VM /ETC

Archive for the ‘optimus solutions’ Category

As IT budgets decline, old servers called to virtualization duty is an article written by Alex Barrett and Colin Steele on SeachVirtualization.com. Other then asking some pretty good virtualization sources their opinions , I think the article does a great job explaining why the expense of buying modern hardware still makes sense even in today’s economy. Whether to buy new servers is a common decision being made today as more and more companies are conducting capacity planning studies for consolidation to virtual infrastructure analysis.

Read the entire article for several great points, but here is one quote as an example argument:

“The first thing to determine is whether installing virtualization on older hardware actually saves money. Today’s servers are equipped with quad- and six-core CPUs that can deliver much greater consolidation ratios that single- or dual-core models, he said. “VI3 [VMware Infrastructure 3] is licensed per socket, so you’re paying the same cost for older CPUs but you’re getting less bang for your buck.”

But if the budget for new hardware simply isn’t there, consider the age of a server and how much life it has left in it. When identifying a candidate for a virtualization host, identify a box that is three years or younger and has “had a relatively low runtime,” the systems administrator said.”

Georgia Southern University, located southeast of Atlanta in Statesboro, GA, has introduced a program to teach VMware virtualization technology to the students of it’s College of Information Technology. As one of only 10 universities in the world designated as a VMware Academy, Georgia Southern is teaching it’s students official VMware courses and certifying students as VCPs (VMware Certified Professionals). The program was made possible by VMware and a donation of computer equipment valued at $126,000 from Norcross, GA based Corus360 and Canvas Systems.

Read more about the VMware Academy on the Georgia Southern University Advantage web page.

Corus Consulting and Canvas Systems are actually the “other half” of Softchoice Optimus Solutions, my employer, that was not aquired by Softchoice Corporation in January 2008. I congratulate and applaud Corus and Canvas Read the rest of this entry »

I realize I am a little late announcing my own employer has been acquired, but, hey, I’ve been busy!

Anyways, here’s a good write up about the deal from Channelweb Network. From the article:

The acquisition of $140 million Optimus would help Softchoice to provide advanced hardware technology solutions and services, including internetworking, server consolidation, and security solutions to U.S. mid-market, enterprise and public sector organizations. The deal broadens Softchoice’s geographic reach, extending its ability now to deliver hardware solutions across all U.S. market segments.

After talking to several of our customers I have heard nothing but positive comments. A lot of our clients have bought software licenses through Softchoice and are excited with the new potential to buy hardware and services through them as well.  I know there are a bunch of Softchoice customers all over the United States and Canada that Optimus has not done with business with so far. Who knows, I may be coming to a town near you soon …

IBM is running a VMware ESX evaluation promotion through December 31, 2008. Details about the promotion can be found at IBM System x and BladeCenter with VMware.

From the IBM site:

For a limited time, you can try VMware® Infrastructure 3 software when you purchase a VMware ServerProven® System x server or BladeCenter chassis. The eligible products are shipped with a flyer that entitles you to register for a 90-day evaluation license for VMware Infrastructure 3. Once registered, you will receive an email with your VMware Infrastructure license activation code and easy instructions on how to get started.

The promotional 90 day evaluation is an extension to the normal 60 day evaluation offered from the VMware.com downloads site.

Although closely working with your favorite VMware partner can also get you extended evaluation periods for ESX anyways, this promotion is worth mentioning for companies that are considering implementing Blades in their data center. A Blade Center is an effective option for reducing your server sprawl without virtualization, and with the ability now to have up to 6 nics and 32 mb of ram in some blade servers makes implementing VI3 on blades a great decision.

Even though VI 3.5 is now generally available you may not be ready to upgrade from version 3 just yet. You should, however, make sure all patches and updates are applied to your VI3 infrastructure. This post explains the upgrading and patching methods I have standardized on and provides some tips for avoiding common issues like HA agent configuration and auto applying numerous ESX patches. All scripts and files referenced are linked at the bottom of this post.

Prepare

Preparing for the upgrade and patching is critical to minimizing what can go wrong.

Upgrade Virtual Center

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Yep. It’s a shameless plug for my company. Regardless, I thought it was worth letting everyone know about these promotions from Microsoft before the year ended. Go crazy and implement a new server infrastructure on VI3 with your favorite solutions provider.

The following is from an email I received. I also have created a Promos page with this info.

Have you recently purchased Microsoft Office, SQL or Windows Server? If so, keep reading as you may have some free services to claim. Read the rest of this entry »