VMware's new version 3.5 ROCKS
Ok, so I've had several customers recently install and/or upgrade to VMware's ESX version 3.5 and VirtualCenter 2.5 and I've got to say, VMware is still the king of the hill when it comes to x86 virtualization. VMware has raised the bar once again with ESX 3.5 by giving per-server RAM scalability to 256GB, per VM support of up to 64GB RAM and support for up to 32 logical processors per ESX server. Other new features include support for 64-bit guest operating systems, SATA disk drives, 10GB Ethernet, N_port ID Virtualization for Fiber Channel cards (so each VM can have it's own Worldwide Port Name (WWPN)), support for Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP) and even support for IPv6 among others. Also enhanced in v3.5 is better intra-virtual machine support for Citrix Presentation Server, allowing greater scalability. VMotion has several enhancements as well and VMotion continues set VMware apart from competitors in terms of enterprise-class scalability and high availability.
In a couple of recent installs customers have taken advantage of IBM's x3650 architecture giving 12 DIMM slots and (2) CPU slots, loading these boxes up with 48GB RAM and (2) Quad-core CPUs. One customer even tested failover by running 34 production VMs on a single x3650 for nearly four days with no help desk calls and no user complaints. Also, I've seen great performance from several different types of external storage arrays including iSCSI-connected storage, fibre channel attached storage with SAS drives (and SATA for storage VMware snapshots) and even NFS-mounted disk volumes. It all boils down to I/O requirements and don't underestimate the performance characteristics of some of the newest storage arrays.
One consistent third party application that is a hands-down requirement if you're implementing VMware is Vizioncore's vRangerPro for efficient backup and recovery of your VMware virtual machines, and if you want to replicate your VM's to an offsite location look no further than Vizioncore's vReplicator.
I also get asked all the time, "So, is anyone running 'X' in a VM yet", where X is a whole host of applications. Not everything is a great candidate for virtualization, and typically CPU utilization and I/O are the two limiting factors, but yes, I've seen production instances of Oracle DB, MS SQL, MS Exchange, MS Terminal Services and even Citrix running in actual customer production environments.
Another topic that needs to be considered is virtual desktops which deserves a post of its own, but worth mentioning here. I have several LARGE customers and small ones as well taking a dual-CPU box with quad-core cpus, loading it up with RAM, installing VMware and then loading up to 64 instances of Windows XP Pro and/or Vista Business, giving end users thin client devices or letting them run desktop applications from a central location while keeping their local PC. Connectivity is accomplished via RDP which is native in XP and Vista. It's even better when you take advantage of Microsoft's Softgrid or VMware's Thinstall for application streaming and virtualization.
For more information see the VMware Blog and Release Notes.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Thursday, August 14, 2008
PC Remote Control
CrossLoop for PC Remote Control
If you're like me and considered the PC guru in the family and everyone calls and tries to give you a verbal description of what is on their screen and asks you to "fix" it, then you've been through the struggles of hoping for some type of PC remote control. I can remember installing PCAnywhere on computers just so I could get on, correct the problem and get off, a daunting task on the old 33k direct-dial land lines.
If you've used GoToMyPC in the past, now there's an alternative called CrossLoop. But, CrossLoop has an awesome twist that will allow you to demote yourself from family PC guru to referral source. The twist of CrossLoop is the expert advice aspect. People with specific skillsets (XP, Office 2003, Photoshop, etc.) can go to the site and register as having expertise in a particular area, along with an hourly or per minute rate that they charge for their services. Users with a need for help can then register on CrossLoop and search for a helping hand who they can then pay via PayPal. Both users download the CrossLoop client (a tweaked version of TightVNC) and thus another way to get Uncle John the help he needs for his old Win98 PC.
Although I haven't had a chance to dive into the Marketplace aspect of CrossLoop, I have tested the remote control piece and it works like a champ. You can use CrossLoop for free to remote control someone's PC and either view their desktop or take control of the desktop. I do hope that they will have a Review the Helper section much like oDesk or Amazon's product reviews so you have some assurance that the help you're paying for is highly rated.
As always, check it out and let me know your thoughts.
If you're like me and considered the PC guru in the family and everyone calls and tries to give you a verbal description of what is on their screen and asks you to "fix" it, then you've been through the struggles of hoping for some type of PC remote control. I can remember installing PCAnywhere on computers just so I could get on, correct the problem and get off, a daunting task on the old 33k direct-dial land lines.
