Here’s My Gripe… There has been a greater push to drive analytics and monitoring tools up-stack and VMware’s vCenter Operations Manager is one example of that. In a previous post, I commented on the “coopetition” between NetApp’s OnCommand Insight product suite and VMware’s vCenter Operations Manager. There are no doubt a number of other similar comparisons that could be made here (EMC SMARTS, vFoglight, CA Virtual Assurance, VirtualWisdom, etc.), but I would caution the data center staff that too much reliance on this information can cause more harm than good. How so — consider the erosion of critical thinking skills,Read more →
Introduction One of the more common questions I’ve been running into lately during customer meetings, especially when I talk about NetApp’s OnCommand Balance, is how does or how doesn’t Balance compete with VMware’s “new” vCenter Operations Manager product? So… Sure they compete, and then again, they’re complimentary. The next two “What is” sections are general overviews, and you’ll notice that both Balance and vCOPS have a number of features that overlap each other. I’m providing you with an overview to establish the confusion that drove this post, but I assure you that if you jump to the end (or clickRead more →
As a follow on to my good friend Vaughn’s post NetApp Expands our Virtualization & Cloud Computing Expertise I’d offer a hearty thank you for your kind words and absolutely couldn’t agree more with your comments. We have been making strong hiring decisions and aligning our virtualization expertise to match more closely with market trends and the skills of the team’s skills. This purposeful alignment is already starting to shape the virtualization strategy at NetApp and the collaboration between the team members is something I have not personally witnessed in a very long time. I respect and admire what HarryRead more →
Included is some paper, sticky notes, and some pens. Please help my customer understand virtualization. Read that as tongue-in-cheek, but a position I found myself in last week at an executive briefing. The only difference, MacGyver wasn’t available. I am sure that all of you can relate to a situation where you were asked to present an abstract concept to an audience. You’ve been prepped, you’ve worked on your material, you’re delivery is solid, you are, for all intents and purposes, ready to knock it out of the park. You show up early to check the equipment, you actively engageRead more →
I’d like to extend a heart-felt congratulations to the Cloupia Team here were notified this afternoon that they have completed the FlexPod validation program. Cloupia, a cloud automation and management software provider, offering a suite of cloud computing products and solutions to power the next generation dynamic data centers (http://www.cloupia.com) is based in Santa Clara, CA. They were on the floor with us at VMworld 2011 and we used their management suite to drive the FlexPod where our live demos were hosted. I’ll update the post within the next 2 days to discuss what the program is an what thisRead more →
