Bladewatch.com

Emulex.com

New Adapters Provide Cost-Effective 10GbE by Leveraging Existing Cabling Infrastructure

COSTA MESA, Calif., February 7, 2012 - Emulex Corporation (NYSE:ELX) today announced the availability of 10GBASE-T adapters as part of its next-generation Emulex OneConnect™ 10Gb Ethernet (10GbE) Universal Converged Network Adapter (UNCA) family, providing 10GbE connectivity over twisted pair cables, reducing deployment costs, increasing deployment simplicity and delivering investment protection. The OCe11102-NT NIC and OCe11102-IT iSCSI adapters are ideally suited for data centres that are using twisted pair cabling and are transitioning from 1GbE to 10GbE infrastructure. For customers deploying 10GbE in their data centres today, the ability to use existing 10GBASE-T Cat 6a cabling versus optical cabling makes 10GbE performance less cost prohibitive, yielding a 37% savings.

“By expanding our 10GbE offerings with 10GBASE-T solutions, we’re now delivering 10x the performance at a fraction of the price of ten 1GbE NICs, lowering overall cost of deployment for 10GbE networking,” said Shaun Walsh, vice president of marketing, Emulex. “Combined with solutions from our ecosystem partners, 10GBASE-T is now a reality and we anticipate it will contribute to the rapid acceleration of 10GbE market adoption.”

The OCe11102-NT NIC and OCe11102-IT iSCSI adapters include the following benefits and features:

• Reduced Deployment Cost: With 10GBASE-T, Emulex is delivering 10GbE performance at half the cost per Gigabit of deploying 1GbE, including fewer switches, cables and adapters. Additionally, customers will receive power savings using fewer links.
• Deployment Simplicity: Using industry-standard twisted pair cables, OCe11102-NT and OCe11102-IT adapters can be used with Cat 6 and Cat 6a network cabling already deployed in data centres today, and are backwards compatible with existing 1GbE Ethernet networks.
• Optimised for Virtualised Environments: Emulex’s Universal Multi-Channel (UMC) capabilities enable IT managers to have switch independent NIC partitioning that enables multiple PCI functions for each OneConnect 10GbE adapter port, which can then be assigned to optimise virtual server deployments. A dual-port OneConnect 10GBASE-T adapter provides eight logical NICs, allowing the replacement of two quad-port 1GbE NICs with a single, lower cost 10GBASE-T card.
• iSCSI over Data Centre Bridging (DCB): Emulex’s Enterprise iSCSI technology supports IEEE DCB standards that ensure consistent iSCSI performance over a converged, lossless Ethernet network. Using DCB, Emulex iSCSI adapters support bandwidth allocation between network and storage traffic groups to optimise use of a high-performance 10GbE infrastructure. For customers still using iSCSI over 1GbE, the OCe11102-IT adapter future-proofs deployments, making them 10GbE ready at a similar cost to 1GbE iSCSI HBAs.
• Manageable I/O: By sharing a single driver model, Emulex I/O solutions can be controlled, configured and managed from a single console using OneCommand™ Manager. Consolidated management capabilities enable enterprise scalability with time-saving features that provide more than twice the adapter management functionality and take half the time to install and manage compared to other I/O solutions[1]. In addition, the OneCommand™ Manager plug-in for VMware vCenter™ lets users manage Emulex adapters directly from the vCenter console for reduced complexity and is the only adapter that integrates with VMware management tools.

An exciting announcement from Emulex about their new OCe11102-NT NIC and OCe11102-IT iSCSI adapters, I wonder if there will be blade equivalents to aid in consolidation projects, I’ll need to check out the Emulex site for more information. Anything Emulex and the other vendors can do to innovate their offering, and improve the accessibility of 10GbE has to be a good thing for the end user community and innovation if the infrastructure platform and it’s capabilities.

http://www.itworldcanada.com/news/clues-about-hps-gen8-servers-leaked/144826

NEW YORK — Hewlett-Packard has let slip some details on its website about its upcoming Proliant Gen8 servers ahead of their official launch.