If you've used GoToMyPC in the past, now there's an alternative called CrossLoop. But, CrossLoop has an awesome twist that will allow you to demote yourself from family PC guru to referral source. The twist of CrossLoop is the expert advice aspect. People with specific skillsets (XP, Office 2003, Photoshop, etc.) can go to the site and register as having expertise in a particular area, along with an hourly or per minute rate that they charge for their services. Users with a need for help can then register on CrossLoop and search for a helping hand who they can then pay via PayPal. Both users download the CrossLoop client (a tweaked version of TightVNC) and thus another way to get Uncle John the help he needs for his old Win98 PC.
Although I haven't had a chance to dive into the Marketplace aspect of CrossLoop, I have tested the remote control piece and it works like a champ. You can use CrossLoop for free to remote control someone's PC and either view their desktop or take control of the desktop. I do hope that they will have a Review the Helper section much like oDesk or Amazon's product reviews so you have some assurance that the help you're paying for is highly rated.
As always, check it out and let me know your thoughts.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Go "Big Brother" with SpectorSoft
Spector Pro 2008 ultimate spy
Ok, so you're an avid reader of the National Inquisitor (you know what I mean), regularly think your lawn guy is making crop circles in your backyard and spent over $1000 on tin foil last year to create your "safe room", now here's another place to spend your next $100. Spector Pro 2008 is the ultimate, geeked out, paranoid tracking tool for your PC. Install this software and you can record every keystroke, every IM message, every email, every file copied to a USB key, every document printed and the list goes on. Not only that, but you can set it up so that all of this information is sent to you in near real time so you know almost instantly what's happening on your PC at all times.
Now, besides keeping a close eye on your teenager who dresses like a vampire and has more metal in her than Evel Knievel, there are some really useful applications for this type of software. First, if you suspect any potential after-hours non-authenticated use of your office PC, here's a way to find out. Or, if you suspect an employee is stealing sensitive company secrets, also good.
Nothing says you have to implement all of the features of Spector Pro, so if you simply want to use Document Tracking, User Activity, File Transfer tracking, keyword detection and Program Activity in high profile areas or on PCs with access to restricted data, this may be a good option. It would also be helpful in healthcare environments to ensure HIPAA compliance.
Anyway, whether you're a paranoid delusional and control freak who wants to track everything ever done on your PC, or an administrator with a need for secure data tracking, here's a good way to spend $100 bucks.
Ok, so you're an avid reader of the National Inquisitor (you know what I mean), regularly think your lawn guy is making crop circles in your backyard and spent over $1000 on tin foil last year to create your "safe room", now here's another place to spend your next $100. Spector Pro 2008 is the ultimate, geeked out, paranoid tracking tool for your PC. Install this software and you can record every keystroke, every IM message, every email, every file copied to a USB key, every document printed and the list goes on. Not only that, but you can set it up so that all of this information is sent to you in near real time so you know almost instantly what's happening on your PC at all times.
Now, besides keeping a close eye on your teenager who dresses like a vampire and has more metal in her than Evel Knievel, there are some really useful applications for this type of software. First, if you suspect any potential after-hours non-authenticated use of your office PC, here's a way to find out. Or, if you suspect an employee is stealing sensitive company secrets, also good.
Nothing says you have to implement all of the features of Spector Pro, so if you simply want to use Document Tracking, User Activity, File Transfer tracking, keyword detection and Program Activity in high profile areas or on PCs with access to restricted data, this may be a good option. It would also be helpful in healthcare environments to ensure HIPAA compliance.
Anyway, whether you're a paranoid delusional and control freak who wants to track everything ever done on your PC, or an administrator with a need for secure data tracking, here's a good way to spend $100 bucks.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
ISP multi homing
AstroCom Powerlink ISP failover appliance
Ok, so I was visiting a customer the other day and he tells me about a new box he just got in to solve his multi-homing problems for having redundant ISP connections. He has struggled with setup of an ARIN number, wrestled with BGP on a Cisco router and tackled hookup of satellite internet as a path of last resort in a disaster. In the course of switching providers for his satellite internet (he went with Skycasters because they support VPN over satellite) he somehow came across AstroCom and their PowerLink appliance.
