Powered by System Center
// Main banner ad on homepage
Archive for September, 2012
Hyper-V Support Made Easy in Red Hat Enterprise 5.9
Sep 25th
If you are using Red Hat Enterprise Linux you’ll find great support for Hyper-V as a standard feature in the new minor Linux 5.9 release for which a beta became available recently.
Running Linux distributions with native Hyper-V support will save you the trouble of separately installing Hyper-V Integration Components to provide support for multiple cores and synthetic drives for mouse, video, network and storage. The Hyper-V Linux drivers were recently accepted upstream by the Linux community. For Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 this means running as a guest on Hyper-V will improve overall performance.
Speaking at The Experts Conference 2012 again
Sep 19th
You have probably already seen a number of blogs and tweets about several events related to Windows Server 2012 and Hyper-V.
Well, I am joining the party too!
For The Experts Conference (TEC), which will be held in Barcelona (22-24 October 2012) this is my third speaking engagement.
My first presentation for TEC was in Frankfurt and offered a deep dive into Storage in what was still called Windows Server 8. It was only one month after the \build conference. It was so early that I could only demo by using PowerShell, but it was a very early view on what was to come.
I was then kindly invited to speak at TEC 2012 in San Diego. There were very few European speakers so I was very honored indeed. My presentation was called Hot Storage Tricks with Windows Server 8. I did a last minute rename to Cool Storage Tricks because the weather had suddenly turned very cold. You need to be flexible these days.
This time, I will speak at TEC 2012 in Barcelona and now I will do two presentations:
-
The first one is called Configuring Hyper-V Networking with Confidence and Ease which focuses on the myriad number of new ways to configure networks in Windows Server 2012 and using the Hyper-V extensible switch. Topics such as NIC Teaming, Converged Fabric, Network Virtualization and Switch Extensions will be demonstrated. My talk is more or less a practical Part 2 of Didier van Hoye’s (@WorkingHardInIT) presentation called Networking Evolved in Windows Server 2012.
-
The second one is a modified repeat of my San Diego presentation: Hot Storage Tricks with Hyper-V in Windows Server 2012. Let’s hope the weather stays fine, or I have to rename the title of my presentation again.
TEC 2012 Barcelona promises to get a great Virtualization track focusing on Windows Server 2012, because several of my renowned fellow MVP’s will top the bill. Apart from Didier there will be:
If that isn’t enough reason to book the event as soon as possible, while there is still a discount which you can get by sending an email to TEC2012@Quest.com until September 21.
I will also be speaking at:
Windows Server 2012 Launch and Demo Day: October 4, 2012: Amstelveen, The Netherlands (INOVATIV)
Experts 2 Experts Virtualization Conference (E2EVC): November 2-4 2012: Hamburg, Germany (Event is sold out)
System Center 2012 SP1 beta Documentation
Sep 12th
Here is a list of updated documentation for the recently announced System Center 2012 SP1 beta
System Center TechCenter:
- Updated the System Center Home Page to highlight the SP1 release
- Updated the 2012 Page to include links to the consolidated Supported Configurations Page
- Highlighted the Chargeback and SPF Cloud Resource Management scenario content
TechNet Library:
- Added the Technical Scenarios node
- Added What’s New topics for all components
- Updated deployment guides for all components
- Delivered over 200 new or updated “How-to” topics for the SP1 Beta improvements
- Delivered new SP1 cmdlet reference and updateable PowerShell help for VMM and CM
- Updated the MP Guides for Windows Server 2012 and IIS
MSDN Library:
- Added the SPF SDK node
TechNet Wiki: In addition to the technical scenario content called out above, we also
- Published the Integration Guide content for VMM, OM, Orchestrator
- Published VMM UI extensibility content
Download Center: Updated all the off-line guides, and applied standard formatting to reinforce the single product message.
- App Controller: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29694
- DPM: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29698
- Operations Manager: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29256
- Orchestrator: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29258
- Service Manager: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27850
- VMM: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=6346
Disk to Disk to Cloud Protection of Hyper-V Virtual Machines
Sep 12th
Microsoft has started offering Online Backup of Hyper-V Virtual Machines to Windows Azure using System Center Data Protection Manager 2012 SP1. In this blog I will explain how to set this up and I can assure you this is absolutely no rocket science.
First of all you need to register for an account to get access to Windows Azure Online Backup Preview. The registration process will not ask you for a credit card and offers you 300GB for the limited time of 6 months to test with. Well that sounded like an offer I couldn’t refuse.
The best way to start this process is to select the Management work pane from the DPM 2012 SP1 Administrator Console. When you are registered you can click on Manage Subscriptions from the Ribbon in DPM. It will ask you to login with your newly created [name]@[domain].onmicrosoft.com account.
After sign in you arrive at the Windows Azure Online Backup portal. Click on the Setup menu, download and install the Window Azure Online Backup Agent for Windows Server 2012. Note there is a special module for Windows Server 2012 Essentials.
