Nov 7, 2011 Blogs
Do you know this page on vmware.com all too well?
Not being able to access the bits and bytes you need to evaluate a product and install it in your lab is just the worst. Us geeks can’t handle this kind of rejection, VMware!
Please bring back the VMTN Subscription! Josh Atwell has posted a perfectly viable proposal on how this could work. Please show your support here.
Nov 1, 2011 Blogs
VMware Labs presents its latest fling: VDSPowerCli.
PowerShell is a scripting language Microsoft developed to help administrators manage the Windows environment. Third parties can write their own snap-ins (dynamic linked libraries) to implement new commands, which are called cmdlets. With VDSPowerCli, users can use the cmdlets provided by PowerCLI to manage vSphere Distributed Switch(VDS).
Features
VDSPowerCli gives you the ability to manage:
- VMware vSphere Distributed Switch
- Distributed Port Group
- Distributed Port
Download and try out VDSPowerCli!
Nov 1, 2011 Blogs
I am digging deeper into HP P4000 (LeftHand) SANs again. This has been a consistent side-project of mine for over two years now. I started using the VSA as a simple, fast and reliable appliance for a shared storage and SAN workshop I’ve delivered at my employers training center, and did a real life implementation of a production environment a while back.
I noticed that when designing a P4000 solution with a number of factors like Multi-Site, stretched HA/DRS clustering, MPIO combined with vSphere, you need to be extra carefull and really kick the tyres of the set-up in a lab to get to know all the gory details. Today, I tested a couple of those factors in the design.
Read More..
Nov 1, 2011 Blogs
I’ve migrated my RSS feed over to FeedBurner.
FeedBurner should automatically redirect the current feed to the new feed.
It shouldn’t matter which feed URL you’re using, but if you’re experiencing any problems, please use the new feed URL and tell me.
Oct 20, 2011 Blogs
You just don’t talk about the family. Respect the omerta, Monster VM.
Oct 18, 2011 Blogs
My first try to publish the video wasn’t all that successful; but I’m using the iPad and only just discovered iMovie. That makes editting the videoclip much easier. I’ve now cut out the unneeded bits and uploaded the marketing video and actual product demonstration again.
Please visit the VMware booth at VMworld 2011 Copenhagen to see a demonstration of the device itself (running the MVP) and the management software (Horizon Mobile). It’s well worth your time!
Oct 11, 2011 Blogs
I’ll be attending VMworld 2011 Europe in addition to the conference in the United States a while back. The Europe event is the first self-funded (well, mostly) trip to VMworld; that’s just because I think VMworld is awesome. I’ve got the luxury that I have spread attending break-out sessions between both editions, so my list of recommended sessions is huge.
Recommended Break-out Sessions
Below are the sessions that I absolutely recommend:
Attended in Las Vegas
- EUC1945 What’s New in VMware Workstation
- LAS4000 VMworld Labs Hardware Architecture
- LAS4002 VMworld Labs Using Auto Deploy with Stateless ESXi
- VSP1682 VMware vSphere Clustering Q&A
- VSP1708 VCDX Panel Defense Preparation
- VSP1926 Getting Started with VMware vSphere Design
- VSP1956 The VMware ESXi Quiz Show
- VSP3067 Mythbusters Goes Virtual
Will attend in Copenhagen
- BCO2395 Stretch Clustering – Now and Beyond
- BCO2479 Understanding VMware vSphere Stretched Clusters, Disaster Recovery and Planned Workload Mobility
- BCO2874 vSphere High Availability 5.0 and SMP Fault Tolerance – Technical Overview and Roadmap
- EUC2956 VMware Mobile Virtualization Platform: Solving Enterprise Mobility Challenges
- VSP1708 VCDX Panel Defense Preparation
- VSP1823 VMware Storage Distributed Resource Scheduler
- VSP2227 VMware vCenter Database Architecture, Performance and Troubleshooting
- VSP3116 VMware vSphere 5.0 Resource Management Deep Dive
- VSP3205 Technology Preview: VMware vStorage APIs for VM and Application Granular Data
Will grab audio/video/presentation from VMworld.com
- BCA2817 Designing vSphere Platforms for Maximum Tier 1 Application Performance