Astrocom's PowerLink Pro™ is a family of multi-homing WAN link failover and Internet load-balancing appliances that provide Internet high availability. Astrocom claims that they do this at about one-third the total cost of ownership of other products.
The AstroCom PowerLink appliance sits between your LAN and WAN. It allows you to use multiple Internet connections for true network redundancy and ISP failover. Depending on the model, PowerLink™ products provide:
* WAN link redundancy for ISP failover and Internet high availability among as many as 15 links for important internal and customer applications.
* Traffic load balancing (both inbound and outbound) from your network for bandwidth aggregation of up to 500 Mbps.
* Point-to-point channel bonding among as many as 40 locations, providing uninterrupted Internet access for reliable performance of applications like VPN and VoIP.
* Redundant hardware failover and monitoring capabilities for mission-critical applications that eliminate all potential single points of WAN link failure.
* QoS capabilities for bandwidth management that guarantee your most critical applications get the bandwidth aggregation required for smooth and consistent performance.
* The best service and support in the industry, with 90 days of free service and support from U.S.-based factory technicians, a 30-day money-back guarantee, and a three-year depot warranty.
Pricing for this device starts at $1,295 for the Pro50 and goes to $8,195 for the Pro250.
One comment that bears repeating is that AstroCom support has been "awesome", with late night and weekend calls being answered by knowledgeable support staff and easy access to engineers to help with configuration and troubleshooting. Not something I hear everyday from a customer so kudos to AstroCom.
If you're looking to bond a T1, cable, DSL and/or satellite internet connection into a single, redundant failover pipe, take a look at the AstroCom Powerlink Pro.
Ok, so I was visiting a customer the other day and he tells me about a new box he just got in to solve his multi-homing problems for having redundant ISP connections. He has struggled with setup of an ARIN number, wrestled with BGP on a Cisco router and tackled hookup of satellite internet as a path of last resort in a disaster. In the course of switching providers for his satellite internet (he went with Skycasters because they support VPN over satellite) he somehow came across AstroCom and their PowerLink appliance.
Astrocom's PowerLink Pro™ is a family of multi-homing WAN link failover and Internet load-balancing appliances that provide Internet high availability. Astrocom claims that they do this at about one-third the total cost of ownership of other products.
The AstroCom PowerLink appliance sits between your LAN and WAN. It allows you to use multiple Internet connections for true network redundancy and ISP failover. Depending on the model, PowerLink™ products provide:
* WAN link redundancy for ISP failover and Internet high availability among as many as 15 links for important internal and customer applications.
* Traffic load balancing (both inbound and outbound) from your network for bandwidth aggregation of up to 500 Mbps.
* Point-to-point channel bonding among as many as 40 locations, providing uninterrupted Internet access for reliable performance of applications like VPN and VoIP.
* Redundant hardware failover and monitoring capabilities for mission-critical applications that eliminate all potential single points of WAN link failure.
* QoS capabilities for bandwidth management that guarantee your most critical applications get the bandwidth aggregation required for smooth and consistent performance.
* The best service and support in the industry, with 90 days of free service and support from U.S.-based factory technicians, a 30-day money-back guarantee, and a three-year depot warranty.
Pricing for this device starts at $1,295 for the Pro50 and goes to $8,195 for the Pro250.
One comment that bears repeating is that AstroCom support has been "awesome", with late night and weekend calls being answered by knowledgeable support staff and easy access to engineers to help with configuration and troubleshooting. Not something I hear everyday from a customer so kudos to AstroCom.
If you're looking to bond a T1, cable, DSL and/or satellite internet connection into a single, redundant failover pipe, take a look at the AstroCom Powerlink Pro.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Summer Break
Just a quick update - summer break is over the first week in August, the kids will be back in school and I'll get some free time back to start the blogging again. Until then, hope you are enjoying your summer!!
Charles
Charles
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Desktop Authority
Windows Desktop Management Tool
Scriptlogic's Desktop Authority is a tool to manage Windows desktop operating systems, providing administrators the ability to secure, inventory, patch and support desktops from a central location.
From the Scriptlogic website:
Desktop Authority centralizes control over the desktop, combining into one comprehensive solution the functionality usually achieved with a combination of logon scripting, group policies, user profiles, and a variety of security solutions. By integrating configuration, inventory, reporting, patch management, anti-spyware, device lockdown, power management and remote management into a single solution, administrators can efficiently and effectively manage the desktop environment from one console, lowering the total cost of desktop ownership.
