virtualization.info Editors

Microsoft schedules a bunch of webcasts for Virtual Server 2005

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Quoting from official page:


– Microsoft Executive Circle Webcast: Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 – Product Overview

Virtual Server 2005 is Microsoft’s virtual machine (VM) solution for Windows Server 2003 which enables customers to run multiple operating systems on a single physical server. Join us for this 60-minute session to learn how Virtual Server can help you increase operational efficiency in three key areas: legacy application migration, server consolidation, software development and test environments.

– TechNet Webcasts: Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 – Best Practices for Migrating and Consolidating Existing Application Servers

Attend this session to learn best practices and determining when to “virtualize”, re-write or port existing applications. Also, view a demonstration of the Virtual Server Migration Tool automating the task of migrating existing applications into virtual machines.

– TechNet Webcast: Virtual Server 2005 – Setting up a virtual test and development environment

Attend this session to learn how Microsoft’s Virtual Server 2005 can help you build a cost effective virtual test lab that requires less hardware and time.

– TechNet Webcast: Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 – Installing a two-node virtual machine cluster

Attend this session to learn how to create a two-node cluster of virtual machines running Windows Server 2003 – a key feature of Virtual Server 2005. This session will include a demonstration of the steps involved in building a cluster of virtual machines.

– TechNet Webcast: Virtual Server 2005 COM API: Automating Your Virtual World

The session will focus on demonstrating small scriplet building blocks and assembling them into useful scripts. Session assumes knowledge on writing VBScripts.

– TechNet Webcast: Microsoft Virtual Server Technical Overview

We will discuss what a Virtual environment is and how the Server product compares to the desktop product, Microsoft Virtual PC, and when to use each solution. We will cover the installation and setup of the product from the actual server to the actual drives

Tool: Virtual Floppy Driver 2.0 beta

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Kenji Kato is going to release version 2 of his good tool VFD. Here the new features:


– 2 virtual floppy drives

– RAM disk mode
Create a copy of an image file on RAM and mount it. Enables to open read-only files as writable media. Changes are not written back to the image file (discarded on close).

– Supported image size
160KB, 180KB, 320KB, 360KB, 640KB, 720KB, 820KB, 1.2MB, 1.44MB, 1.68MB, 1.72MB, 2.88MB

– WinImage compressed image (*.IMZ) support (RAM disk mode only)

– Formatting virtual media
New images created with VFD are pre-formatted. Enables to format virtual media when Windows’ format doesn’t work.

– Switching write-protection of virtual drive on the fly.

– Permanent drive letter
A drive letter is not removed when an image is closed. Drive letters are preserved until explicitly removed. The same drive letter is assigned the next time the driver starts.

– Shell extension
Open/Close an image with the right click menu on the vitrual drive icon. Virtual Floppy Drive property sheet. Drag-and-drop an image file with the right button to the virtual drive icon to open it (Windows 2000 and later).

Go ahead and download it here.

VMware Virtual Infrastructure products recognized for excellence from Windows IT Pro readers

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Quoting from Yahoo Finance:


VMware VirtualCenter Named Best New Product; VMware Workstation Named Best Windows Development Tool and Best Testing/Debugging Software for Second Consecutive Year.

VMware, Inc., the global leader in virtual infrastructure software for industry-standard systems, today announced that VMware VirtualCenter was selected a winner in the Best New Product category of the Windows IT Pro Readers’ Choice Awards. In addition, VMware Workstation was selected a winner in the Best Windows Development Tool and Best Testing/Debugging Software categories, marking the second consecutive year VMware Workstation won both awards.

“Recognition from peers in the industry is an honor and is the ultimate ‘seal of approval’ for the products that won,” said Kim Paulsen, group publisher at Windows IT Pro. “The third-annual Windows IT Pro Readers’ Choice Awards were started as a way for readers to choose and recommend the best technology products in the industry. The awards program gives readers the opportunity to voice their opinions and for leading technology companies to receive the recognition they deserve.”

Readers were asked to vote on their product preferences in 16 broad technology categories. More than 2000 readers chose the best among more than 700 products and services.

“Few people know more about the best values in Windows technology products and services than Windows IT Pro readers — the people who actually do the buying on behalf of their organizations. By voting for the most outstanding products, IT professionals have rewarded excellence in the Windows technology market,” said Karen Forster, editorial director at Windows IT Pro.

“We’re honored that VMware VirtualCenter and VMware Workstation have been recognized as best-in-class by the readers of Windows IT Pro Magazine,” said Michael Mullany, vice president of marketing at VMware. “These awards underscore the value of our virtual infrastructure products and validate the choice made by thousands of customers who have already adopted VMware virtual infrastructure as a core IT strategy. As we look ahead, we remain committed to continuing to bring useful and innovative technology to market.”

