316 views
Feb 09

So as I’m going to be attempting this in the next few weeks it is interesting to note that this would appear to still be an issue with the RTM of 2008 as the Hyper-V is still in beta.

Another note mentioned that you don’t actually reinstall:

You don’t really need to reinstall anything. You only have to reset System & Default User regional settings to original (default EN-US) settings and then reboot the server.
Ciao,
Alessandro

Still, worth keeping mind if you are after the Hyper-V service? ;-)

Please refer to Ben Armstrong’s post here:

http://blogs.msdn.com/virtual_pc_guy/archive/2007/12/13/hyper-v-beta-now-available-for-download.aspx

  1. You need to install using ‘English (United States)’.  If you install with any other language (or flavor of English) Hyper-V will not work.  However - you can change the local / keyboard preferences for your user after installation without any problems.

Hyper-V on Win2008 RTM - VMM service fails to start?

written by dcaddick

674 views
Dec 14

I am so glad to have noticed this while in the office ;-) I can set the download going while I head off for Lunch, although I’m not sure I’m going to have too much time to play over the weekend as the missus clearly has ideas of Xmas shopping and taking advantage of the sunny weather this weekend?

Microsoft launches Hyper-V beta 1

Thursday, December 13, 2007   |   0 Comments

Completely unexpected Microsoft launches today the first beta of its upcoming hypervisor Hyper-V (formerly codename Viridian / Windows Server Virtualization).

This first beta, initially planned for the end of this year, was later postponed to February 2008, in sync with the global launch of Windows Server 2008 (formerly codename Longhorn). But Microsoft put a great effort to launch the beta ahead of time and disturb the VMware launch of VI 3.5.

The new build unlocks several critical features customers were looking for:

  • Quick Migration and support for host-level HA (up to 16 nodes)
  • Out-of-the-box integration with Windows Server 2008 Server Manager (no more separate installation)
  • Support for Windows Server Core edition (allowing a smaller hypervisor footprint)
  • Support for Volume Shadow Service (VSS) (which implies capability to perform VMs live backup at host level)
  • Support for 64GB virtual RAM per VM
  • Support for multiple virtual NICs per VM
  • Support for 4 virtual SCSI controller per VM
  • Integration of VHD manipulation tools

With this beta Microsoft is providing support for Windows Server 2003 and 2008 guest OS, as well as Novell Linux guests (thanks to the special agreement the two companies have on interoperability).

Once again Hyper-V is directly included into Windows Server 2008 code, this time inside the Release Candidate 1 (Enterprise Edition, 64bit only).

Enlightments for Linux guest OS instead are available through a separate beta program on Connect.

virtualization.info: Microsoft launches Hyper-V beta 1

written by dcaddick

454 views
Nov 14

So based on two recent announcements it might actually be possible shortly to host your Virtual Web Server from your PDA? Seriously, it might not be possible today - but don’t bet against it being real in the next year or so?  

Turn your phone into a file and web server

When you want to connect to your Windows Mobile phone you’ve got a few options. You can either use ActiveSync via the supplied cable or you can remotely connect over the WiFi with applications like Pocket Controller. Now there’s another way - how about turning your phone into an FTP server? Mochasoft FTP Server is a free piece of software that’ll do just that. Whilst it may not work on your 3G / GPRS connection (because a lot of networks don’t use publicly available IP addresses), you can play around with it on your home WiFi. It offers authenticated logins and the ability to specify login folders too.
This free software obviously has the advantage of being able to connect more freely to your device when your on a seperate wireless connection, but you can also (should you wish) use this in conjunction with software like Compact Web Server from Chili Software to turn your phone into a full web server that you can upload to! :)
Watch this space, because this gives me a few ideas for a project! ;)

more at source… CoolSmartPhone.com - Turn your phone into a file and web server

 

Samsung is working on a Xen version for PDAs

Monday, November 12, 2007   |   0 Comments

EarthWeb interviewed former XenSource CTO, Simon Crosby, about future of new Citrix XenServer and competition with VMware. In one answer Crosby revealed a major news:

Q: The XenSource applications are based on open source. In terms of the virtualization market, what are the pluses or minuses of an open source approach?

