Liquefying IT

This video captures the state of server virtualization and the impact it is having in adjacent IT initiatives. I also step through desktop virtualization, network virtualization, and storage virtualization and the potential economic impact these strategies have on the business.

Microsoft Cloud OS strategy consists of on-prem, Azure, and the service provider revolving around the consistency of experience and services across each of the consumption models. Microsoft is additionally taking an aggressive stance by maintaining lock step pricing with Amazon.

It’s challenging to absorb everything Microsoft at the cadence they would like IT pros to keep pace with, but here are four areas to pay close attention to: Cloud OS, Azure, storage, and Configuration Manager. Microsoft Management Summit was an excellent event for those who attended, now Microsoft needs to crank up the volume for the world to hear. Too many IT pros keep saying “I didn’t know Microsoft did that!?!?!”

Moonshot is going to be used as a pivot point in the company to demonstrate technology leadership, validate that HP can and will innovate in a rapidly changing market, and, if all goes as planned, execute in delivering a new breed of servers into today’s modern data center.

Advantages and disadvantages of virtual computing infrastructure...

Everything in IT is software-defined. This term concerns me. It is not a term that is going to make its way into strategic IT conversations. True, from a pure definition perspective, it is accurate, but risks confusion as it gets translated with IT management and executive teams.

VDI is one of many different application delivery models. A comprehensive desktop and application delivery strategy must include a variety of delivery models that can span a wide variety of end-users and device types. Companies that pigeonhole themselves into a single delivery model risk being able to take advantage of the vast array of benefits desktop virtualization has to offer.

Amongst the the major systems vendors, SimpliVity and Nutanix are looking to shake things up with systems designed for virtualization.

Businesses looking to drive server virtualization to the next level have some choices to consider. They can continue to invest in the current platform and consider its management options, adopt a multiple hypervisor strategy, and/or consider IaaS. Watch the video to learn more about these options.

The transition to turnkey solutions is not going to happen overnight, but any IT organization in a hardware refresh cycle or about to kick off a new project that requires the procurement of new hardware should consider this approach. Great economic savings can be realized in time to value, ongoing IT operations, and renewed focused on higher IT priorities that aren’t focused on maintaining existing investments.

Nearly two-thirds (65%) of respondent organizations reported using more than one hypervisor. The multiple hypervisor model is here to stay and is on the rise. If, how, and when IT embraces a more robust management strategy is still TBD.

Larry Ellison’s keynote proved to be packed with announcements to open Oracle Open World 2012.

The IT industry is littered with acronyms and buzz words that change at such a rapid pace that few can actually keep up with what they truly mean. Just as one settles in to our conversations, another one pops up to keep us on our toes. IT professionals can be bombarded by these terms, leaving them with a great buzz-word bingo fodder, but not with any meaningful value.

Check out my video blog from VMworld, where I detail what's new in virtualization, what's interesting, and what I liked at the show.  VMware is at a crossroads, so the question that I'm left with is--how does VMware change and adapt to these new circumstances going forward?

VMworld continues to be a fantastic industry trade show, and it acts as a central rallying point for the IT community. Many of the attendees share that VMworld is the only event they are able to attend during the year, and they tend to use the time wisely by attending sessions, going to popular hands-on labs, and browsing the expo floor.

Licensing, partnering, customer loyalty....can VMware maintain momentum and advance its customer base?

Citrix VDI-in-a-Box simplifies deployment and streamlines time to value.

Dell's software capabilities deserve more attention than what the company is producing on the hardware ends of the wire.