- BCO3334 Site Recovery Manager Future Product Directions: Cloud-Based Disaster Recovery
- BCO3420 Avoiding the 16 Biggest High-Availability and Distributed Resource Scheduler
- CIM1940 10 Best Free Tools for VMware vSphere Management in 2011
- CIM2452 VMware vCenter Operations Technical Deepdive
- CIM2680 Managing a VMware Environment: What To Do In The First 180 Days
- LAS4003 VMworld Labs Core Infrastructure Architecture
- LAS4004 VMworld Labs Cloud and Virtualization Software Architecture
- SPO3962 Enabling Business Continuity with VMware Metro vMotion Using Cloud-optimized
- VSP1425 Ask the Expert vBloggers
- VSP2384 Distributed Datacenters with Multiple vCenter Deployments: Best Practices
- VSP3255 VMware Storage vMotion Deep Dive and Best Practices
- VSP3866 Performance Best Practices and Troubleshooting
- VSP3867 Top 10 Virtualization Support Issues
- VSP3868 VMware vStorage Best Practices
Recommended Hands-on Labs
My favourite hands-on labs are:
- HOL04 Reducing Unplanned Downtime in Your Virtual Environment
- HOL05 Datacenter Migration and Disaster Recovery Protection for Your Virtual Environment
- HOL10 Advanced Troubleshooting and Performance Tuning for Your Virtual Environment
Other cool places
VMworld has a lot to offer. There are a few hidden gems, that I feel you must attend during your stay:
- VMware Company Store
- Alumni Lounge (located opposite Hands-on Labs); you even get an Alumni gift!
- Community Lounge. It’s the perfect spot to meet-up, interview, network, blog, tweet, stream/record video, take photos, podcast or just rest your feet.
- VMware User Group Booth in Solutions Exchange; Stop by the VMUG booth to learn more about membership and how you can get the VMUG Advantage (exclusive to VMUG members).
Cool Solutions Exchange Exhibitors
- Dell
- Drobo, Inc.
- FalconStor Software
- Nexenta Systems
- Nimble Storage
- OVH
- QNAP Corporation
- Safari Books Online
- Samsung Electronics, Co. Ltd.
- StarWind Software
- Tintri
- Veeam Software
- Zerto
Guides
I have already checked out the various guides available. In the Program Guide, I learned that, like last year, attendees will receive a travel pass that gives you free passage on the Metro and train system in Copenhagen during the event. Also, be aware of the limited schedule of the (free) airport shuttle: it won’t run after 8pm on Sunday.
Be sure to read through these guides
Sep 1, 2011 Blogs
Workstation 8 promises to be a major release.
Besides upgrading the virtual hardware to level 8 (in line with vSphere 5), which brings 3D and vSMP optimizations, as well as expanded support for nested hardware virtualization, 64GB vRAM and HD Audio, the GUI has had a major upgrade. We finally have a ‘summary’ window for a VM, displaying the status of the VM like we’re used to in vSphere. The navigation pane has been replaced with a much cleaner, faster and searchable inventory view, there are live thumbnails everywhere (literally!), the power controls have been simplified, they’ve added a fully functional toolbar when in fullscreen mode (which makes the fullscreen mode less cripled and on par with the normal mode).
Also, the only reason anyone ever used VMware Server was the headless mode. This has now been re-introduced in Workstation with ‘VM Sharing’. Just drag a VM to the sharing wizard, and the VM will start/stop with the host, regardless of logged in users. You don’t even need to run Workstation. From a remote Workstation console, you can access this VM. Using hostd’s permissions and roles, Workstation has implemented a granular and familiar way to control access to the shared VMs.
Probably the coolest gimmick in Workstation 8 is the connectivity to a vSphere or vCenter host. You can manage VMs running on vSphere directly from the Workstation Console. While you’re at it, just migrate those Workstation VMs to vSphere; you can do that, too. Or, alternatively, create a new VM on vSphere from within Workstation.
The ‘Teams’ concept has been replaced with folders (where the team functionality like network segments and bandwith throttling are now available to all VM’s).
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