Open source is an extremely valuable tool for innovation. One of the key things about the Xen code base is that it can be delivered to market by multiple vendors, and will be.

One of the biggest challenges that the hardware vendors have had is that vendors like Microsoft take five years to get new features to market for them. But of course we have support on Day One. So the day that the first Intel VT CPU ships, we have the support. The day the hardware virtualization [launches] we have the support. So we’ve become the industry’s first and best support for an enhanced hardware experience.

And at the same time, we’ve been very anxious to make sure that Xen as an engine was open sourced, but that multiple different vendors could have economic business models built around that. So we commoditize the "engine" - it’s the code base that everyone agrees should be commoditized - and then it has much broader applicability.

So, for example, Xen runs on [certain] PDAs, and Samsung is doing work with those as a product prototype. But it also runs on supercomputers from SGI. That way, we don’t have just one "car" - thereìs everything from Porches to Minis. So you don’t limit its applicability…

Read the whole interview at the source.

written by dcaddick

478 views
Nov 13

from virtualization.info:  
Well this clearly looks like it is vindicating some of the comments from Brian Madden’s site that Hypervisors will become a commodity, and what will clearly differentiate will be the Management Tools for Virtual Machines.

Microsoft Hyper-V is the final name for codename Viridian

Monday, November 12, 2007   |   0 Comments

With an unexpected announce Microsoft opens TechEd IT Forum 2007 in Barcellona revealing that final name for codename Virdian will be Hyper-V.

Tentative name used so far, Windows Server Virtualization (WSV) is now definitively dropped.

With the new name Microsoft also reveals that Hyper-V will be released as a stand-alone product as well as a feature for every Windows Server 2008 64bit edition.

Difference between these packages is that Hyper-V stand-alone will load a Windows Server 2008 Core edition into its parent partition, and will be bundled with OEM servers from Dell, HP, IBM and others at the price of $28. Other versions instead will load a fully featured version of the OS.

After several different and confusing messages, now Microsoft finally states that first beta of Hyper-V will be released at the of end of January 2008.

more at source… virtualization.info: Microsoft Hyper-V is the final name for codename Viridian

written by dcaddick

1,993 views
Oct 29

So while attending Citrix’s iForum I had the opportunity to examine image
XenServer in more detail at one of the booths and I was pleasantly surprised as to the level of detail and how it appeared to be pretty straight forward. However the main issue would appear to be that there is no equivalent to VMware’s Workstation that makes it possible to run Demo’s and the like directly from a Laptop.

So in chatting to one of the freshly minted "Citrix" Xen Tech’s looking after the booth he did confirm that there is currently no "Workstation" alternative, however one of the Citrix SE’s that I chatted to did mention that the alternative at the moment (leaving room for a Workstation edition soon no doubt?) is to either use a separate Laptop that has Xen Server installed or they use Virtual PC as a host for the Xen Server.

So seeing as I received a XenExpress Demo in the goodies bag I have taken the liberty of installing Xen on a VM inside VMware Workstation 6, and even though Xen insists on being installed on x64 hardware it was pretty easy - I just selected Other Linux 2.6.x Kernel 64-bit and away we went - the only other caveats that I discovered (without reading any of the docs) was it really wanted to see a min. of 16Gb of HDD and at least  1Gb of RAM, but other than that it was a piece of cake.

Once the Server has been built it will return with the IP address listed in the console, at this point you simply need to install the Console and then point it at the Server’s IP address and you are good to go?

I would suggest that looking through the install screenshot’s that choosing RedHat would be equally valid?

I’m sure this would install just as easily on Virtual PC or Virtual Server, but the main issue will be the extra resources needed to run a Virtual Host as well as Xen before actually being in the position to run anything meaningful?

 

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written by dcaddick

249 views
Oct 09

So from Alessandro comes news of a review of the Virtualization platforms and it’s going to come as no surprise that VMware tops the bill? But what is surprising is the kudos they give XenSource? Easy to use, feature rich offering is quickly catching up to its main rival - that would have to be good news to Citrix? especially seeing as XenSource was listed as being the easier of the two to deploy?