I was in a meeting earlier this week and had a server and desktop admin singing to me the praises of this product. His comment was that "everyone knows that managing desktops with Microsoft's group policy tool sucks (his word, not mine), so I had to find something to make it easier." There are add-ons to enable remote software installation/deployment and a bare-metal imaging solution as well. I'm still sold on the Softgrid/Thinstall/Appstream approach to application deployment versus the remote install methodology whenever possible. Take a look and let me know what you think.
Scriptlogic's Desktop Authority is a tool to manage Windows desktop operating systems, providing administrators the ability to secure, inventory, patch and support desktops from a central location.
From the Scriptlogic website:
Desktop Authority centralizes control over the desktop, combining into one comprehensive solution the functionality usually achieved with a combination of logon scripting, group policies, user profiles, and a variety of security solutions. By integrating configuration, inventory, reporting, patch management, anti-spyware, device lockdown, power management and remote management into a single solution, administrators can efficiently and effectively manage the desktop environment from one console, lowering the total cost of desktop ownership.
I was in a meeting earlier this week and had a server and desktop admin singing to me the praises of this product. His comment was that "everyone knows that managing desktops with Microsoft's group policy tool sucks (his word, not mine), so I had to find something to make it easier." There are add-ons to enable remote software installation/deployment and a bare-metal imaging solution as well. I'm still sold on the Softgrid/Thinstall/Appstream approach to application deployment versus the remote install methodology whenever possible. Take a look and let me know what you think.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Application Streaming
New wave of App Streaming Tools
With Microsoft's acquisition of Softricity in 2006 (now called MS Softgrid), VMware's recent purchase of Thinstall, Symantec acquiring of AppStream and integrating it into the Altiris SVS platform and the new Endeavors Technologies release of Application Jukebox, the choice of application virtualization technologies continues to expand. I'll mention the open source Portable Apps option as well although it's still lacking some of the advanced functionality of the aforementioned programs.
Ok, so what is "application virtualization"? Simply, it's a way to run a fully functional application without having to install DLLs, registry entries, etc. on your local workstation operating system. The application RUNS on the local machine, but it is isolated from your core OS. It's akin to having an application run from a single .EXE file instead of the plethora of files and directories created by a typical install.
How is this useful you ask? Well, how about being able to give users access to the latest version of your application without having to worry what OS they are running, whether they have .NET 2.0 framework installed (for you .NET developers) and the like. You can distribute the latest binary package to a central server and when the user requests to run the application they automatically get the latest version downloaded to their desktop (again, no install process).
Each of the vendors have somewhat differing approaches to the technology of application virtualization, but the upside benefits are the same: centralized version control, homogenization of application execution, host OS independence and quick, secure revocation of access to critical apps.
Portable Apps even pushes the option of running the full application from a USB flash drive, so you can carry your applications with you and run them from any PC.
With Microsoft's acquisition of Softricity in 2006 (now called MS Softgrid), VMware's recent purchase of Thinstall, Symantec acquiring of AppStream and integrating it into the Altiris SVS platform and the new Endeavors Technologies release of Application Jukebox, the choice of application virtualization technologies continues to expand. I'll mention the open source Portable Apps option as well although it's still lacking some of the advanced functionality of the aforementioned programs.
Ok, so what is "application virtualization"? Simply, it's a way to run a fully functional application without having to install DLLs, registry entries, etc. on your local workstation operating system. The application RUNS on the local machine, but it is isolated from your core OS. It's akin to having an application run from a single .EXE file instead of the plethora of files and directories created by a typical install.
How is this useful you ask? Well, how about being able to give users access to the latest version of your application without having to worry what OS they are running, whether they have .NET 2.0 framework installed (for you .NET developers) and the like. You can distribute the latest binary package to a central server and when the user requests to run the application they automatically get the latest version downloaded to their desktop (again, no install process).
Each of the vendors have somewhat differing approaches to the technology of application virtualization, but the upside benefits are the same: centralized version control, homogenization of application execution, host OS independence and quick, secure revocation of access to critical apps.
Portable Apps even pushes the option of running the full application from a USB flash drive, so you can carry your applications with you and run them from any PC.
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