virtualization.info Editors

Parallels released a new build for its virtualization product on the Windows / Linux platforms.

This Release Candidate brings in extended support for upcoming Microsoft Windows Vista (now RC1 supported) and an improvement in Intel VT / AMD SVM support.

Dowload it here.

At the same time the company also released a new build for its product on the Mac OS platform.

This new beta adds supports for Vista RC1, eliminates kernel panics and introduces a new tool to limit memory use of Parallel Desktops on 2GB Mac Pros.
Memory management will be further improved in next builds.

Download it here.

Quoting from the ToutVirtual official announcement:

ToutVirtual, an emerging leader in management software for virtual computing infrastructures, today announced that it is now part of the Novell PartnerNet program.

ToutVirtual’s virtualization management products support Xen and VMware and are ideal for customers using SUSE Linux Enterprise from Novell who have requirements for simpler yet powerful virtualization management software.

Microsoft TechNet published a new webcast about Virtual Server 2005 scripting, also including 4 downloadable demos:

• Designing Permissions
• Scripting Virtual Machines, Part 1
• Scripting Virtual Machines, Part 2
• Scripting MOM

Download webcast and demos here.

Thanks to Virtualserver.tv for the news.

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Quoting from the PlateSpin official announcement / Virtual Iron official annoucement:

PlateSpin Ltd. and Virtual Iron Software today announced a new technology and business partnership that will help users assess the best opportunities for enterprise-class virtualization in their data centers and streamline solution deployment. The companies have agreed to develop joint product offerings for users and resellers as well as collaborate on marketing and sales efforts.
…
With the agreement, PlateSpin, which provides software that analyzes physical and virtual resources and provides OS portability between physical and virtual environments, will support Virtual Iron’s enterprise-class virtualization and management platform. PlateSpin PowerConvert is an automated software solution that enables customers to migrate data, applications, and operating systems across physical, virtual, blade and image-based infrastructures in any direction. The combination of PlateSpin PowerConvert and Virtual Iron will provide users with the ability to migrate physical servers into Virtual Iron virtual infrastructure to quickly achieve the benefits of large-scale server consolidation, rapid provisioning, high availability and capacity management. General availability is planned for November.

The companies also announced that they will make available PlateSpin PowerRecon with support for Virtual Iron at the same time.
…
Virtual Iron will bundle one free migration of PlateSpin PowerConvert with every Virtual Iron Consolidation and Enterprise Edition license. Subsequent migrations will be available for purchase from Virtual Iron and PlateSpin authorized resellers. Virtual Iron will also offer a server assessment solution as well as a server consolidation bundle through its network of authorized resellers…

This announcement is indeed interesting.

PlateSpin is at the moment the unquestioned leader of P2V migrations market, being the only solution able to seamless support multiple virtualization platforms, virtual operating systems and complex migrations (V2P, V2V).

The fact PlateSpin, already supporting VMware and Microsoft products, now introduces support for Virtual Iron means 2 things:

• PlateSpin believes Xen (which Virtual Iron will use as virtualization engine for its upcoming 3.0 version) will likely be used in corporate environments
• PlateSpin preferred the Xen implementation provided by Virtual Iron over the one provided by XenSource

At this point will be interesting to see which support will be provided by key producers of multi-virtualization platforms, like SWsoft.

Quoting from the Virtual Iron official announcement:

Virtual Iron Software, a provider of software solutions for creating and managing virtual infrastructure in the data center, today announced the launch of its Channel One program for value-added resellers, systems integrators and consulting firms.
…
Virtual Iron has already secured a number of charter members in the Channel One Program in North America, Europe and Asia, including:

• Akibia
• Compsat
• Continental Resources
• Enterico
• Dataline
• Enterprise Linux/ Datum UK
• Foedus
• Logics One
• Mandarin
• Nissho Japan
• NSI
• Precision Systems
• ProServe IT
• Prosper Intelligence
• Sigmanet
• Virtualize IT

It’s worth to note here Virtual Iron saved a larger number of partners than XenSource at its program launch, despite the fact both companies product is based on the same engine: Xen.

It’s also worth to note Virtual Iron is already trying to permeate the asian market while its competitor chosen partners only in North America and Europe.

