| Managing a virtual environment is a lot like cleaning | | | | map VMware hosts to storage and SAN |
| your car: No matter how many times you run the | | | | dependencies as a means to reclaim and reallocate |
| vacuum head over the carpet, the sand just bounces | | | | storage capacity. Also new is the ability to automate |
| around among the fibers. | | | | workflow tasks across VMware, Citrix and Microsoft |
| In the IT world, virtual machines would be the sand | | | | server, network and storage environments. |
| and your data center infrastructure would be the | | | | Cisco is also getting up to speed, announcing this |
| carpet. You, of course, are the poor laborer trying to | | | | week that it will acquire application management firm |
| pick up all these pieces of sand with technology that | | | | Tidal Software for $105 million and fold its technology |
| is clearly not up to the job. | | | | into the Unified Computing System. The move brings |
| That virtualization requires a new kind of | | | | a range of functions, such as job scheduling, BI |
| management architecture is well known. What's new | | | | automation, virtual infrastructure management and |
| is how some of the leading systems are now being | | | | application performance management into the |
| integrated into wider platforms aimed at providing a | | | | platform - all compatible with SAP, Oracle, Microsoft |
| single point of control over all manner of data center | | | | and custom apps built on Java and .Net. |
| functions - from application and resource | | | | Meanwhile, Novell users are about to see a new |
| environments to business services and cloud | | | | management stack for their platform - one that's |
| computing. | | | | based around the idea of the "service-driven data |
| It's a market that set to grow like gangbusters over | | | | center." The idea is to do away with the traditional |
| the next few years, according to IDC. The research | | | | IT-centric view of the data center and approach it |
| firm predicts a 21 percent increase by 2013, topping | | | | more from the business side. To that end, the |
| off at $2.3 billion. The rollout will follow a predictable | | | | company is building its new management stack on an |
| pattern: enterprises will get drawn into virtualization | | | | ITIL blueprint aboard the new SUSE Linux Enterprise |
| through its consolidation benefits, which come as a | | | | 11 operating system, with a heavy dose of |
| godsend as pressure to do more with less mounts, | | | | virtualization and workload management from the |
| and then have to scramble to put in place the proper | | | | former PlateSpin. |
| management structure to keep tabs on all these | | | | I've said before that the time to set up a virtual |
| virtual machines. | | | | management regime is before virtualization takes hold |
| That's why we're seeing a flood of new | | | | of the data center, not after. I still hold to that |
| management systems of late, nearly all of them | | | | theory, but with one caveat: Things are happening so |
| couched under the rubric of "business services | | | | fast in the enterprise that simple virtual management |
| management" or some other overarching moniker. | | | | is no longer enough. Virtualization must be integrated |
| HP, for example, recently updated its BSA suite with | | | | into the overall enterprise experience - and that |
| new capabilities gained from the Opsware acquisition. | | | | means management has to take a wider view as |
| The package now has the ability to discover and | | | | well. |