Since its introduction in 1999, VMware Workstation has revolutionized software development by dramatically simplifying and accelerating the way software is developed and deployed. Users run multiple operating systems, including Windows and Linux, simultaneously and independently on a single PC in fully networked, portable virtual machines. Today VMware Workstation is used by more than 2.2 million people worldwide for software development, testing, deployment, application compatibility, operating system migration, training, sales demos, help desk support and technical support.

Computer Associates delivers support for Microsoft Virtual Server 2005

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Quoting from ITWeb:


Computer Associates International, Inc today announced that it is delivering immediate support for Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 across its Unicenter operations management, BrightStor storage management and eTrust security management product lines, enabling customers to fully leverage their new virtualisation capabilities and optimise the performance and value of their on-demand computing environments. Microsoft today announced the general availability of Virtual Server 2005.

“Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 is a powerful solution for corporate IT organisations seeking to increase the efficiency of their processing infrastructure and to more flexibly respond to the shifting demands of the business,” said Juliette Sultan, senior vice-president of product marketing at CA.

“By delivering same-day support, CA is enabling our mutual customers to immediately manage their new on-demand environments, protect the data in those environments with unprecedented efficiency, and maintain the highest levels of information security – without having to increase staff workloads or headcount.”

CA’s Unicenter, BrightStor and eTrust solutions automate and streamline management of complex virtual computing environments by leveraging Microsoft Virtual Server 2005’s sophisticated native resource administration mechanisms.

– CA’s Unicenter Network and Systems Management (Unicenter NSM) can now monitor virtual machines running on Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 to ensure their availability. In addition, Unicenter NSM Systems Performance Option now offers diagnostics and tools to optimise server performance. The Unicenter solutions enable Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 to be managed in the same way as physical enterprise computing resources. This common management is essential for customers as they transition over time from traditional to on-demand architectures.

– BrightStor ARCserve Backup streamlines protection of Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 environments by allowing applications residing on different servers in the virtual server environment to be backed up in a simple and easy-to-use manner.

– eTrust Antivirus and eTrust Secure Content Manager provide enhanced security for Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 by detecting malware, and by filtering Web and e-mail content. eTrust Vulnerability Manager monitors and remediates vulnerabilities exclusive to virtualised environments and ensures that malicious code is not propagated across multiple virtual machines residing in the same server.

VMware starts up an Italian office

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Finally VMware decided to open an office in my country. I already met Alberto Bullani, VMware Corporate Account Manager, and had a really positive impression about what can be done with a localized presence on our market.

If you’re interested look at the new italian office details here.

Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 will not be a part of MSDN

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Microsoft decided to not make available VS 2005 for MSDN subscribers. Anyway the company arranged a special promotion:

The VS and MSDN teams have collaborated to create a special offer for Virtual Server 2005 Standard and Enterprise Editions which are being made available only to MSDN Universal and MSDN Enterprise
subscribers between October 1, 2004 and March 31, 2005. This is a special promotional offer.

MSDN Universal and Enterprise level subscribers are being granted special access to Virtual Server 2005 Standard and Enterprise Editions as downloads from MSDN Subscriber Downloads only. Virtual Server 2005 Standard and Enterprise Editions will not be made available by fulfillment or in the monthly subscription shipments.

This is the full retail, production version of the product and does not include the typical MSDN restrictions of running only in dev/test environments and can be run in production (except on XP Pro).

This makes sense: VMware doesn’t give away GSX Server to MCTs, so why Microsoft shouldn’t do the same with Virtual Server? Hey! wait a moment: Microsoft make available any kind of products on MSDN… why not Virtual Server…?

Microsoft Virtual PC 7.0 released under pressure, lacks planned features

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Quoting from AppleInsider:


Amidst pressure from several avenues, Microsoft was forced to cut features from its new Windows emulation software in order to deliver G5 compatibility without further delays.

Many of the feature enhancements originally planned for Virtual PC 7.0 did not make it into the version of software that will begin shipping this month, multiple sources tell AppleInsider.

According to reports, the emerging presence of Apple’s G5 processor played a major role in Microsoft’s decision to trim a significant number of features from the emulation software late in its development cycle. As a result, sources said that the software may not run as fast as some users may have come to expect.

– Native Graphics Card Support

While Apple began introducing G5-based computers in June of last year, a G5 compatible version of Virtual PC had yet to ship a year later. It was about this time that Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft began feeling pressure from Apple to get the product out the door, sources said. With current and potential G5 customers miffed over a lack of Virtual PC support, and an imminent release of the iMac G5 around the corner, Microsoft began to trim around the fat.

