Windows 7

Windows 7 launched to MSDN subscribers yesterday and EA customers today. It looks pretty impressive, better than Vista anyway. Over the next week I will be loading the Enterprise version and testing, I will post my thoughts here so stay tuned. In the meantime enjoy this:

Video

View Linked Clone Provisioning

I was working with our VMware View implementation today and ran into a problem I think would be fairly common. I was creating an Automated Pool using Linked Clone technology but the base VM was not available for me to select. It seems I forgot one simple step, take a snapshot of the powered off VM. Once I took the snapshot, the VM showed up and I was able to select it. So, for all those creating Automated Pools using Linked Clones, DON'T FORGET TO SNAPSHOT THE MASTER VM.

You can view the admin guide here: http://www.vmware.com/pdf/view31_manual.pdf.
Check out the View Composer section.

Good Effort Microsoft - Windows 7 pricing

Looks like Microsoft is trying as hard as they can to tempt people to jump on the Windows 7 bandwagon. Why is it that lately there is always a comment about why what they are doing is better than what Apple is doing. Do they really feel that threatened? If Microsoft charged for Service Packs they know they would have more people jumping ship. Can't wait to get my hands on this and Snow Leopard.

Read the article here: http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/ptech/06/25/cnet.windows7.pricing.upgrade/index.html

Microsoft Security?

Microsoft hasn't been too strong on the security front but that apparently doesn't keep people from downloading their software for free. The interface looks decent, just wondering what performance is like, especially on a Beta.

Read article here: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10271865-56.html

vSphere 4 - Reasons to upgrade

I attended vmware's vsphere launch event on May 27th and following are my takeaways:

• vStorage Thin Provisioning - Powerful technology that allows you to provision a VM with the space being used on demand (The OS still sees the size that was configured). Read more here: http://www.vmware.com/products/vstorage-thin-provisioning/
• Storage vMotion - Allows you to move storage HOT. Similar to moving a guest from one host to another this allows you to move a vm to a different datacenter while online. Read more here: http://www.vmware.com/products/vi/storage_vmotion.html
• VMware Data Recovery - Allows you to backup VMs. Complete with differentials and DEDUP! Read more here: http://www.vmware.com/products/data-recovery/
• vShield Zones - Allows firewalls between VMs. Read more here: http://www.vmware.com/products/vshield-zones/
• Host Profiles - This one has been a long time coming. You can now setup profiles for your hosts to simplify setup and monitor compliance.

Some great technology there, can't wait to deploy and use.

Linked In

Anyone who hasn't heard of LinkedIn probably does not have a computer. The business equivalent of myspace or facebook, LinkedIn can be a very powerful tool for IT Pros. Especially those looking for a new career or to network. Check out my profile here:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/jfkudelka

Coming Soon!

Here I will break down some tech trends and my experiences deploying technology.