The pages list basic details of single- and dual-socket BL, ML and DL Gen8 servers, which will be based on Intel’s upcoming Xeon E5 processors.

One system, the single-socket ProLiant BL460c, is a small-form-factor server based on Intel’s E5-2650L processor.

Some servers will have HP’s latest networking, I/O, storage and management capabilities, according to results that show up during a search of HP’s website. The pages the results are supposed to lead to have been removed from the site.

HP declined to comment about the servers or their potential launch date. The company is holding a big event in Las Vegas Feb. 13 to share news about “ground-breaking, new enterprise technology and services that redefine customer data center experiences and economics,” according to an invite. Dave Donatelli, executive vice president and general manager of HP Enterprise Servers, Storage, Networking and Technology Services, is expected to speak at the event.

The Gen8 servers will eventually replace the Proliant G7 family, which was introduced in March 2010 and is based on x86 processors from Intel and Advanced Micro Devices.

As a self confessed HP Proliant fan (having been using them since 2002), it’s always interesting to hear what news we will see from the announcement and release of the Generation 8 Proliant servers, this article has some hints. Anything the vendors can do to improve the connectivity, the energy efficiency and reduce the complexity of day to day management has to be some key drivers for me.

HP.com

PALO ALTO, Calif., Feb. 3, 2012 – HP today announced a portfolio of OpenFlow-enabled switches, providing customers with the broadest choice in the industry for simplifying network management while meeting a wide range of bandwidth, performance and budget needs.⁽¹⁾

The portfolio spans 16 models and includes the HP 3500, 5400 and 8200 series switches.

Additionally, HP plans to expand support for OpenFlow across all switches in the HP FlexNetwork architecture this year, making HP the only major networking vendor to offer a complete portfolio of OpenFlow-enabled solutions.

OpenFlow is an emerging network virtualization technology that provides customers flexibility and control to configure their networking environments to their specifications.

Deploying the OpenFlow standard enables enterprises to significantly reduce the complexity of network devices and automate tasks using simplified network management. By reducing the time it takes to make changes to the network, OpenFlow allows IT staff to better respond to changing needs in real time.

Customers and partners can now access a free upgrade to HP’s OpenFlow-enabled software for their HP switches here.

It’s great to see further innovation of the HP switch offering, anything they can do to further integrate and improve their offering to reduce operating costs and increase performance has to be a good thing for competition and end user choice. I’m off to read up about OpenFlow and what this means in the virtualization and orchestration/automation space.

Marketwire

ROCKVILLE, MD–(Marketwire – Feb 1, 2012) – MarketResearch.com has announced the addition of the new report “Blade Server Market in North America 2010-2014,” to their collection of Computer Equipment market reports. For more information, visit http://www.marketresearch.com/Infiniti-Research-Limited-v2680/Blade-Server-North-America-6773817/

This report forecasts the Blade Server market in North America to grow at a CAGR of 23 percent over the period 2010-2014. One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the need to reduce the space of network infrastructure. The Blade Server market in North America has also been witnessing reduced power consumption of the blade servers. However, the rapid evolution of new technologies could pose a challenge to the growth of this market.

Check out this post which illustrates the continued demand for blade servers this could be for a number of reasons, as we see further innovations in automation and orchestration, the blade platform becomes even more compelling especially when we integrate them with combined storage and networking, wire once and concepts such as self service or application/hosting templates. It will be interesting to see what innovations are around the corner and how we can continue to innovate blade servers for ease of deployment and energy efficiency.

http://www.sourcewire.com/releases/rel_display.php?relid=69857

The LSS 200 can reduce data centre cooling costs by 80% or more and deliver a 40% or more decrease in overall electricity costs

London, UK – 31st January, 2012 – Boston Limited announced today the UK availability of the world’s first patented server with total liquid submersion technology – the LSS 200. By regulating server temperature more effectively than any existing server, the LSS 200 reduces power consumption and costs, maximises floor space and decreases a data centres’ carbon footprint. Boston is the exclusive UK reseller of LSS 200 systems, manufactured by Hardcore Computer, Inc.