System Center 2012 SP1 Beta is Now Available
Sep 10th
After we had already spotted the updated documentation on Microsoft Download and on TechNet, we now have the beta bits for System Center 2012 SP1. So finally we can also manage the recently released version of Windows Server 2012.
Fortunately SP1 Beta is not restricted to TAP customers, but publicly available. But be careful if you decide to run this beta version in production. There is no formal support available from Microsoft unless you are part of the TAP program. You can download the software here:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=34607
Altaro Hyper-V Backup 3.5 1st Windows Server 2012 backup product on the planet
Sep 5th
Altaro just launched Altaro Hyper-V Backup 3.5 with the following support:
- Windows Server 2012 Support, including support for VHDX files.
- Windows 2012: support for backup and restore of VMs located on SMB 3.0 network paths.
- Windows 2012: support for Volume Shadow Copies of SMB 3.0 network paths.
- Windows 2012: support for CSV 2.0 and scale-out SMB 3.0 file shares.
- New and improved ‘Metro’-Style User Interface.
From the press release:
https://skydrive.live.com/redir?resid=96BA3346350A5309!6675
Review of the product:
http://www.hyper-v.nu/archives/hvredevoort/2012/08/altaro-hyper-v-backup-getting-ready-for-windows-server-2012/
Windows Server 2012 cluster scalability goes up to 8000 VMs
Sep 4th
During launch of Windows Server 2012, Microsoft has doubled the number of VM’s per cluster: going up from 4000 to 8000 since the last announcement at RTM.
Source: keynote Transform the Datacenter – Bill Laing
Windows Server 2012 is exploding out of the gates
Sep 4th
In less than an hour Windows Server 2012 will be officially launched to the world! You can follow the event live here: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/server-cloud/new.aspx starting 8:00 US Pacific Time and 17:00 Central European Time. If you live in the Asia/Australia region, you’ll have a very late night.
The launch of a brand new server operating system is not a small thing. For the first time we can say a properly designed, extremely complete and fully standards based cloud operating system will see the light. And it is Microsoft that can boast being its creator. Also for the first time, Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V will be able to go head-to-head with VMware. It was overly clear that VMware has had to change gear to keep up with the multitude of new and spectacular functionality in the operating system.
The result of competition is always better quality and better price. VMware would never have changed its vTax without Microsoft attempting to overtake the money machine from Palo Alto. If you look at a number of the new features in vSphere 5.1 you cannot but conclude that VMware has been trying hard to keep up with Microsoft’s Windows Server 2012. One such last minute addition to vSphere 5.1 is an equivalent of what Microsoft calls Shared Nothing Live Migration, allowing any running virtual machine to migrate between two machines with just an Ethernet connection. This can be between standalone Hyper-V hosts, from standalone to cluster, from cluster to standalone or even between clusters. A VM is no longer confined to a machine or cluster. Well, now VMware boasts it has a similar functionality.
Hyper-V Replica is still considered the killer feature that will attract many small, medium but also large companies to seriously begin with Business Continuity/Disaster Recovery projects. And man! Is Hyper-V Replica a super functionality to have in the basic operating system.
In the past I have also been critical of Hyper-V in Windows Server 2008 R2. Back in January 2011, I wrote this blog:
http://www.hyper-v.nu/archives/hvredevoort/2011/01/getting-ready-for-the-third-generation-of-hyper-v/
The final paragraph read:
Where will we go with Microsoft Virtualization?
Last year during MVP Summit 2010, I met the people of the Hyper-V and Cluster product teams. I know they are working really hard to make Hyper-V a better product and tune clustering into that rock solid product we all need. Because they don’t make the hardware, they also strongly depend on the efforts of OEMs. During that time they could not say much about the future of Windows but they listened and had tons of questions about our experiences in the field as well as requests for the next version. In a few weeks I will meet them again and hope to hear and see what they have come up with. I am really looking forward to the progress I expect them to have made. After all, the 3rd generation of Hyper-V and its virtualization management software will have to live up to its expectations because Microsoft will not get a second chance
That was almost 17 months ago! As an MVP you have the opportunity to help shape the new products that mean so much to you. Back in 2010 I handed in a very long list with requested features, both for Hyper-V, System Center Virtual Machine Manager and Data Protection Manager. I can now finally see what the product teams have done with all the feedback from their customers. Windows Server 2012 is a very high quality and well designed new operating system. I already enjoy its flexibility and ease every single day. I am looking forward to implementing it with the majority of our customers. Features that really make me smile: Hyper-V Replica, SMB 3.0, Scale-Out File Servers, Cluster Shared Volumes 2.0, PowerShell 3.0, Concurrent Live Migration, Concurrent Live Storage Migration, Offloaded Data Exchange (ODX), Extensible Switch, Network Virtualization, Converged Fabric, the new VDI capabilities, the new server virtualization capabilities with Hyper-V.
Windows Server 2012 with its suberb third generation hypervisor and the strength of a rock-solid and secure cloud operating system more than lives up to my expectations.
Thanks product teams, thanks developers, thanks fellow MVP’s for such a great result.
Windows Server 2012 is exploding out of the gates! (no pun intended)
Twitter
RSS