Robin Wauters

HyTrust recently demonstrated new technological capabilities jointly developed with Intel and VMware, aimed at enhancing security and policy enforcement in cloud computing environments.

This proof of concept combines HyTrust Appliance with Intel Trusted Execution Technology (Intel TXT) and VMware platform technology currently in development to show customers how they can build and enforce policies that govern the behavior of virtualized cloud infrastructure.

Cloud computing is gaining momentum as a way for customers to dynamically scale virtualized computing resources as a service on demand based on business need. Users need not have knowledge of, expertise in, or control over the technology infrastructure in the “cloud” that supports them. As customers turn to cloud computing for its benefits—convenient, cost effective, on-demand access of computing resources—they are seeking a trusted platform that is secure and provides service identity.

As part of the combined solution, Intel TXT helps attest to platform identity and trust-worthiness with hardware-based mechanisms that enable controlled launch and registration of critical infrastructure software, helping to establish trust and protect the confidentiality and integrity of software applications and data—a critical prerequisite for building a trusted cloud computing platform. Combining VMware platform technology currently in development with the HyTrust Appliance complement Intel TXT boot measurement via the VMware vSphere 4 Web Services SDK to determine and manage which virtualized cloud operations are allowed or disallowed based on the integrity of the underlying platform.

Virtacore Systems has launched a new website and community to help solve the complexities of virtualization and cloud computing technologies for businesses of all sizes.

Thomas Kiblin, CEO and Founder, believes the complexities of virtualization can be explained and tailored to each individual business.

“We view our relationship with our customers as a partnership to leverage the best web technologies to help improve their business. Whether businesses are new to web technology or familiar with hosting concepts, we will educate and explain everything needed in order to maximize their hosting experience.”

Virtacore Systems provides a customized approach to virtualization technologies. Benefits include increased flexibility, reliability, and security as well as reduced infrastructure, footprint, and facility costs. Virtacore’s consultative process gives company IT managers peace of mind and a virtual engineering team to assist them with feasibility, day-to-day management, disaster recovery, and capacity planning.

Akamai yesterday announced the industry’s first managed Internet service for optimizing delivery of virtualized applications and desktops.

Leveraging core technology from the Akamai IP Application Accelerator solution, the new targeted offering is designed to help enterprises realize the cost efficiency, scalability and global reach inherent with the Internet to deliver applications over virtual desktop infrastructure products offered by companies such as Citrix, Microsoft, and VMware.

Featuring customized integrations through professional services specific to virtual desktops, along with new, concurrent user-based pricing, Akamai’s latest offering is focused on making it easier and more cost effective for enterprises to realize the intended return on investment of their virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI).

With virtual desktop connected devices forecasted to grow to approximately 66 million by the end of 2014, or 15 percent of all traditional professional desktop PCs, enterprises are quickly adopting virtualization as a key component of their cost-containment efforts. Still, companies face major challenges to assuring the performance and scale of their VDI, including:

• a user’s proximity from a centralized virtualization environment has a direct impact on performance and availability;
• high amounts of bandwidth are consumed by virtual protocols , e.g. virtualized desktop computing for 100 users in a branch can easily consume more than a T1/E1 of bandwidth on its own; and,
• high cost and uptime issues associated with private-WAN connections in emerging territories where outsourcing and off-shoring are commonplace.

Deployment of virtualized applications and desktops over Akamai’s globally-distributed network of over 50,000 servers is designed to ensure high performance regardless of a user’s location. In addition, enterprises that adopt Akamai solutions can often eliminate the need to build out or upgrade costly private networks limited by preset reach and scale. Instead, Akamai allows for highly scalable and secure virtual desktop deployments to anyone, anywhere, across an Internet-based platform spanning 70 countries.

The Akamai IP Application Accelerator solution targeted for VDI is intended to allow enterprises to optimize application user performance-anywhere, anytime. With no requirement that customers make capex outlays or implement software changes or client-side software, Akamai’s unique technology has been designed to transparently eliminate latency introduced by Internet routing, packet loss, and constrained throughput, which are all critical to providing acceptable virtualized user experiences. Performance improvements can be realized through several techniques including dynamic mapping, route optimization, packet redundancy algorithms, and transport protocol optimization.

