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VKernel Corporation

VKernel Introduces New Optimization Pack

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VKernel Corporation has announced the new VKernel Optimization Pack to help organizations achieve maximum ROI from their virtualization projects.

VKernel’s new Optimization Pack includes three powerful applets, Wastefinder, Rightsizer and Inventory, that help users improve the efficiency of their virtual infrastructures. The new applets allow organizations to run more virtual machines (VMs) with the same hardware, maximize the utilization of infrastructure resources, reclaim terabytes of wasted storage, reduce VM sprawl and assure optimal VM performance.

A successful virtualization project balances proper resource allocations and utilizations with VM performance and cost per VM. With the Optimization Pack, VKernel enables organization to rapidly achieve their goals by providing a very affordable and simple-to-use toolset. Delivered as a virtual appliance, deployment is instant and users immediately begin solving their critical needs. The VKernel Optimization Pack includes three powerful management applets:

  • Wastefinder – quickly finds where resource capacity (CPU, memory, and storage) are being wasted in the virtual infrastructure. By identifying zombie VMs, expired snapshots, and other wasteful consumers, users can reclaim expensive capacity to optimize virtual environments and achieve a better, faster ROI.
  • VM Rightsizer – a simple tool for tuning your VMs with the right amount of resources (CPU, memory, and storage) to drive maximum VM densities without impacting performance. Rightsizer is unique in its ability to make recommendations and automatically implement changes to find improperly allocated resources and optimally configure VMs.
  • Inventory – automatically collects important information about all VMs in the virtual infrastructure and creates a detailed inventory report showing VM name, created by and when, resource allocations, and much more. The inventory is continually updated to match the dynamic environment and is searchable by different criteria to quickly find specific information.

VKernel currently supports VMware ESX and vSphere and plans to support Microsoft Hyper-V (later this year) as well as Citrix XEN Server. The company believes that a heterogeneous capacity management and optimization offering will be increasingly important as the enterprise virtual infrastructure becomes a mix of hypervisor platforms.

The VKernel Optimization Pack is currently available in a bundle with Capacity Analyzer 4.1 for $399 per CPU socket including the first year of maintenance and support. Subscription pricing is also offered at $179 annually per CPU socket including maintenance and support.

VKernel Adds Support For VMware’s vSphere 4 Platform

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VKernel has announced that its complete product suite fully supports the VMware vSphere 4 platform. VKernel products complement vSphere 4 and deliver advanced capabilities and functionality to enhance performance of the virtual data center and achieve a faster return on investment.

The VKernel suite of virtual server health and optimization tools solve a number of critical data center challenges impacting IT staffs today. Delivered as a VMA (Virtual Management Appliance), VKernel software instantly deploys and is simple to use to maintain the health of the data center and optimize resource allocations — reducing operational and capital costs and delivering a superior ROI. VKernel currently supports VMware ESX and vSphere, and plans to support Microsoft Hyper-V and Citrix XEN. The company’s current products include:

  • Capacity Analyzer — proactively and predicatively monitor shared capacity resources to prevent current and future problems and optimize the environment
  • Chargeback — provide instant cost visibility and implement a chargeback processes
  • Modeler — quickly test and validate additions and changes to see the performance impact on the environment before going live
  • SearchMyVM — free “Google–like” search utility quickly finds information in virtual environments
  • CompareMyVM — a free community website tool allows visitors to exchange and compare virtual machine (VM) resource allocations with that of the community at large
  • SnapshotMyVM — free tool that completely automates the time–consuming process of documenting the virtual data center

Industry Moves: VKernel Taps Kevin Conklin For VP Product Marketing Role

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VKernel Corporation today announced that Kevin Conklin has joined the company as vice president of product management and marketing. A 30–year high–tech industry veteran with proven success in the development and implementation of strategic marketing programs and communications, Conklin comes to VKernel from his most recent position as vice president of marketing at Mazu Networks.

