Data Center Management Articles
In this webinar, attendees will learn more about KVM as an enterprise-grade solution from industry leaders IBM, Red Hat and thought leader, Gary Chen, IDC analyst.
Posted November 09, 2011
Choosing the right virtualization foundation is critical whether you are virtualizing for the first time or transitioning to a Cloud computing model.IBM System x enterprise servers represent the best of IBM X-Architecture technology, leveraging decades of mainframe server design to deliver an open and affordable, industry-standard server platform that can help tackle virtualizing your most demanding workloads. The combination of KVM, Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization, and IBM System x systems provide performance, scalability, low cost, and - most importantly - choice for both Windows and Linux operating environments.
Posted November 09, 2011
In what it is described as the largest update to its systems portfolio this year, IBM introduced 55 new and updated server and storage technologies that can help clients gain actionable insights from data, increase IT capacity and deliver new services faster to create profitable business opportunities. The new offerings include affordable business analytics systems, automated tools for implementing security and compliance standards, and starter kits for establishing private clouds.
Posted November 09, 2011
IBM's Watson, which bested Jeopardy!'s two most successful contestants, Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter, continued its winning streak during a recent exhibition game played against teams of students from Harvard Business School (HBS) and the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Posted November 09, 2011
At the first-ever LinuxCon Europe held in Prague, Czech Republic (co-located with the Linux Kernel Summit and GStreamer Conference), the 3.1 Linux kernel was launched.
Posted November 09, 2011
UC4, a provider of IT process automation solutions, announced it is shipping a new version of its Application Release Automation (ARA) solution, intended to provide greater visibility into the end-to-end release processes through cross functional planning, tracking and reporting. The solution is designed to automate the deployment of complex applications from development through production.
Posted November 09, 2011
Unisys Corporation recently reported third-quarter 2011 net income from continuing operations of $78.6 million, compared with third-quarter 2010 net income from continuing operations of $21.8 million. Revenue in the third quarter of 2011 grew 6% to $1.02 billion compared with $961 million in the year-ago quarter. Foreign currency fluctuations had a positive impact on revenue in the quarter of almost 6 percentage points, the company said. "This was a strong quarter for Unisys," said Unisys chairman and CEO Ed Coleman during a Unisys webcast announcing the quarter results. "We grew our revenue and tripled EPS from continuing operations as we benefited from the foundational work we've been doing to strengthening our competitive and financial profile."
Posted November 08, 2011
Unisys has announced additions to its family of voice-messaging solutions that enable telecommunications services providers to host a greater number of services more efficiently and give mobile subscribers new options for reaching contacts and accessing their voice messages. Anchoring the solutions is the VSE Model 412 server, the newest member of the Unisys VoiceSource Express (VSE) 400 Series of messaging and converged user services platforms. Unisys also introduced new software-based solutions that make managing voice messages simpler for subscribers using smartphones and less fully configured feature phones.
Posted November 08, 2011
Schooner Information Technology, Inc., which develops and markets high-availability (HA) high-performance MySQL software for mission-critical applications, has unveiled SchoonerSQL v5.1, a full build of the MySQL database and its standard InnoDB storage engine, with additional Schooner enhancements.
Posted November 02, 2011
How confident are you in your legacy application security? Determine your risk potential and learn proactive steps you can take to protect your enterprise applications. Register now for the next webcast hosted by SHARE and presented by IBM: Did You Know that Your Legacy Applications are at Risk on Thursday, November 10, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. CST. Speakers Karl Snider and Dave Myers from the IBM Corporation will discuss how new challenges for meeting application security and compliance have emerged as criminals are increasingly targeting applications.
Posted October 31, 2011
Teleran Technologies, a provider of business intelligence (BI) and data warehouse management software, announced Release 4.2 of its flagship software for managing BI and analytical applications and data warehouses on IBM System z.
Posted October 31, 2011
In what it calls the largest update to its systems portfolio this year, IBM announced 55 new and updated server and storage technologies - several of which incorporate the System z platform - that can help clients gain actionable insights from data, increase IT capacity and deliver new services faster to create profitable business opportunities. The new offerings include affordable business analytics systems, automated tools for implementing security and compliance standards, and starter kits for establishing private clouds.
Posted October 31, 2011
SUSE has released an early development snapshot of its OpenStack-powered cloud infrastructure solution. SUSE Cloud powered by OpenStack, says SUSE, is the industry's first, fully configured, OpenStack-powered appliance based on OpenStack's latest version, Diablo. It is also the first public preview of SUSE's hypervisor-agnostic, operating system neutral, open source cloud infrastructure solution.