To be honest I think there is a lot to be said about familiarity with a product, if you are familiar with it and can be up to speed quickly in any organization then this will clearly be a benefit? So the fact that VMware has so market share will work in it’s favor - for now at least? ;-)

I wonder how this review might have turned out if Viridian was also listed? Probably not too well at this early stage, but it would be interesting to know how far it has to catch up?

Review: CRN compares most popular virtualization platforms

Monday, October 08, 2007   |   0 Comments

CRN published a basic review of most popular virtualization platforms on the market today, assigning a rating to each one:

  • 1st - VMware Infrastructure 3
  • 2nd - XenSource XenEnterprise 4
  • 3rd - SWsoft Virtuozzo 3.5.1
  • 4th - Virtual Iron 4.0

Reviewer provided following conclusion:

While all four virtualization solutions accommodate the needs of IT development, VMware stood above the others for providing the best end-to-end virtualized environment specifically designed for development.

The biggest challenge for IT is to build communications between a large team working on the same development project. VMware’s ESX server is built for that, including the most features by far. XenSource’s XenServer is the simplest product to use and has new features that enable it to compete on a more level playing field with VMware and SWsoft. XenEnterprise is price-competitive and also scales higher than VMware’s enterprise solution.

SWsoft offers an interface that’s easy to understand, but its capabilities don’t rise to the level many development teams would require. Virtual Iron’s interface just wasn’t friendly enough for engineers to build simple workflows.

Simply put, systems integrators and application providers can certainly use all four products to develop and test systems but on more complex distributed infrastructures, they will be hard-pressed to meet deadlines without VMware’s Lab Manager to monitor workflow, integration schedules and code assets.

Read the whole comparison at the source.

virtualization.info: Review: CRN compares most popular virtualization platforms

written by dcaddick

390 views
Oct 02

So it was with interest I noticed the news about VDM (Virtual Display Manager)being released by iShadow and remembered I’d been asked about the same issues a couple of months back.

The cheapest solution is to make sure you are using the Vista TS Client as this supports monitor spanning - however there are a few caveats listed below

The other alternative is SplitView and this can be used on trial for 30 days?

But certainly VDM certainly looks like it will accommodate just about any need or requirment, as demonstrated here:

VIRTUAL DISPLAY MANAGER

MSTSC Spanning multiple Monitors

For example, this configuration is suitable for multi-monitor spanning:

 (-1024,0)         |
    --+--------------+------------------> x  

    |              |              |  

    |              |              |  

    |              |              |  

    |              |              |  

    +--------------+--------------+ (1024,768)  

                   | y  

                   V

You can access the functionality using command-line options, in one of two ways:

If you know the rectangle dimensions of your virtual desktop:

mstsc /w:2048 /h:768 /v:<servername>

or if you want mstsc.exe to figure-out the dimensions:

mstsc /span /v:<servername>

There are a few limitations of multi-monitor spanning:

* The maximum dimensions of the virtual desktop in a TS-Session is hard-coded to 4096×2048, regardless of the color-depth and the available resources on the remote machine.

* The remote session will see your virtual desktop as one giant display.This reduces the complexity of the multi-display implementation in the remote session, while still allowing the windowed mode of the TS-Client to

be functional and viable.

More at source:

http://blogs.msdn.com/ts/archive/2006/11/10/multi-monitor-support-in-the-vista-ts-client.aspx

written by dcaddick

143 views
Sep 28
Alessandro is at it again, keep checking his site for all news Virtual?

Microsoft opens Viridian technical preview to general public

By Alessandro Perilli

Just a couple of weeks after releasing Windows Server 2008 RC0 to TAP customers, Microsoft is ready to open the new build to general public. Since it includes a technical preview of upcoming Windows Server Virtualization (codename Viridian), this is the first time the new Microsoft hypervisor reaches such a wide audience.

Viridian adopts is a true bare-metal Virtual Machine Monitor (VMM) compared with existing Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1, using a 64bit microkernel not derived  from existing Windows kernel which takes only 1 MB space on disk (but requires Intel VT or AMD-V extensions enabled on physical CPU) and finally supporting 64bit virtual machines (check the architecture here).

