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VMware Releases Fusion 2.0.5

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VMware Fusion 2.0.5 is a maintenance release of VMware Fusion 2.

It is a free upgrade for all VMware Fusion 1 and VMware Fusion 2 customers, and provides the following enhancements:

  • Supports Mac OS X Server guest operating systems on Macs with Intel Xeon 5500 and 3500 Series processors (based on Nehalem micro-architecture)
  • Provides experimental support for Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard Server as a guest operating system (32-bit only)
  • Provides experimental support for Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard as a host operating system (32-bit only)
  • Supports Ubuntu 9.04 as a guest operating system, including features such as VMware Tools pre-built modules and Easy Install
  • Reduces CPU usage when a virtual machine is idle under VMware Fusion
  • Contains fixes for more than 80 bugs

You can download VMware Fusion 2.0.5 now.

Siemens Enters Virtualization Arena

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Siemens IT Solutions and Services today introduced its full-scale Virtualization Services. Based upon three core tenets — Engage, Enable, and Evolve — the package of services is designed to guide customers through what Siemens calls the “Virtualization Evolution”.

The three tenets of the Siemens approach are designed to guide customers through the various stages of the Virtualization Evolution. At the outset, Siemens engages virtualization to simplify technology tools and business processes. By simplifying the IT and process environment, companies can reduce the number of non-value-added tasks and improve business efficiency. This simplified architecture must be housed and enabled in some fashion, and containment is the means.

Containment engages all of the IT components into a centrally managed environment. By using the VMware vSphere 4 platform with Intel Xeo processor-based servers for containment, companies will be able to save power, reduce emissions, and consolidate server space. After simplifying and containing system architecture, the next step is evolving to the optimum state of fully dynamic infrastructure. Emerging client virtualization solutions incorporating Intel vPro technology provide enhanced security and improved manageability with increased end user flexibility. The entire Virtual Evolution is a journey along the road from initial simplification to the fully dynamic use of IT infrastructure.

Siemens IT Solutions and Services is one of the few companies that has demonstrated full scale virtualization of IT services, having implemented it on a global scale for its parent company, Siemens AG. “No one else is doing it on this scale in real time,” said Michael Kollar, Chief Architect. “We’ve implemented virtualization from data centers to the desktop. As such, we have a deep understanding of both the IT and business ramifications. Virtualization is about both content and technology,” he said.

For its Virtualization Services, Siemens has drawn upon its considerable experience in IT transformation to create a process that produces predictable and repeatable results. The five components can be utilized in sequence, individually, or in almost any combination.

Siemens contends that its Virtualization Services will provide customers with considerable financial and operational benefits, including:

  • Infrastructure cost reduction and optimization by managing more workloads without adding additional resources, and reducing power and cooling requirements
  • Server consolidation and infrastructure optimization created by pooling compute resources for improved utilization
  • Improved operational flexibility and responsiveness through managed IT infrastructure, based on standardized services, processes and automation

Siemens’ Virtualization Services are powered by Intel architecture based server and client platforms. The software is powered by VMware vSphere 4. Siemens feels strongly that the relationship between these three partners affords them an innovation advantage in the virtualization market, especially as it applies to cloud computing. Overall, this virtualized infrastructure provides important strategic, economic, and operational benefits, including:

  • Non-stop hardware maintenance
  • Dynamic resource management
  • Instantaneous backups and reliable disaster recovery

VMware And HP Enhance Partnership

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VMware announced that it signed an OEM agreement to integrate HP Discovery and Dependency Mapping software into the VMware vCenter suite and is also working with HP on new datacenter management initiatives.

In addition, HP has integrated VMware ThinApp with the HP Client Automation policy-based management platform. Both of these initiatives will help customers seamlessly and cost-effectively manage their physical and virtual datacenter and desktop initiatives. Today’s announcement expands on the companies’ existing strong relationship designed to provide customers with complete solutions that help them build and manage dynamic datacenters for delivering IT as a service.

In the first area of collaboration, VMware will OEM the HP Discovery and Dependency Mapping software into the VMware vCenter management suite. VMware will integrate HP Discovery and Dependency Mapping software as a virtual appliance into VMware vCenter ConfigControl in 2010 after ConfigControl becomes available to further enable customers to maintain visibility and ensure compliance of configuration states in their VMware vSphere 4 environments. A combined solution will give VMware vCenter administrators “single pane of glass” visualization of how business services running in VMware virtual machines map to the physical infrastructure. This will enable customers to simplify management of their heterogeneous infrastructures through comprehensive discovery and dependency mapping as well as automation of common management tasks including change detection, configuration updates, provisioning, patching, and enforcement of compliance and security policies.