Quoting from the NetXen official announcement:

…
The NetSlice architecture introduced today provides a broadly applicable set of functions for I/O virtualization, including support for as many as 1,024 virtual machines (VMs), multiple DMA engines, DMA remapping for PCIe-related activities, interrupt moderation for managing each virtual channel independently, mapping of multiple MAC addresses to the virtual NICs of a given VM, multiple transmit and receive queues dedicated to each VM, and virtual switching and traffic steering based on Layer 2 and Layer 3 packet header information.

NetXen has configured these functions to work with currently available server virtualization hardware and software. Since the industry has yet to establish standards for I/O virtualization, NetXen offers operating-system-specific solutions where necessary. As standardized schemes become available, they can easily be implemented in NetXen’s Intelligent NICs via firmware upgrades. Datacenter investments in the new virtualized I/O architecture are thus protected into the foreseeable future.

In addition to introducing the NetSlice I/O virtualization architecture, NetXen is announcing support for VMware’s ESX3 system. The new NetSlice I/O architecture works with the ESX3 system to enhance VM scalability…

Canadian Business Online published the PROFIT HOT 50, a list of top 50 emerging companies in Canada.

Among them, at the 4th position, there is PlateSpin with a stunning growth of 4,781% (no, it’s not a typo).

Check the whole list here.

Dell published a very short but interesting paper about performances of Microsoft SQL Server 2005 in a VMware ESX Server 2.5.2 infrastructure:

…
To investigate the performance of SQL Server 2005 in a server consolidation environment, in May 2006 the Scalable Enterprise Technology Center compared the performance of 15 VMs running SQL Server 2000 with 15 VMs running SQL Server 2005 on a Dell PowerEdge 2850 server with two dual-core Intel Xeon processors at 2.8 GHz and 8 GB of RAM. Each VM had the same configuration except for the version of SQL Server, with 512 MB of RAM, a 10 GB hard disk, and a vmxnet virtual Gigabit Ethernet4 NIC.

ESX Server 2.5.2 was installed on the PowerEdge 2850 server, and Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition with SP1 was the guest OS on all the VMs. The number of VMs running on the server was set at 15, which was based on findings in the Dell white paper VMware ESX Server Performance Gains on Dell PowerEdge 2850 Dual Core Servers…

One of the most critical service to move in a virtual environment is database depending on its high I/O workloads, and at today I still see so many customers refusing to migrate.
Benchmarks like this one should help clarifying when is sensible use a virtual database and when not.

Unfortunately this study just compared performances between virtualized SQL Server 2000 and 2005, and not performances between a physical SQL Server 2005 and a virtual one.

Read the whole paper at source.

Thanks to VMTN Blog for the news.

Summary
This book covers the native tools that VMware provides with ESX Server. It then discusses in detail the different scripting API’s and how they can be leveraged to provide some very useful, practical and time saving tools to manage a virtual infrastructure. From virtual server provisioning to backups and everything in between, all are covered in detail with real world examples that have been tested and will work either copied directly from the book or with slight modifications for the reader’s specific environments.
This book is a one stop shop for virtual tools. VMware provides the most robust virtualization platform in the market and it has very cool management tools like VirtualCenter and the MUI. Yet more often then not, the most overlooked and most powerful management tools are either not considered ort unknown. These are the native command line tools and scripting possibilities the ESX Server has built right in it. From simple shell scripts to COM and Perl and new in ESX Server 2.5 Common Information Model (CIM) VMware provides API’s to access your virtual infrastructure and leverage 100% of its functionality.

Additionally, VMware has included outstanding command line tools the provide powerful possibilities for those willing to use them. The scripts found in this book have been used in real world engagements and deployments of ESX Server. The reader will be able to copy almost directly with very little customization if any. By combining the graphical tools such like those found in the MUI and VirtualCenter with the power you’ll find with the scripts detailed within the following chapters, you will be able to get under the hood of your virtual infrastructure, tune it up and make it purr.

Abouth the Author
Al Muller is a VMware Certified Professional as well as a MCSE and CCNA. He has planned, designed, and implemented a number of server consolidation and virtualization projects and currently works as a Senior Consultant for Callisma. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English from San Diego State University.