Update: Despite the information provided, it seems Viridian can create Windows Server 2003 virtual machines with 8 vCPUs.    >>>>>>

more and download links at source…

written by dcaddick

137 views
Sep 28

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — 09/10/07 — VM World Conference — At the VM World Conference running this week, Leostream Corp., a leading provider of Virtual Hosted Desktop software and physical-to-virtual conversion tools, today announced version 5 of its Connection Broker for the management of access to hosted desktops running in virtual machines. The Leostream Connection Broker dynamically assigns users to Hosted Desktops whether running on physical or virtual machines.

"Leostream has been building Connection Brokers for the last two years — starting with a 5,000 seat project for the US Patent and Trade Office," said David Crosbie, Leostream CTO. "Using Connection Broker is extremely simple — simply enter your user credentials and you are automatically logged into the Windows session."

Version 5.0 of Leostream’s Connection Broker was co-developed with a major financial institution that is using it as a key component in its move to Hosted Desktops with thin clients. This reduces the per user power consumption from 400W to around 100W and eliminates the need for UPS to the desktop as well as halving the amount of wiring in the building. These cost savings alone justify the project — particularly in major financial centers where there are acute power shortages.

The product is proven to scale globally to 30,000 users and eight Datacenter. As well as being highly scalable it is also highly robust — and capable of providing uninterrupted service in a wide variety of disaster recovery scenarios.

more at source…

written by dcaddick

160 views
Sep 28

Now this is quite interesting because up until now most of the news and information (dare I say Hype?) has been based around the benefits of flexibility and high availability (like VMotion, etc.) but we are now starting to see enough real world examples of Server and Desktop Virtualization that we can have broad benchmarks or rule-of-thumb guidelines that are indicative of the savings that can be gained even at the design stage when details of the intended environment are almost non-existent?

Although it has been around for some time, the Citrix ROI template (available at http://www.acecostanalyzer.com ) is still quite valid, even more so if your environment is still stuck in Client Server mode? Some of these best practice calculations can be applied to a VDI scenario but not all, so it will certainly be of some benefit when we start to see more of these details emerging.

I don’t suppose that Citrix, VMware and Microsoft might get together under a Green banner and co-fund a similar ROI tool for VDI in general as part of climate change initiative? Perhaps the Bill Gates foundation should kick this off?

What do you think? Pass it on to Bill for comment?

Analysts: Virtualization to save businesses millions

Butler Group report predicts savings from virtualization as it reduces energy consumption and operating costs.

By Gemma Simpson
Special to CNET News.com

Analysts: Virtualization to save businesses millions

Virtualization could save companies millions of dollars and be the dominant data center technology within the next two to three years, according to analysts.

Virtualization can reduce energy consumption and cut operating costs for companies adopting the technology, according to a Butler Group report released this week on infrastructure virtualization.

The report estimates a company currently operating 250 dual-core servers can save $4 million over the next three years by adopting virtualization technology.

Butler also estimates that a power savings on the order of $157,500 for every 1,000 PCs per year can be achieved by businesses moving from a full desktop PC infrastructure to a server-hosted desktop virtualization setup.

And a further $8,000 per 1,000 help-desk calls per month could also be saved by reducing the number of such calls and encouraging the use of self-service application virtualization technologies, the research reveals.

Many companies initially adopt virtualization to save money through server consolidation, and then start to notice other benefits, so that virtualization becomes part of the overall IT plan, according to the analyst house.

Roy Illsley, senior research analyst with Butler, said companies need to understand what virtualization can deliver–and how it is delivered–to successfully use the technology to manage an organization’s IT resources.

The virtualization revolution seems to be slowly marching on, with analysts and industry experts naming the technology as one of the most versatile tools in IT, and analyst house Gartner stating that virtualization will be a key technology to help companies beef up security on corporate mobile devices.

Senior industry figures have also named virtualization as the technology poised to play the most significant role in tackling the challenges many chief information officers face, such as rising energy costs.

Gemma Simpson of Silicon.com reported from London.

written by dcaddick