AnilDesai.net

Cloud Computing, Virtualization, .NET / SQL Server Development; Consultant / Author / Speaker

Archive for March, 2008

Using System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM)

Mar 28

Posted by Anil Desai in Management, Microsoft System Center, Virtualization | No Comments

It’s clear that many organizations are looking for solutions to managing their virtualization environments.  Numerous vendors have entered this market, and leading enterprise management vendors have added virtualization support to their products.  Microsoft’s entry – System Center Virtual Machine Manager – helps to address some of the most common problems related to deploying and managing VMs.  While there are certainly limitations in the first version of the product, Microsoft will soon be adding supporting for VMware. 

I recently wrote an article on SCVMM for SearchServerVirtualization.com.  From the introduction:

Is it really possible to have too much of a good thing? When it comes to virtual machines (VMs), that often seems to be the case. More is not necessarily better from the standpoint of systems administration. The issue of VM sprawl – the rapid proliferation of virtual machines in a production environment – can present a challenge. Apart from the larger number of operating systems and application stacks to manage, the entire process of IT systems management can be upended.

For most IT departments, automation is a necessity for managing more than a few systems, whether physical or virtual. In this tip, I will offer a solution: Microsoft’s System Center application suite. While this software package is only one option, I’ll use it to illustrate how automation can help resolve real issues.

You can access the entire article, Managing virtual machines with Microsoft System Center for free online.

RunAs Radio: Virtualization / Hyper-V Discussion

Mar 27

Posted by Anil Desai in IT Tips, Management, Microsoft Hyper-V, Systems Admin | No Comments

Earlier this morning, I had the privilege of chatting with Richard Campbell and Greg Hughes, hosts of RunAs Radio.  The discussion focused on Microsoft’s Hyper-V, and the importance of virtualization management/automation.  It’s a fairly fast-paced conversation and is around 30 minutes long.  The show will be available shortly (and for free) at http://runasradio.com/default.aspx?showNum=52. 

Virtual Strategy Magazine: Optimizing Virtualization Performance

Mar 24

Posted by Anil Desai in Management, Policies | No Comments

M article, Empire Management, Episode 2: Optimizing Virtualization Performance, is now available on the Virtual Strategy Magazine web site.  From the article’s introduction:

Whether your primary job function is more like that of Han Solo – avoiding Imperial pursuit forces – or that of Darth Vader (doing said pursuing), you know that performance is important.  Part of every IT manager’s mission is to squeeze as much potential performance out of existing investments as possible.  While your data center might resemble a massive Death Star, it’s important that it’s individual components run as smoothly as, say, a TIE Fighter.

In my previous article in this series, Empire Management 101, I focused on topics related to how you can monitor the performance of your virtualization host servers and the VMs that they support.  In this article, I’m going to focus on the application of this information – how you can use performance details to make better decisions about how to deploy and distribute your VMs.

Don’t let all the Star Wars references fool you – the article does include some important technical recommendations for monitoring, managing, and optimizing virtualization performance.  May the Force be with you!

Advanced NAS Features for Virtualization Article

Mar 10

Posted by Anil Desai in Management, Storage, Virtualization | No Comments

I recently wrote an article on using Network-Attached Storage (NAS) devices for supporting virtualization.  You can find the article, Using advanced NAS features in virtualization at SearchServerVirtualization.  From the article’s introduction:

When it comes to determining the type of storage to deploy, are you a storage-technology snob? Or do you consider network-attached storage (NAS) devices as part of your storage strategy?

There’s clearly a perception among some systems administrators that high-end solutions such as Fibre Channel-based SANs provide the better performance. Or they might prefer products based on iSCSI, which provide some of the same benefits such as block-level disk I/O. Plus, iSCSI-based products run over existing copper-based Ethernet connections instead of requiring a much more expensive fiber optic infrastructure, making them even more attractive to admins.

So where does this leave the tried and true NAS device? While newer technologies get most of the attention, modern NAS devices provide many new features, including ones that simplify virtualization and support larger numbers of virtual machines (VMs). How these advanced features benefit virtualization will be the focus of this tip.

Personally, I think NAS solutions are great for organizations of all sizes.  They’re certainly far more cost effective than Fibre Channel SANs and work well with solutions that don’t need block-level I/O.

Read the full article to learn about these advanced features and to find out if or how NAS devices can help alleviate potential storage-related issues for your virtual infrastructure.