April, 2009

GE stuffs 500GB+ on a Disc

How you ask, apparently using holographic 3D images, holographic storage can pack data more densely then conventional optical storage. Personally i think this breakthrough is a little late, I mean I have a 320GB portable hard disk, and I have an 8GB Usb stick, soon to be 16gb, and I also stream most of my media to my LCD panel direct from my PC via HDMI. So Yes there is a possibility that the media is presented as an archival tool, and at 500GB+, that an impressive archive! One wonders how long it would take to burn 500GB+… who remember the good old days where it took 1 hour to burn a 700mb CD?

Direct from GE’s website it says that a standard DVD can fit 200 times the data(940GB roughly) and data retrieval would increase exponentially due to parallel reading schemes.

NS

Palm Pre to Launch May 17th

Could it really be true? The one and phone that could truly bring the iPhone to its knees? According to rumors Sprint has apparently confirmed that it is in the process of providing its employees training on the Palm Pre.

preThinking also posted this Blog that shows that Sprint is “Ramping up Marketing for Palm Pre”

Some say that the Pre may not be ready… I hope that these rumours are wrong, as I cannot wait to try this phone out.

NS

VCDX - VMware Certified Design Expert

Feeling VCP Smart?

The VMware Certified Design Expert (VCDX) on VMware Infrastructure 3 is an advanced certification developed for design architects of VMware enterprise deployments. There are four core validation components to achieve VCDX.

1.) Must be certified as a VMware Certified Professional (VCP) on VMware Infrastructure 3.

2.) Pass the Enterprise-Level Systems Administration Exam. Includes live labs and tests a higher level of skill set than the exam for VCP on VMware Infrastructure 3.

3.) Pass the VMware Design Exam. This exam focuses on actual design scenarios and contains simulations and situational questions.

4.) Submit, present and defend a successful VMware Infrastructure design and implementation plan.

To read more go here.

“vSphere” is Officially Launched

Well it wasn’t release as in go install it, 30 days from now, you should see a download available. But you can check out the official VMware website for more information.

You can also check out the official Simulcast featuring VMware CEO Paul Maritz here.

A must read is the VMware vSphere Upgrade Center if your looking to upgrade asap. Check it out here.

If you would like to get a quick comparison of the different licensed features with each edition check out the VMware vSphere Editions Comparison Chart here.

ThinApp was also featured today and it looks pretty cool. The packaging process and deployment of applications were made to look a breeze. Check it out here. Or download and test it for yourself, go here.

Lots of things to look forward to with the release of vSphere(ESX 4.0)

NS

ESX 4 and ESX 4i

Rumors abound, ESX 4 and 4i are soon to be released. A couple notable items are that VMWare is going to allow more then 4vCPU per VM. Also Administrators will be able to hot upgrade memory using the VI Toolkit 1.5. Hot adding memory can only be done in a Server 2008 VM. With the ability to build PowerShell cmdlets, the new VI Toolkit will allow administrators to automate many tasks.

VMWare will be stopping by EPIC Information Solutions to talk about vSphere(ESX 4) April 21st is apparently the launch date for the new version of ESX. Guess what else is on April 21st? Epic Tech Day! So expect some posts from me revolving around Tech Day and VMWare.

NS

Windows Server 2003 Performance Advisor and Data Collector Sets

As I am sure some people know about this installable gem, I am also sure that not everyone does. Its called “Windows Server 2003 Performance Advisor” Here is an insert from Microsoft’s website…

“Microsoft ® Windows Server ™ 2003 Performance Advisor is the latest version of Server Performance Advisor, which is a simple but robust tool that helps you diagnose the root causes of performance problems in a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 deployment. Server Performance Advisor collects performance data and generates comprehensive diagnostic reports that give you the data to easily analyze problems and develop corrective actions

Microsoft ® Windows Server ™ 2003 Performance Advisor provides several specialized reports, including a System Overview (focusing on CPU usage, Memory usage, busy files, busy TCP clients, top CPU consumers) and reports for server roles such as Active Directory, Internet Information System (IIS), DNS, Terminal Services, SQL, print spooler, and others.”

This application was deemed so useful that it was built into Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008, it can be found by going to the control panel, then clicking on “Administrative Tools”, “Reliability and Performance Monitor”, then “Data Collector Sets”. You can then create a new “Data Collector Set” using templates under “User Defined” If you would like to see how they are configured and work, check out Petri’s article “Performance Monitoring the Easy Way”.

The link to download Performance Advisor is here. Also I am providing a link to Perti’s site that explains how to use the app, click here. Is it x64 compatible you say? My answer is yes.

Let me know if you found this blog useful!

NS

New Entry-Level Server Platform - Server 2008 Foundation

Microsoft just released a new revision of Server 2008 called Windows Server 2008 Foundation, designed and priced for small businesses with 15 or fewer employees. To see how it differs from other variants of Server 2008 check out the “Overview of Editions“. I for one am glad that they finally decided to rename the product from Small Business Edition, ill have to do a test run of this OS for sure. I’ll most likely have a follow up post to let everyone know how it looks and feels.

NS

Windows XP and VMware ESX Server

Okay I have seen this a lot, and I have also solved this myself, but I’m going to be honest with you when installing Windows XP Pro on an ESX Server and using the LSI Drivers, you will have issues. There is a driver on LSI’s website that you can use, but I don’t have that information for you at the moment, I do however have another solution, using the BusLogic controller, you can utilize a flp image file that is already located on the datastore. Alot of websites say, use an LSI Logic controller and the floppy image and you will be fine, well thats wrong. This is in fact a virtual floppy for the BusLogic controller.

So basically, start the setup of Windows XP Pro whichever way you want, hit F6 and when it asks for the floppy, mount the flp file from the data store, connect it, then hit “S” to proceed. The BusLogic driver should load and you will then be able to proceed with the installation.

Also on a side note… if you decide to VMconvert Windows XP Pro you will not have any luck, I haven’t had a chance to experiment too much, but I think if you select BusLogic(on the VM Properties) on before conversion you might be Ok. If anyone can answer this for me that would be great. Last time I VMConverted a Windows XP box I was greeted with a lovely BSOD!

Here is a good reference link to check out if your having issues.

NS

EPIC Technology Day!

EPIC Tech day is coming up. Its an all day conference showcasing many companies from many different technical areas, like HP, Cisco, Watchguard, and of course VMware! Best of all its free, so if you find yourself in the area drop by and ask for me, just mention my blog and I’ll take care of you.

Please check the posted schedule regularly for updates, additions and other changes.

Victoria Inn
1808 Wellington Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba
 

Date: Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Time: 7:30:00 AM - 6:00:00 PM

Register for EPIC Technology Day - Winnipeg April 2009

Click here to view the current schedule.

Windows 7 will allow Downgrades

Well you knew they weren’t going to take the right to downgrade from us. Microsoft would rather people embrace Windows 7. I think a lot of people are going to choose Windows 7 as their main operating system. Why did Microsoft make Windows XP Pro so good? Microsoft hasn’t mentioned how exactly they will handle downgrade rights, but I’m guessing they will follow with their existing model at the least. For a more detailed report check this story out.