The new targeted Akamai solution for optimizing virtual applications and desktops is generally available today for enterprises and cloud computing providers offering hosted desktops as a service. Pricing scales based on the number of concurrent users.

AMD recently announced a new milestone in delivering world-class platforms that integrate leading-edge processor, chipset and GPU technology.

With the introduction of the Six-Core AMD Opteron processor with AMD Chipset platform, AMD is taking a step forward in its strategy to provide customers with server platforms – processor, chipset, and GPU – that specifically address the needs of today`s data center workloads.

This new server platform, along with the AMD platform specification code-named “Kroner,” enables advanced performance, the benefits of unified processor and chipset technology, and furthers AMD`s commitment to energy efficiency.

• The very low power “Kroner” twin server design specification offers additional platform elements such as voltage regulation and the ability to remotely set power caps, to help further drive down power consumption for hyperscale customers.
• New AMD chipset technology can help improve performance of virtualization and HPC workloads with PCI Express 2.0, HyperTransport 3 technology and advanced AMD Virtualization (AMD-V) technology and AMD-P features, including IOMMU support.
• This comprehensive platform offers superior energy efficiency with a new low-power AMD chipset to meet demands of cloud and other dense server environments.
• OEMs have exceptional flexibility in customizing their offerings with the wide range of performance and power choices available in the AMD Opteron processor family and now with three new options in a corresponding AMD server chipset.
• Unified platform can improve design efficiency, technology integration, and enable enhanced platform features among CPUs, chipsets and GPUs.
• Multiple platforms in a wide range of configurations and form factors, including blade, rack and tower, are expected to be available in the coming weeks from leading server infrastructure providers including Tyan, Supermicro, Microway, and ZT Systems.
• Additional OEMs are expected to incorporate the new AMD server chipset into their systems based on the upcoming AMD Opteron processor variant currently codenamed “Magny-Cours” in the first quarter of 2010.

The new Citrix Workflow Studio 2.0 release (Citrix login required) has a number of new features and is a seamless upgrade from version 1.x.

New features include:

• Native XenApp activity libraries (and many other additional activities)
• Remote runtimes
• Simplified management interface
• Enhanced security features
• Simplified installation and configuration
• Improved SDK
• Simplified workflow Designer
• Globalization support

BlueStripe Software recently announced FactFinder 3.0, the Application Service Management (ASM) solution that enables Service Delivery, IT Operations, and Application Support teams to monitor and manage application system performance and troubleshoot system components across any application environment: physical, virtual or cloud.

This capability radically improves IT operations’ ability to quickly isolate and identify causes of slow applications by delivering real-time, hop-by-hop, visibility into critical service request performance metrics across heterogeneous environments.

FactFinder uniquely provides application service request performance metrics across tiers and between nodes, at the process-level, for each application component across an entire application system. FactFinder manages applications as full systems, isolating requests for discrete systems enabling Service Delivery and Application Managers to better meet service-level requirements.  When application components are spread across different platforms – physical, virtual and cloud – FactFinder identifies the application and provides the visibility needed to ensure proper application performance.

FactFinder, using BlueStripe’s patented AppSmart technology, delivers unprecedented visibility into application systems by automatically generating real-time Application System Maps, providing live views of application requests across tiers and components, and delivering load curve analysis to know how applications will scale.  These monitoring capabilities provide the facts IT support teams need to analyze production application performance across any application environment.

FactFinder delivers the key performance indicators, including service request response times, of applications that span multiple technology silos that ITSM Service Delivery Managers have been seeking to improve application service.  With the ability to monitor business-critical production applications in real time through FactFinder, enterprises have the actionable data they need to quickly locate performance degradation and improve IT service to the business.

The new FactFinder 3.0 is available beginning September 22, 2009.  Pricing starts at $10,000.