Posted October 31, 2011
HP has introduced new services and solutions based on HP Converged Infrastructure to enable service providers and enterprises to more quickly deliver cloud services. With the new offerings, HP is responding to the increasing pressures that business of all sizes are facing to deliver IT services on-demand, Frances Guida, manager of HP Cloud Solutions and Infrastructure, Enterprise Servers, Storage, and Networking, tells 5 Minute Briefing.
Posted October 31, 2011
Clerity Solutions, a provider of mainframe modernization solutions, announced a statement of direction for its newly designed Windows- and .NET managed-code version of the company's UniKix Mainframe Rehosting software. It will include migrating mainframe applications to the Windows Azure cloud. Based on UniKix technology, Veryant's vCOBOL Enterprise software, and Microsoft Visual Studio, this new solution is planned to be delivered in two phases, starting in the fourth quarter of 2011.
Posted October 31, 2011
Maintec Technologies Inc., an IT infrastructure support vendor, says it is now equipped with IBM System z9 Business Class Mainframe environment, serving entry-level to midsize capacity needs. With IBM z9 BC and latest z/OS version 1.12, Maintec says it can deliver improved performance, availability, security, efficiency, simplified administration, and enhanced service to smaller firms or larger enterprises seeking additional capacity.
Posted October 31, 2011
Quest International Users Group (Quest) for Oracle PeopleSoft, JD Edwards and Oracle Utilities users is laying out an ambitious roadmap for the year ahead, incorporating new in-person product-focused events directed specifically at the needs of the JD Edwards and PeopleSoft communities, as well as expanding its offering of online learning opportunities. Michael L. Whitmer, president of Quest, joined by Jonathan Vaughn, Quest's executive director, talked with 5 Minute Briefing at Oracle OpenWorld in San Francisco about strategies for supporting members in 2012. There is a shift going on in IT and being technically competent is simply not enough anymore, says Whitmer. "The IT organizations that are going to be successful going forward are those that really move out of being the order-taker organization to being a true business strategy organization, in partnership with the business, and deliver IT in a way that provides business value."
Posted October 20, 2011
Alchemy Solutions, Inc. has announced that NeoKicks, its CICS modernization tool, can now push CICS applications to Windows Azure, Microsoft's cloud environment. NeoKicks V3.1 runs on Windows servers and is the first CICS migration framework to run natively on Windows Azure without the use of virtual machines.
Posted October 17, 2011
IBM unveiled what it calls the industry's most advanced cloud services and software designed from the ground up for enterprise clients. New IBM SmartCloud services and capabilities provide greater choice, security and portability for cloud implementations, the company says. IBM also says it plans to support about 200 million users by the end of 2012 as clients shift core applications and processes to the IBM SmartCloud.
Posted October 17, 2011
IBM has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Platform Computing, a privately held company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Platform Computing is a provider of cluster and grid management software for distributed computing environments. The acquisition is anticipated to close in the fourth quarter of 2011, subject to the satisfaction of closing conditions. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Posted October 17, 2011
Red Hat, Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Gluster, Inc., a provider of open source unstructured data storage solutions, for approximately $136 million in cash. With this acquisition, Red Hat says it will improve how enterprise IT manages the explosion of big data, whether on-premise or spanning into the public cloud; and expand into a critical part of enterprise infrastructure, delivering open storage solutions that protect customer investments as they approach the new era of computing.
Posted October 17, 2011
UNICOM Systems, Inc., a provider of IBM mainframe, System i, Unix and Open Systems management solutions, has acquired the Boston-based international software company, iET Solutions, LLC from Platinum Equity, LLC. The acquisition will boost UNICOM's reach in the IT Service Management (ITSM) and software asset management market space. New solutions coming out of the acquisition will complement UNICOM's existing ITPowerPac sites.
Posted October 17, 2011
Motorola Solutions, Inc., a provider of enterprise communication products, software and services, has announced the availability of a web-based application framework designed to enable businesses to develop and deploy web-based applications on existing Motorola Windows Embedded Handheld (formerly known as Windows Mobile) and Windows Embedded Compact (Win-CE) mobile computers, as well as Motorola's recently announced ET1 Android-based enterprise tablet. Motorola RhoElements is the first of several product releases targeted at developers within Motorola's customer base and PartnerEmpower ecosystem, the vendor says.
Posted October 17, 2011
SmartBear Software announced two toolsets designed to provide software development and QA teams with more granular control over agile test management and release management activities, while enhancing test reuse. ALMComplete 2011 is a SaaS-based and on-premise application lifecycle management tool, and QAComplete 2011 is a QA and test management tool.
