.0. Note, that the below is about vSphere 6.0 only, the “Clear” memory state does not exist before  6.0. Also, note that there […] " What happens at which vSphere memory state? " originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com . Follow me on twitter - @DuncanYB. Pre-order…

   

  
  

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  Deploying a Node.js WebApp with MongoDB to Cloud Foundry (http://kendrickcoleman.com/index.php/Tech-Blog/deploying-a-node-js-webapp-with-mongodb-to-cloud-foundry.html)I recently created a new project to help me get a better understanding of Node.js  webapps using Express.js  and using MongoDB  on the backend. It took me a little over 2 hours to get this app properly deployed to CF and run in development at the same time. Documentation  is sparse, so I'll spare you the details and just show you how it's done.   package.json: The only thing you need here is that if you are using express.js then the "npm start" needs to be setup correctly. If you…

   

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  Rock the vote! Top vBlog voting now open! (http://blog.mwpreston.net/?p=4350)It’s that special time of year again – a time for the virtualization community to come together and vote for their favorite virtualization blogs.  Yes – the Top vBlog Voting for 2015 is underway over at vSphere-land.com.  As much as this is just simply a ranking of blogs I’m not going to lie – it

   

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  Voting now open for the 2015 top VMware & virtualization blogs (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5489)The number of blogs devoted to VMware and virtualization continues to grow, this year there are more than 400 of them on the ballot. Here’s your chance to show your appreciation to the bloggers for all their hard work by picking your favorites which will determine the top blogs for 2015. Last year over 1,400 people … Continue reading » [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  Last chance before Top vBlog begins – don’t miss out (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5483)  The vLaunchpad is all up to date with additions and changes so if you are not listed on there right now you won’t be part of the voting so make sure you go look. Note I did add a few late additions to the bottom of the Virtualization Blogs column that are out of … Continue reading » [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  You might have 99 problems but vSphere 6 links ain’t one… (http://vsphere-land.com/?p=5478)My vSphere 6 link collection continues to grow so get caught up on everything you need to know about this exciting new release before vSphere 6 GA’s soon.   [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

   

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  Top Blogger Voting in Full Swing! (http://www.derekseaman.com/?p=2621)Advertise here with BSA Each year Eric Siebert over at vSphere-land.com spends an enormous amount of time setting up the top blogger voting. This recognizes the very hard work that the top bloggers do, and the support they give to the community. Recognition is always fun, but shouldn’t be the primary purpose to blog. So this year you, again, […] The post Top Blogger Voting in Full Swing! appeared first on Derek Seaman's Blog .                     Related Stories VMTurbo Win a Home Lab…

   

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  Top vBlog 2015 voting is now open (http://vcdx56.com/?p=5279)As usual, Eric Siebert, has made an awesome job putting together the annual top vBlog voting for the best virtualization blogs and i just wanted to let you know that the 2015 voting is now open unless you haven’t seen that already. There are more than 400 blog to select from so you got plenty of … Continue reading »

   

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  VMware vSphere Update Manager service fails (http://vcdx56.com/?p=4930)So a few days back i had some problem with the VMware Windows based vSphere Update Manager (VUM) Server that didn’t start after rebooting the virtual machine (VM) where the service runs. All other VMware related services running on the VM started without any problem. vCenter Server (and VUM) version running was 5.5.U1b was running … Continue reading »

   

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  Initialize the remote vCenter Orchestrator database (http://vcdx56.com/?p=4944)It doesn’t happen every day but once in a while you can immediately answer a question when being called by a customer and yesterday was my lucky day:) The only requirement i had before answering the question was to get two print screens so i could put together this really short blog post. Here we go. Customer … Continue reading »

   

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  Horizon View and smart card login (http://vcdx56.com/?p=5268)This is a guest blog post created by my former colleague Toni Lindberg who now works for Cygate in Stockholm, Sweden. Installing VMware Horizon View out of the box is not difficult. However, integrating the Horizon View solution with smart card to increase the security can sometimes cause problems. This blog post consists of a … Continue reading »

   

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  Application Virtualization Smackdown – Matrix Style Infographic (http://longwhiteclouds.com/?p=10663)Application Virtualization is changing rapidly and there are a lot of different options on the market. The idea is you can package up the applications separate to the underlying OS and then run the anywhere, and so they aren’t going to be impacted as much by OS upgrades and patches. This is the sort of […]

   

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  In Kernel or Not In Kernel – This Is The Hyperconverged Question (http://longwhiteclouds.com/?p=10647)The hot question at the moment in hyperconvergence (solutions that combine compute and storage into a distributed solution to run VM’s) appears to be this: Is running storage services in the hypervisor kernel the best solution or superior to running storage services in user space. I strongly believe the answer is no, in kernel is […]

   

  
  

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  10,000 Tweets: How Twitter Changed My Life…and the World (http://datacenterdude.com/?p=2420)I wanted to do something special for my 10,000th tweet. It's been sitting there for a couple of days while I've tossed around ideas in my head of what to do.

