Setting Up VCB for any Backup Software – Revisited
Since VI:OPS seems to have died and the content was gobbled up and reindexed my the main VMware communities site (They miss you Stevie!), I am posting my VCB proven practice here. It is dated, since...
View ArticleWe'll Miss You VI:OPS of Yore
VI:OPS is was a VMware Forum that dedicates dedicated itself to providing information related to operations surrounding a VMware Infrastructure. The “Proven Practice” documents are were submitted and...
View ArticleCreating an Automated ESXi Installer
Back in the summer, I saw Stu’s Post about automating the installation of ESXi. I was reminded again by Duncan’s Post. Then, I found myself in a situation when a customer bought 160 blades for VMware...
View ArticlevShield Zones – Some Serious Gotchas
OK..I’ll admit it: I am spoiled by the capabilities of vSphere. What other platform lets you schedule system updates that will occur unattended and without outages of the applications being used? I...
View ArticleMy VCAP-DCA Exam Experience
In case you have been living under a rock and haven’t heard, VMware is getting ready to release a new set of advanced certification exams that will take you along the path to become a VMware Certified...
View ArticleA Few Gotchas With vSphere 4.1! Updated
Since everyone else in the world is heralding the release of vSphere 4.1, I figured I would post some bad news. The stuff you may want to know BEFORE you jump into upgrading to vSphere 4.1. Before I...
View ArticleMy VMware VCAP4-DCD BETA Exam Experience
Yesterday, I took the VCAP4-DCD beta exam (VDCD410), like many others have done this week. There is a thread started already in the communities forum. Just like previous beta exams with VMware, I had...
View ArticleESX is Going Away – How to Migrate to ESXi
If you didn’t know it yet, VMware announced a while back that future releases of VMware will not include the “traditional” ESX Server. From their site:“VMware vSphere 4.1 and its subsequent update and...
View ArticleMaybe VMware Needs a Quality Oversight Department…
I was doing some research for session I am presenting at an upcoming PAVMUG session about vSphere remote management when I came across an apology by one of the PowerGUI guys. Essentially, he was...
View ArticlePAVMUG Session – Virtualizing Business Critical Apps
For the September 2011 PAVMUG all day meeting, I participated in four sessions. To me, the session with the most audience participation was about virtualizing business critical applications. My session...
View ArticlePAVMUG Session – Optimal Designs for vSphere 5 Licensing
The PAVMUG session on Sept 22nd, 2011 that seemed to have the second most active audience was the session where I discussed vSphere 5 licensing and some of the design considerations. There were several...
View ArticleBig vCloud Director Security Gotchas That I Have Found
This post includes an important security “gotcha” that I recently uncovered with vCloud Director 1.5 running on vSphere 5. If you are using vCloud Director, you should check your settings. The BIG...
View ArticlevCloud Trick – Joining a Domain and Specifying a Machine OU
NOTE: This is no longer required in vCD 5.1 & above! This is one of those situations where I really start to hate computers! I was working with vCloud Director with a goal of having a winders VM...
View ArticleHow-To: License the Free VMware vSphere Hypervisor
One of the things that some of the Microsoft Hyper-V users tout is that Hyper-V is free. Sometimes, like in smaller offices or branch locations, it may even make sense to use Hyper-V where there are...
View ArticleUsing the Free vSphere Hypervisor? VMware Wants to Hear from You.
Interesting that I stumbled on this right after I posted a How-To for the free vSphere Hypervisor. Mike Adams over at VMware wants to know if you are using the free vSphere Hypervisor. If so, he would...
View ArticleFiguring the Cost of Yer Winders VMs
I’ve been meaning to write this post since May 2010! Never got around to it but I am starting to see and hear about it again. The costs of Windows Server systems become important if you are renewing...
View ArticleMy VMware VCAP5-DCD BETA Exam Experience
I received an invitation to take the VCAP5-DCD BETA Exam a couple of weeks ago and took the exam at Partner Exchange. Like Jason Boche’s experience, the exam consisted of 131 questions and I was given...
View ArticleReturning to the Scene of the Crime – My VCDX Design Customer
A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of returning to the customer that was the subject of my VCDX Design Defense. First, let’s travel back into time. It was mid-December, 2008. I was a VMware Delivery...
View ArticleVMware PEX 2014 – Notes Part 1 – The Bad
I have been attending various VMware Partner Exchange (PEX) and VMworld events since around 1996. Typically, I prefer to attend PEX over VMworld. The number of attendees is significantly smaller and...
View ArticleVMware PEX 2014 – Notes Part 2 – The Good
The most significant part of VMware PEX, for me this year, was the Solutions Exchange floor and the rather small number of vendors. My focus was on convergence of compute and storage resources. This...
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