Posted October 17, 2011
Legacy IT systems were developed for - and still run - about 60% of all mission-critical applications. They are still stable and reliable. However, the maintenance on legacy applications over time has made them so complex that rather than helping to solve business problems, most legacy systems have become a challenge that enterprises are grappling with.
Posted October 15, 2011
Nearly half of respondents to a recent Unisys Corporation online poll indicated they are more likely to ask their company IT department to fix problems with the personally owned consumer devices they use at work than they are to troubleshoot the issues themselves or seek support from the device manufacturer.
Posted October 15, 2011
Unisys China subsidiary has been named systems integrator to support the expansion and modernization of Chengdu Airport, including work on the airport's new Terminal 2. Terminal 2 will provide additional capacity for the busiest airport in Western China, and China's sixth largest airport overall, which predicts annual passenger volume will grow 53 million by 2015.
Posted October 15, 2011
Joe Clabby authors a comprehensive overview on the SHARE website this week focusing on the issue of the IT Skills Gap. While the need for mainframe professionals remains high, for instance, the supply of young mainframers remains stubbornly short. Certainly, the supply of mainframers coming out of universities is hamstrung by a number of specific factors including an uninformed perception by students about the platform's ongoing importance, a dearth of curriculum and faculty covering the subject in many computer science programs, and a lack of outreach by industry into local computer science departments to foster both academic and internship focus.
Posted October 15, 2011
Since its launch, the Open Virtualization Alliance (OVA) has grown to include more than 200 members, indicating the keen interest in open virtualization and Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM). The OVA was founded in May 2011 by industry leaders including Red Hat, SUSE, and IBM in May 2011.
Posted October 12, 2011
Earlier this year, Watson, IBM's highly intelligent machine beat the two all-time winners in Jeopardy!. Watson, named after IBM founder Thomas J. Watson, is a computing system built by a team of IBM scientists who set out to accomplish a grand challenge - build a computing system that rivals a human's ability to answer questions posed in natural language with speed, accuracy and confidence. Of course, IBM did not spend all its time and resources just to create a system that can succeed at game shows.
Posted October 12, 2011
IBM has been selected by Yi Lian Zhong Information Technology (YLZ), a provider of information services in China, to build a cloud computing platform that will improve the life of citizens in China via an online portal for social services. With an IBM System z mainframe running Linux as the foundation, YLZ will expand its existing services available in Fujian Province to seven more Chinese provinces. This will allow them to construct a citizen livelihood service information network covering a population of 300 million. YLZ selected System z for its reliability, security and cost effectiveness. Specifically, the mainframe's ability to scale easily will help YLZ manage the unpredictable nature of transaction peaks and valleys without incurring additional costs.
Posted October 12, 2011
IBM is broadening its Power architecture licensing program to include a multi-use agreement that provides developers access to the entire lineup of Power cores with a single license. This is the first time such an option has been available for Power systems developers. Designers can now gain access to a blanket license for unlimited uses of the Power 470, Power 460 and Power 405 cores for a 5-year period. IBM also announced a new "no-barriers" license for the Power 405 core which drops the standard access fee.
Posted October 12, 2011
LiMo Foundation and The Linux Foundation have announced a new open source project, Tizen, to develop a Linux-based device software platform. Hosted at The Linux Foundation, Tizen is a standards-based, cross-architecture software platform, which supports multiple device categories including smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, netbooks and in-vehicle infotainment systems. The initial release of Tizen is targeted for Q1 2012, enabling first devices to come to market in mid-2012.
Posted October 12, 2011
IBM Systems Director VMControl provides simplified, multiplatform virtualization management from a single consistent graphical user interface. It encompasses virtual lifecycle management, virtualization image management and system pool management as an extension to the Systems Director management tool. Now, IBM has announced IBM Systems Director VMControl 2.4 (available December 16, 2011), offering IBM clients a cost-effective choice with expanded support for KVM, the next-generation open source hypervisor. VMControl's comprehensive virtualization image management capabilities help achieve cloud-ready virtual infrastructures, with faster implementations and reduced time-to-value.
Posted October 12, 2011
Since its launch, the Open Virtualization Alliance (OVA) has grown to include more than 200 members, indicating the keen interest in open virtualization and Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM). The OVA was founded in May 2011 by industry leaders including Red Hat, SUSE, and IBM in May 2011.
Posted October 12, 2011
Earlier this year, Watson, IBM's highly intelligent machine beat the two all-time winners in Jeopardy!. Watson, named after IBM founder Thomas J. Watson, is a computing system built by a team of IBM scientists who set out to accomplish a grand challenge - build a computing system that rivals a human's ability to answer questions posed in natural language with speed, accuracy and confidence. Of course, IBM did not spend all its time and resources just to create a system that can succeed at game shows.