   

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  Snapshots & Polaroids: Neither Lasts Forever (http://datacenterdude.com/?p=2398)Snapshots aren't really a concept that is unique to NetApp, but they do have a unique approach that's different from the typical copy-on-write style. Oh, and well, we do also hold the registered trademark on the name. Lots of other vendors use their own version of Snapshots - Microsoft, VMware, CommVault, to name a few. NetApp Snapshots are fast to generate and restore from. They don't hurt system performance, and they don't eat up a lot of space. Allow me to explain...

   

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  Introduction to the Cisco Nexus 1000v (http://datacenterdude.com/?p=2148)A brief introduction to the Nexus 1000v and it's deployment...

   

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  Voting Open for Top Virtualization Blogs! (http://datacenterdude.com/?p=2388)Thanks to everyone for participating! It keeps our voice loud and strong in the community and motivates us to continue to create excellent content for you! Get out there and Vote!

   

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  #70 Live Long, Llamas, Cloud, & Customers (http://datacenterdude.com/?p=2376)http://media.blubrry.com/netapp/content.blubrry.com/netapp/70-LiveLongLlamasCloudCustomers.mp3 The Internet loses its mind over llamas and dresses, FCC passes Net Neutrality, and we talk about some new developments around Steelstore and some updates to FlexPod.

   

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  Top vBlog 2015 Voting Open - Payback Time! (tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47060994419129287.post-3967504609458447777)

  Time of the year when Eric Siebert of vsphere-land.comfame opens up the Top Virtualization Blog voting on his portal. Needless to say that each blogger listed in this ballot has spent hours of his... Click on the title to continue reading the post..

   

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  2015-marzo-5 #vBrownBag LATAM #VMware Network Virtualization #NSX– @wmichel (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5339)The following content is in Spanish, the language in which the webinar is presented. El pasado 5 de marzo 2015 en ProfessionalVMware #vBrownBag LATAM se presentó el tema: VMware Network Virtualization – @wmichel Esta presentación es una continuación de la serie #vBrownBag, en Español sobre la certificación VMware Certified Professional – Network Virtualization (VCP-NV) Blueprint v 1.2 Detalles: […]

   

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  #vBrownBag Follow Up – The Art of IT Infrastructure Design (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5334)On the 3rd of March 2015 , the EMEA #vBrownbag welcomed the authors of the soon to be released "The Art of IT infrastructure Design" book, John Arrasjid @vcdx001 Mark Gabryjelski @MarkGabbs & Chris McCain @hcmccain onto the podcast to discuss their new book and talk about IT architecture in general.The session was hosted by […]

   

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  #vBrownBag DevOps Follow-Up ELK with Larry Smith (@mrlesmithjr) (http://professionalvmware.com/?p=5321)Larry Smith shows you how to leverage elastisearch, logstash, and kibana to create a robust syslog solution. ELK Video You can find Larry on Twitter @mrlesmithjr and his blog http://everythingshouldbevirtual.com/ Originally published at http://ProfessionalVMware.com– Sign up for the live #vBrownBag broadcast at http://professionalvmware.com/brownbags/ where you can also get updates and view our past series […]

   

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  SQL AlwaysOn Availability Group support in VMDKs on NFS Datastores (http://www.joshodgers.com/?p=3268)Recently I had a customer contact me about doing SQL Always-On Availability Groups on Nutanix and they were wondering if it was supported due to the fact Nutanix recommend and run by default NFS datastores. The customer did the right … Continue reading →

   

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  Book review: VMware vRealize Operations Performance and Capacity Management (http://vinfrastructure.it/?p=15674)As you probably know, VMware vRealize Operations is a suite of products that automates operations management using patented analytics and an integrated approach to performance, capacity, and configuration management. This suite derive from the VCOPS (vCenter Operations Mananagement) core and has been recently rebranded in the new vRealize suite name. The new v6 of this suite bring not only a new name, but also a lot of changes and improvements and a good book that cover this aspect are more than welcome.…