This is great news both for competition and end user choice, it will be interesting to see which types of customers are deploying the Hardcore Computer offering, new start ups or people deploying new data centers, as well as existing customers seeking to deploy these new liquid powered systems alongside their legacy infrastructure in their existing data centers.

http://www.bladewatch.com/apps/buildmyvirtual

I’ve published the PHP version of our free Virtual Machine Self Service Portal application.  The purpose of this tool is quite simple, it’s the bridge between what we have today and where we want to be in terms of automation, service orchestration and the next generation infrastructure.

BuildMyVirtual

The idea for the application came from an interview I was having with my project manager friend. I asked him how he requested a virtual machine, “oh quite simple, we fill in a 7 page Excel spreadsheet which is mainly empty as it’s a virtual machine, then email it to the helpdesk.”, I asked him to put together some bullet points of the existing process, and he mentioned that “he only ever requested standard machines you know the kind of thing, two cpus, 2GB of RAM and Windows”. At this point he sent me the existing process:

1. Fill in spreadsheet
2. Email to help desk
3. Helpdesk log a call to the server team
4. Server team check the spreadsheet and allocate to provisioning manager
5. Provisioning manager accepts call and schedules build.

I showed him what we are working on and he loved it. The idea of the tool is to gather the minimum information we need in order to build a virtual machine, get rid of the olden days spreadsheet and at the same time provide an option for automation.  So the tool gathers what the user selects and then emails that to the email address specified (it could be helpdesk, it could be the server guys) with the request and an xml input file.

At this point what you do with the information is up to you, one guy I spoke with said, “great, we’d take that, fiddle with the XML and create an input file for SCCM”, another guy I spoke with said, “we’d then log a call and attach the xml as the input file for the engineer to validate and process to build the machine”.

The online demo lives here.

You can download the tool in PHP format as a zip file, with the source code here.  We’re working on an ASP.NET version which will be finished soon.  Of course the iPad edition is being uploaded as we speak, so you can use an unbranded version on the move, and we’re toying with the idea of selling a user adjustable version for corporate users.

I used to host all my files on our web.mac.com site as it was convenient and it was open to all, however Apple are withdrawing this service, so I’ve spent today migrating the files and updating all the hyperlinks to where they are now located – http://www.findmyfirmware.com/firmware.

An example old url would be: http://web.mac.com/martinmacleod/iWeb/Site/Blog/Virtualization.pdf which has since been updated to http://www.findmyfirmware.com/firmware/Virtualization.pdf

At the same time, I’ve rationalized and improved the page structure, so if you click the documents tab, that has the individual pages of relevance to prevent crowding out the site, I’ve written a lot of content over the years – http://www.bladewatch.com/documents

You’ll have noticed a lot more references to findmyfirmware.com, this is simply another holding site where I can put together or host content relating to the applications that I have been developing.  These applications are being created simply to add value to my readers and to customers that I have worked with.  I fully appreciate that there might be ‘official’ alternatives, but for the SMB, the medium business or even the enterprise, they might be good enough as a placeholder, the bridge before implementing the club class automated version, and where we are right now.

BuildMyVirtual is our latest iPad and web based application for both the SMB and Enterprise space, it’s a very simple concept based on the self service model for requesting and building virtual machines.

The user selects the specification and options from the screen below (End user customizable with your logo / your color schemes etc)

User having selected everything then clicks the send button which submits the build request:

Both the drop down values and the text can be adjusted easily.

Now the shockingly cool bit.  The application in the background generates an XML file containing the values selected so that you can script it into your build mechanism whatever it is, and then emails it either to a shared mailbox like server builds, a user’s email address or even the help-desk for it to be logged and the xml as an added attachment.

A thank you/confirmation page is then displayed:

This page is called ok.html, and is fully configurable so it can do any cool things like generate xml scripts or commands to kick off the build, or simply have your team/company logo with a confirmation message and mail box or link to the server build/process documentation.