During his tenure as vice president of marketing at Mazu Networks, Conklin was focused on repositioning the company to take advantage of its unique market differentiators. In one year, his efforts led to a 50 percent increase in quarterly revenue resulting in Mazu’s acquisition by Riverbed Technology. Previously, Conklin was the chief marketing officer for SMARTS where he led an effort to refocus marketing messaging and expand channel and partner programs. SMARTS was acquired by EMC.

He was also the executive vice president of marketing and business development for Concord Communications which was widely recognized as the market share leader in a field of over 20 network management vendors. Concord was acquired by CA.

VKernel Scores $7 Million Series B Round

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VKernel Corporation, a provider of easy-to-use and quick-to-deploy virtual server management and optimization solutions, today announced it has closed a $7 million Series B round of funding. The latest round was led by Longworth Venture Partners and joined by prior investors Hummer Winblad Venture Partners and Polaris Venture Partners. The new funding will be used to accelerate sales, marketing, and product development efforts to capitalize on the rapidly growing server virtualization management market.

The VKernel suite of next-generation virtual server management and optimization solutions is designed to solve real world data center challenges that are impacting IT departments. VKernel leverages the virtual appliance format to instantly deploy its products for enhancing performance, lowering operational and capital costs, optimizing virtual environments of all sizes, and delivering instant ROI. Currently, VKernel supports VMware ESX and plans to support Microsoft Hyper-V, Citrix XEN, and others. The company’s current products include:

  • Capacity Analyzer — proactively and predicatively monitor shared capacity resources to prevent current and future problems and optimize the environment
  • Chargeback — provide instant cost visibility and implement a chargeback processes
  • Modeler — quickly test and validate additions and changes to see the performance impact on the environment before going live
  • SearchMyVM — free “Google-like” search utility quickly finds information in virtual environments
  • CompareMyVM — a free community website tool allows visitors to exchange and compare virtual machine (VM) resource allocations with that of the community at large
  • SnapshotMyVM — free tool that completely automates the time-consuming process of documenting the virtual data center

Nilanjana Bhowmik, Partner at Longworth Venture Partners, and Doug McNary, the former CEO of Onaro (acquired by NetApp in 2008) and past executive vice president at Motive and Tivoli, have joined the VKernel Board of Directors.

VKernel Ships Capacity Analyzer 2.0 Virtual Appliance

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VKernel Corporation announced today the company is now shipping its Capacity Analyzer 2.0 virtual appliance.  New features and functionality include Disk I/O statistics, a more intuitive user interface, and enhanced scalability to ensure the optimal performance of the most demanding VMware ESX environments.

Capacity Analyzer continuously and proactively monitors shared CPU, memory, and storage resource utilization trends in VMware ESX environments across hosts, clusters, and resource pools.  By quickly identifying current and future performance-impacting capacity bottlenecks, Capacity Analyzer provides the critical resource utilization data to properly plan and grow the virtual server infrastructure, ensures optimal service level agreements (SLAs), and lowers the cost per virtual machine to realize a faster return on investment (ROI).

VKernel’s patent-pending Capacity Analyzer technology provides users with a unique single-screen dashboard view of their complete VMware environment and dynamically updates as additions and changes are made.  From the Capacity Analyzer dashboard, users have the advanced analytics to monitor and manage shared resource capacity, allocation, and utilization.

The VKernel Capacity Analyzer virtual appliance is currently available with pricing starting at $199 per CPU socket for the standard edition. There’s also a free, full-featured 14-day trial version available from the VKernel website.

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VKernel Debuts SearchMyVM, Search Utility for VMware ESX Server

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VKernel Corporation today announced the release of SearchMyVM, a free “Google-like” search utility for quickly finding information within rapidly expanding VMware ESX environment.

Check out the VKernel SearchMyVM Beta here.

VKernel SearchMyVM instantly deploys exactly like each one of VKernel’s virtual appliances. With a “Google-like” search interface, users can find their virtual machines, hosts, clusters, storage, resource pools, files, snapshots, VMware tools, applications and configuration information. Over 75 different types of attributes are fully indexed and available to customers for search.

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