Posted October 12, 2011
IBM has been selected by Yi Lian Zhong Information Technology (YLZ), a provider of information services in China, to build a cloud computing platform that will improve the life of citizens in China via an online portal for social services. With an IBM System z mainframe running Linux as the foundation, YLZ will expand its existing services available in Fujian Province to seven more Chinese provinces. This will allow them to construct a citizen livelihood service information network covering a population of 300 million. YLZ selected System z for its reliability, security and cost effectiveness. Specifically, the mainframe's ability to scale easily will help YLZ manage the unpredictable nature of transaction peaks and valleys without incurring additional costs.
Posted October 12, 2011
IBM is broadening its Power architecture licensing program to include a multi-use agreement that provides developers access to the entire lineup of Power cores with a single license. This is the first time such an option has been available for Power systems developers. Designers can now gain access to a blanket license for unlimited uses of the Power 470, Power 460 and Power 405 cores for a 5-year period. IBM also announced a new "no-barriers" license for the Power 405 core which drops the standard access fee.
Posted October 12, 2011
LiMo Foundation and The Linux Foundation have announced a new open source project, Tizen, to develop a Linux-based device software platform. Hosted at The Linux Foundation, Tizen is a standards-based, cross-architecture software platform, which supports multiple device categories including smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, netbooks and in-vehicle infotainment systems. The initial release of Tizen is targeted for Q1 2012, enabling first devices to come to market in mid-2012.
Posted October 12, 2011
At Oracle OpenWorld, Fusion-io announced the next evolution of its ioMemory platform for application acceleration and data center optimization. "With the introduction of this next platform we are stepping down to 2x nanometer NAND flash which is doubling the capacity point," David Flynn, Fusion-io CEO and chairman, tells 5 Minute Briefing, explaining that as the capacity point is expanded, opportunities are opened up for it to be used in new areas. "People want to get the most capacity that they can because it enables them to do things that they couldn't otherwise do."
Posted October 07, 2011
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison unveiled the SPARC SuperCluster T4-4 during a presentation at the company's Redwood Shores, Calif., headquarters. Based on Oracle's new SPARC T4 servers, the engineered system exploits the same parallelism and data compression provided by Oracle's other engineered systems, the Exadata and Exalogic, said Ellison, and, importantly, provides a smooth upgrade path to the SPARC Solaris installed base.
Posted October 04, 2011
Compuware Corporation introduced a load testing solution that it says enables organizations to find and fix performance and scalability problems across the entire application delivery chain. Compuware Gomez 360° Web Load Testing brings together two testing solutions - Gomez Web Load Testing and dynaTrace Test Center Edition - into one integrated offering.
Posted October 03, 2011
TIBCO Software Inc., an integration platform provider, announced the general availability of a portfolio of on-demand offerings enabling users to create, publish, and share customized business intelligence (BI) dashboards and advanced analytics applications via the cloud. TIBCO Silver Spotfire 2.0 is available as a tiered collection of packages that offers tiered capabilities, scalability and pricing. No IT department involvement is required, the vendor also claims.
Posted October 03, 2011
HPCC Systems from LexisNexis Risk Solutions has released the source code for its HPCC Systems platform to the open source community, enabling developers to leverage and further enhance the platform. To manage, sort, link, join and analyze billions of records within seconds, LexisNexis developed a data-intensive supercomputer that has been proven, and has evolved for over a decade, with customers who need to process large volumes of data. Built on a high performing computer clustering technology, HPCC Systems is an open source solution designed to help large organizations process and deliver big data.
Posted October 03, 2011
This week Symantec Corp. is announcing version 6.0 of the company's storage management and high availability product set, intended as the cornerstones of private cloud infrastructures. The release spans multiple products in Symantec's portfolio, including its flagship Veritas Storage Foundation 6.0, Veritas Cluster Server 6.0, and Veritas Operations Manager 4.1, all integrated to help IT organizations move confidently to a private cloud architecture.
Posted October 03, 2011
Red Lambda, Inc., a data management software company, announced an Early Release Program for MetaGrid, security and operational intelligence software powered by the company's AppIron Grid Platform. MetaGrid is designed to address the big data dichotomy faced by providers of IT, network and cloud infrastructures that generate up to petabytes per day of operational data. Red Lambda claims it is the first to combine leading-edge big data technologies to create a software platform designed to keep pace with the increasing volume, variety, and velocity of IT operational data and find the threats and opportunities buried within it.
Posted October 03, 2011