   

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  Voting for the 2015 top VMware & virtualization blogs (http://vinfrastructure.it/?p=15519)Eric Siebert (from Sphere-Land.com) has open again (see the related post of previous year), a contest for voting the ‘Top VMware & Virtualization Blogs’. This contest is becoming a recurring and estemeed in the VMware & virtualization world (see also the history of the top blog voting over the years). Last year over 1400 people voted from 60 different countries, with over 320 blogs dedicated to VMware and Virtualization – this is definitely an impressive number which is a real indication…

   

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  VMware vSphere 6 – Availability (http://vinfrastructure.it/?p=15013)With the new VMware vSphere 6.0 there are several improvement in the availability related features. Although the vSphere HA apparently has not changed so much (of course now support a bigger cluster with 64 nodes), there several aspects that have been improved or changed: New MSCS capabilities New vSphere VM Component Protection (VMCP) Network partition manament New VMware FT-SMP For more information see also: What’s new for HA in vSphere 6.0? vSphere 6 Availability Enhancements MSCS capabilities…

   

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  VMware vExpert 2015 benefits (http://vinfrastructure.it/?p=15230)The primary reason for becoming vExpert certainly should not be related to any possible benefits of the program. And once confirmed (for me is the sixth year in a row) you have to think more about what you can give rather to what is to be expected. But I’d be a hypocrite to deny that there are also practical advantages in being a vExpert! Officially, VMware, according with the vExpert FAQ, say that the biggest benefit of the award is the public recognition as a VMware vExpert Award winner. But benefits…

   

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  March 2015 IT events (http://vinfrastructure.it/?p=15546)Interesting European IT events: Mobile World Congress 2015 – Barcelona (March, 2-5) Cloudscape VII – Brussels (March, 9-10) Cloud Expo Europe & Data Centre World – London (March, 11-12) SMAU Berlin – Berlin (March, 12-13) CEBIT 2015 – Hannover (March, 16-20) Gartner CIO Leadership Forum – London (March, 16-18) V6 World 2015 – Paris (March, 17-18) De Nederlandse VMUG User Conference – Hertogenbosch (March, 19) SambaXP 2015 – Göttingen (March, 19-21) WHD.global 2015 – Europa-Park,…

   

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  First Nutanix .NEXT event (http://vinfrastructure.it/?p=15098)Nutanix is a well know hyper-converged company founded in 2009 with the vision of bringing the benefits of web-scale IT to the masses. They have changed the rules of traditional storage (on 2009 mostly SAN based) and become the pioneer of concepts like no-SAN and no-LUNs, hyper-converged and web-scale storage. Recently they have also reach five years of history, were they have made significant progress in their products and solution (and also partnership). And some months ago they have also announced their…

   

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  E2EVC 2015 Berlin (http://vinfrastructure.it/?p=14174)After the E2EVC 2014 Brussels and E2EVC 2014 Barcelona events, the next European E2EVC event (and the first one for 2015 year) will be in Berlin: The next Spring E2EVC Virtualization Conference in Europe in summer 2015 will take place in Novotel Berlin Mitte Hotel, Fischerinsel 12, 10179, Berlin, Germany. E2EVC Virtualization Conference is an independent, non-commercial, virtualization community event build from experts to experts. Started in 2003 with just 4 people and after 23 very successful events grown…

   

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  June VCDX Defense Contingency Plan For Desktop and Cloud (http://www.chriscolotti.us/?p=4629)A couple days ago as many people know VMware Education announced the immediate retirement of certain VCAP exams for desktop and cloud.  The announcement retired the following exams: VCID510 – VMware Certified Advanced Professional 5 – Cloud Infrastructure Design VCIA510 – VMware Certified Advanced Professional 5 – Cloud Infrastructure Administration VDTA510 – VMware Certified Advanced ... The post June VCDX Defense Contingency Plan For Desktop and Cloud appeared first on Chris Colotti's Blog…

   

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  It’s time for the annual vBlog voting! (http://www.viktorious.nl/?p=5198)The post It’s time for the annual vBlog voting! appeared first on viktorious.nl - Virtualization & Cloud Management . It's time for the 2015 Top vBlog Voting. Take a minute or 2 to let Eric Siebert know what your favorite blog is! Last year over 1400 people voted on the 320 different blogs, all devoted to VMware & virtualization. For an overview of all the blogs, take a look at the vLaunchpad .All blogs that are included in the vLaunchpad are participating in the voting. For some more…

   

  
  

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