VMware has also worked with HP to extend the HP Client Automation policy-based management platform to support VMware ThinApp. This enables customers to standardize on a single client management solution to publish, deploy, track and report on virtualized applications along with physical applications. Customers can use the distributed infrastructure and preconfigured templates available in HP Client Automation software to manage VMware ThinApp’s new management functionality, decreasing infrastructure requirements and simplifying overall manageability. Customers can also use reports generated by HP Client Automation software to track virtual and physical applications for tighter asset management.

As a result of this enhanced collaboration and co-development, the two companies plan to jointly develop go-to-market and sales programs that leverage both companies’ direct and channel sales forces.

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

EMC Introduces Business Continuity Services Suite for VMware Environments

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EMC today announced a full range of new consulting, implementation, education and managed services that leverage EMC’s expertise in virtualization and business continuity. EMC Global Services can effectively integrate VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager into customers’ EMC business continuity environments to automate recovery of virtual environments.

Business continuity is a critical requirement in virtualized data centers as more mission-critical applications are virtualized. As a top-tier member of the VMware Partner Network with hundreds of VMware Certified Professionals (VCPs), and years of business continuity experience, EMC Global Services has the deep expertise to help customers address their availability and recovery challenges for virtual environments. EMC’s end-to-end solutions methodology applies best practices from both enterprise business continuity and virtualization disciplines to provide cost-effective recovery strategies for VMware environments. This approach leverages integration of EMC’s full portfolio of replication technology with the automation capabilities of VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager to provide a robust solution that mitigates risk. The following new EMC services help customers design and implement a consistent recovery strategy for x86 virtualized environments across the enterprise:

  • EMC Consulting services for VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager automate and provide a recovery strategy for virtualized infrastructures to integrate VMware vCenter Site Recovery manager into enterprise business continuity programs.
  • EMC Design and Implementation for VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager delivers a customized design and complete integration of VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager with customers’ existing business continuity plans.
  • EMC Education Services for VMware environments offers training modules including, VMware Integration with EMC Storage and Replication Technologies training for both EMC Symmetrix(R) and EMC CLARiiON(R), and VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager, to be proficient in installing, configuring, and operating VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager, as well as the testing of EMC disaster recovery plans.
  • EMC Residency Services for VMware environments provide the infrastructure management resources and expertise to manage the day-to-day operations of the virtual infrastructure.

VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager, when deployed in conjunction with EMC’s industry-leading portfolio of replication software including EMC SRDF (Symmetrix Remote Data Facility), EMC Celerra Replicator, EMC MirrorView and EMC RecoverPoint, enables customers to rapidly and efficiently bring their virtualized servers and mission-critical information online at a secondary site.

Customers who work with EMC Velocity2 Authorized Services Network (ASN) partners will also be able to accelerate the business benefits of integrating their EMC business continuity environments with VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager. Velocity2 ASN partners are trained, certified and field tested to provide value-add services in VMware environments, and channel partners who also VMware partner can further provide value to customers through their deep technical knowledge of EMC and VMware products.

EMC Global Services provides the strategic guidance and technology expertise organizations need to address their business and information infrastructure challenges and derive the maximum value from their information assets and investments. With over 13,000 professional- and support-service experts worldwide, plus a global network of alliances and partners, EMC Global Services leverages proven methodologies, industry best practices, experience and a knowledge base derived from EMC’s 30-year information-centric heritage to help customers reduce risk, lower costs and speed time to value. .

Layer 7 Release SecureSpan Virtual Appliance For Cloud Governance

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Layer 7 Technologies today announced the availability of the Layer 7 SecureSpan Virtual Appliance for cloud governance. The Virtual Appliance offers all the features of the SecureSpan family of hardware appliances, including sophisticated runtime governance, agent-less SOA management and industry-leading XML security in a VMware or ESX-based soft appliance. The Layer 7 Virtual Appliance for cloud governance allows organizations to secure cloud-based interactions, monitor service level conformance and adapt to changing conditions and needs.

Traditionally, Layer 7 customers have deployed the SecureSpan Virtual Appliance as a budget-friendly alternative to hardware appliances. The SecureSpan Virtual Appliance for cloud governance incorporates the new Layer 7 Enterprise Service Manager (ESM), which is a lightweight method of centrally managing, tracking and measuring application services no matter where those services reside: in enterprise SOAs, as part of a Software-as-a-Service offering or in cloud (both public and private) initiatives. With the Virtual Appliance for cloud governance, Layer 7 customers can seamlessly reuse their existing, on-premise SOA governance solution for their cloud-based initiatives.

In addition to cloud governance, Layer 7 enables organizations to control, monitor and adapt application services in a variety of enterprise settings, including internal environments and between external domains (such as partners or branch offices). Only Layer 7’s highly automated and interoperable gateway solutions, available as hardware, software and virtual (VMware) appliances, are capable of holistically governing today’s complex and ever-changing ecosystem of application services, no matter where they reside.