So what is the aim of the server:

• Make the virtual server provisioning process look more professional
• Remove our dependency on endless complex spreadsheets
• Move towards a centralized virtual offering – standard configurations which the user selects
• Bridge between next generation fully automated solutions and where you might be today
• Maintain control for IT to validate configurations, so it can be as automated or manual as you like.

What do you get then?

A zip file containing all the bits you need to put on a web server and host for the tool to work

The source files, the code, everything you need to start with as a template to building our your own version of the tool with the branding, the logos and the functionality you choose. You could even build it around LDAP/SSO if you wish, integrate it to your help desk tool so it allocates a call or a build request number – the possibilities are endless.

What don’t you get?

A tool that builds virtual machines – this app aims to give you the framework from which you can automate or manually provision machines with less manual paperwork, but the right level of professionalism and ability to check what the user has requested is deliverable.

When does it go live?

Soon, we’re finishing off the base product so to speak and making a version for the iPad, and then launching it for free as a template or a real tool for all to use. No tricks, unlocked source files, no debate. However if you want it customized and extended to bring new functionality, we can of course provide that.

Our Live Demo version is here for you to play with until the end of time.  At the moment it just sends me an email with what you selected, but once the code is finished we will make it ask what account you want to send it too so you can see it in action.

I was for the second time meeting with a consultant who works in the Wintel space, I was wanting to speak to him about build technologies, standards and his views on automation best practice, an overview if you will to get other views and see what’s going on.

Anyway, it was all very interesting he was mentioning interesting tools like Opsware, Altiris and BladeLogic, what innovations they had made from operating system load through to deployment into production which sounded stunning and it was at this point that it all went wrong and I will explain after the following quote.

“We can build a server in 17 minutes”

Fantastic I replied. That’s brilliant news and shows you with the right procedures, the right technologies and best practices we can as an internal IT team be as efficient or nearing so as an external vendor. 

What do you mean by build I asked?

Installing the operating system? Why what did you think I meant?

So how long does it take from start to finish? I asked.

There was hesitation, dare I say it a bit of awkward silence as if I’d started speaking to him about the Renault 6.

Well it takes seven weeks.

Sorry, I ask?

Seven weeks, you know by the time we put the specifications together, raise the acceptance, sign off and then raise a purchase order, then a week or so to rack, then build the OS in 17 minutes and then hand over for the application load, then four days for the monitoring, backups and support handover to take place.

So what operating systems can you build in that time? I ask

We can build Windows 2003 and Windows 2008 all versions from our template image.

If I want to rebuild our old Windows 2000 server? I ask, You know if the server goes bang, how long will it take to rebuild.

Oh we would need to burn a CD and then get the drivers and build it manually.

Why? Well that’s out of scope, IT and the build team don’t support Windows 2000, it’s on the risk register and is therefore at risk, if the system failed we would deploy a Windows 2003 server and ask them to try that first whilst we fix their broken one.

It’s at this point, my interest in the conversation started to wonder. Don’t for a moment let me diminish the achievements of the IT teams, any streamlining efforts in the build space made are to be commended, any efforts at illustrating the ability to deliver an agile platform to meet the business need is brilliant news. However, in such scenarios we seem to have ‘danced around the edges’, by this I mean I want a holistic offering, an effort that attacks not only the build part, the actual putting the Windows CD in the drive and pressing go, I want to streamline the architecture, the sign off, provisioning/rack and stack through to application load.

We need to re-engineer the server provisioning process to encompass everything from the purchase of the server through to the racking, the configuration and operating system load as well as the application load and go-live.

We need to remove the complexities, data gathering and teams involved in buying a server, at the same time we need to write in the sand and have the relevant people sign off on what is and what is not supported.

The build platform needs to be able to deploy future operating systems, the Windows 2008 and beyond, as well as the in support but not being deployed Windows 2000 servers that might still be humming along but not harming anyone.