One of the key features to hit the chopping block was native graphics card support. Although Virtual PC 7.0 does deliver faster, cleaner graphics, users will find that the software still emulates the S3 Virge chipset from the late 90s, with no 3D acceleration. Sources said that native graphics support remains under development, but is unlikely to surface for many months.

– Expanded RAM and emulated RAM Disk

Several additional features have also been delayed until future revisions of software, such as an increase in the software’s PC memory from 512MB to 4GB and a new option to use Virtual PC’s virtual PC hard drive as a RAM disk for faster virtual disk performance.

– Multiprocessor Support Refinements

Microsoft has also decided to hold off on some refinements to Virtual PC’s multiprocessing support, which will eventually allow audio emulation, networking, IDE I/O, and USB functions to be offloaded from the primary processor.

Virtual PC 7.0 was released to manufacturing late last month and should begin arriving on retail store shelves in October. The release will deliver support for G5-based Apple computers, better graphics handling, expanded preferences, and an improved user experience.

Future versions of Virtual PC are expected to reacquire most, if not all of the features cut from the development of Virtual PC 7.0. Unfortunately, sources were unable to provide target release dates, stating only that some features may not mature until next summer.

Veritas first to deliver wide area disaster recovery capabilities for Microsoft Virtual Server 2005

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Quoting from ComputerWorld:

VERITAS Software Corporation today announced that VERITAS Storage Foundation HA for Windows software is the first to deliver the combination of enhanced high availability and wide area disaster recovery capabilities to Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 customers. VERITAS Storage Foundation HA for Windows integrates VERITAS Volume Manager, and VERITAS Cluster Server the industry?s leading1 independent heterogeneous clustering and availability software, to help ensure continuous availability of mission-critical applications and data.

With the utility computing model in mind, customers can now deploy Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 to consolidate physical servers across their IT environments. To help ensure that no single point of failure for multiple virtual machines is introduced, VERITAS Storage Foundation HA for Windows software is designed to monitor the state of a virtual machine and respond to failures in the most logical manner, translating into high availability and minimal downtime for customers. With VERITAS Storage Foundation HA for Windows, new standby virtual servers are not required; therefore high availability is achieved without the need to invest in additional equipment.

?VERITAS continues to demonstrate its commitment to Windows customers by delivering high availability and disaster recovery software for any operating system hosted by Microsoft Virtual Server 2005,? said David Hamilton, director of the Windows and Enterprise Management Division at Microsoft Corp. ?We believe VERITAS Storage Foundation HA for Windows can help customers do more with less by building manageability into their applications.?

Integral to the company?s strategy to enable utility computing, while protecting the data and underlying applications, VERITAS Storage Foundation HA for Windows software allows Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 customers to leverage existing technology and maximize server utilization across their IT infrastructures. With a utility model of computing, data and applications are always available and VERITAS Cluster Server and VERITAS Volume Manager help provide this capability by protecting the end-user and eliminating single points of failure for consolidated virtual servers. VERITAS Cluster Server also protects against planned and unplanned downtime by providing automatic or manual failover of virtual machines between physical hosts ? another contributing factor to keeping Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 highly available.

“VERITAS continues to embrace and extend the power of the Windows Server System by offering customers an integrated, interoperable high availability solution for Microsoft Virtual Server 2005,? said Bob Maness, senior director of product marketing, VERITAS Software. ?With the additional support of Microsoft Virtual Server 2005, VERITAS Storage Foundation HA for Windows software adds to our on-going efforts to help organizations protect and manage their applications and data regardless of the platform or operating system they choose.”

A Pioneer in Clustering and High Availability For nearly a decade, VERITAS has been an innovation engine developing and delivering high availability software to customers. Clustering has evolved in that time in three key phases. The first phase offered rudimentary two node failover solutions intended to remove single points of failure between storage, servers and applications physically connected via SCSI interfaces. This offered little peace of mind to customers looking to ensure the availability of their applications and data in the event of a physical disaster at their primary site. The second phase advanced the concept of high availability by connecting multiple nodes of clustered servers to SANS offering comparable application performance to end-users and bringing true disaster recovery to the enterprise. The current and most exciting phase of clustering ties together multiple nodes of storage, servers and applications through a clustered file system and a clustered volume manager moving customers rapidly toward an automated infrastructure and utility computing.

Tool: Nagios plug-in for VMware ESX Server

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Kevin Hilscher just wrote “check_vmfs”, a Perl plug-in for Nagios.
Similar to the check_disk plug-in, check_vmfs monitors the free space available on vmfs volumes and will return warning or critical messages to nagios based on user-defined thresholds (ie: warn at 10%, critical at 5%). The check_vmfs plug-in must be executed remotely using the check_by_ssh plug-in because check_vmfs uses the VMware “vdf” command behind the scenes, and the vdf command must be executed as a root user.

You can download it here.