The provisioning model needs to be simplified to:

• Standard offering – the automated delivered in weeks or hours solution based on a range of standard enterprise servers with default configurations which we buy in bulk (alongside expected forecasts)  – with this we deliver in weeks or hours as we have them in stock, we’re repeating known processes and there is no ‘buy-in’ or specific complexities in deployment – it’s a server with or without SAN, with network, with lights out and an OS. The process would be:

• Commit to purchase server.
• Rack server
• Apply fibre/ethernet connections
• Initial hardware configuration
• Network boot and OS load
• Handover to app team
• Application load
• Go-live

• Specific offering – the formalized front door provisioning model where everything is manually request:

• Commit to a server
• Agree specifications and CIO acceptance to deviate from standard offering
• Commit to buying server
• Raise purchase order
• Raise install request
• Rack server
• Apply fibre/ethernet connections
• Initial hardware configuration
• Operating system load
• Handover to application team
• Application load
• Go live

I was having a conversation with a colleague who’s a server engineer for an Insurance company in London.  I was seeking his views on server naming conventions, believe it or not, it is one of those subjects that can easily become emotive.  What do I mean by naming standards? The process for naming your desktop, laptop or server, why does it matter? Well we need the name to mean something to someone so that we can easily identify systems when logging a call, reporting an issue or identifying systems in scope for a change. These naming standards tend to be mandated by a central team based on a set of standards, for example based on platform, operating system, business line or environment, maybe even a mixture or combination of all four.

What’s the issue?

Everyone tends to have an opinion about it.  Why then does your infrastructure team have a set naming convention? Well it is usually to ensure consistency across environments, for uniformity and to aid in systems management, if they all start with for example geographic code and then a number, it is easier to locate that system and therefore make it that little bit easier to identify and track back who owns that server and what it does.

What do we need to think about?

The name needs to be relatively annonymous – linking a server name to a role can raise issues

The name needs to be easy to say – there’s nothing worse than trying to explain or a say a long server name at three in the morning

The name needs to eliminate confusion – too many similar characters LONSO19000 – is that LONS019000 or is that an O?

The name needs to deliminate platforms ideally – I don’t want to create confusion between app teams and infrastructure teams as to what the OS is.

So why not have the server name contain the role/application?

Let’s go over some issues that I’ve mentioned before.

I build LONSQL1002D, which is a development SQL server, suppose the app team want to make it an IIS server, do I rename it? How will the DBA’s know it’s not SQL at three in the morning?  Suppose the server is moved to production, are we renaming it LONSQL1002p as it’s now prod? But that means reinstalling SQL if we’re going to follow the rules of safety and olden days engineering.

I name the server LONSQL1002D, so it’s my trusted Bladewatch SQL server, I then virtualize it, so do I rename it to LONSQL1002DV? If I move it to our office in Renfrew (Gran’s house), do I rename it RENSQL1002D and if it’s virtualized, then is it RENSQL1002DV, and then for those smart people out there, I could create aliases, but then how to we link it all back in the inventory?

I name a server LONSQLFI1002D, our Fixed Income SQL development server in London, if it’s moved to back office, is it now renamed LONSQLBO1002d? If I remove SQL and make it Apache, is it now LONAPA1000D?

I name a server LONSQLFI1002D our Fixed Income SQL development server in London, I want to rebuild it AIX, is that AIXAPPFI1002D?

Ultimately as a business user, as a customer buying application compute resources or infrastructure as a service it doesn’t matter, to the infrastructure teams, to the people keeping lights on, having a relatively simple and anonymous naming convention reduces operational complexity, can reduce what the name means to the app team, but at the same time leaves name ranges which can be used just as effectively.

John had different thoughts basing his experience and viewpoint on his own internal naming standards, he had views on what the naming convention should be, whether the name should include the environment, the application and the location for example. It’s an issue that is set to continue. An uninteresting discussion one could argument, but remember as we’ve written about before it’s the nuts and bolts that can often be the problem factors in your deployment, in your delivery – sorry we can’t go live with that, your server should be a REDSQL not a LONSQL as we don’t have that network in our London site, so we’ll need to host it in Reading.