Friday, April 25th, 2014

Time	Event
11:30a	Dell and Big Switch Partner on SDN Solution In response to strong customer demand for migration paths to software-defined networks (SDN) Dell and Big Switch Networks announced a strategic agreement that has Dell reselling the Big Switch Big Tap application and the Switch Light Operating System, running on Dell’s high performance Open Networking switches. Dell also announced plans to advance its open-networking initiative which redefines traditional networking switch models to help customers develop future-ready data centers. The agreement will help deliver next-generation SDN fabrics and fills a critical gap in realizing the true promise of the software-defined data center. Dell will offer Big Switch Networks’ Switch Light OS on Dell Networking’s Ethernet switching portfolio, starting with the S4810 and S6000 series. Dell will also offer Big Switch Networks’ production-ready SDN controller applications starting with the Big Tap Monitoring, a new SDN-based network monitoring solution. The combined Dell and Big Switch Big Tap Monitoring solution is a strong candidate for an enterprise’s initial SDN deployment as it operates on the monitoring network and can be deployed incrementally. “The early adopters of SDN were largely the hyperscale players. But with the advent of initiatives such as Open Networking from Dell, the path for all enterprises to enjoy the benefits of SDN is getting easier,” said Douglas Murray, CEO of Big Switch Networks. “The joint solutions coming from the Dell and Big Switch partnership will bring hyperscale data center design and choice to a broader audience.” The Dell and Big Switch partnership continues to illustrate Dell’s approach to an open ecosystem of standards-based network equipment, networking operating systems and network applications. Dell expects to begin offering switches with Big Switch Networks Switch Light operating system and the Big Switch Networks Big Tap Monitoring Fabric controller in the second quarter of 2014. “Dell’s push into open networking, and this announcement with Big Switch and other vendors, are great examples of original thinking and innovation coming from the new Dell, “said Tom Burns, vice president and general manager, Dell Networking. “We’re seeing tremendous initial customer interest, especially among certain verticals such as large financials, Web 2.0 and mobile service providers. It’s drawing Dell Networking into additional business discussions where many customers may not have considered Dell before.” “The future is SDN-based with open software and hardware. We need a practical way to get from here to there,” said Jim Bottum, CIO, Clemson University, one of the country’s most selective public research universities. “Currently, we purchase Dell and Big Switch Networks products independently. Having them team for a fully-integrated, tested and supported solution is ideal. To me, it’s a great example of the new Dell investing in research and development to help us bridge the gap between traditional networking and SDN.” (Comment on this)
12:00p	The Power of a Converged Platform, and How to Harness It The next five years will be a defining period for the modern data center, as it will have to adapt to a data-on-demand generation. Ccars, refrigerators and entire houses will be connecting to the cloud. To support this level of high-density and multi-tenancy, the hardware (and software) model within the data center must evolve. We need better workload management, improved resource control, and an optimized end-user experience. In many cases, traditional server technologies just haven’t been enough. There were issues with scalability, automation, and management – all factors that can severely slow down the business process. So how can data centers and their environments support this boom in users? How can infrastructure evolve to create a more efficient compute model? The introduction of blade, chassis and converged infrastructure seemed to have really helped this challenge. We now have highly scalable, intelligent systems capable of dynamic resource utilization while optimizing the capabilities of your corporate cloud. But just like any great technology, lots of folks jumped on the bandwagon. We have a few different converged platforms out there, all capable of amazing things. Let’s look at some examples and use-cases. Traditional converged systems. There are many ways to look at a converged or unified compute system. Basically, these are critical puzzle pieces all operating on the same management plane. Technologies like Cisco UCS and their Integrated Systems, HP BladeSystem, and Dell’s Active System architecture are all capable of creating the foundations of the modern data center. These platforms incorporate network, storage, compute, and management into a powerful converged offering. These systems can then interconnect with other resources within a distributed data center model. For the most part, you can use these systems for a variety of use cases. This can range from workload/desktop delivery to application virtualization. The challenge is that these systems can get pretty big – and pretty expensive. So if you’re a small shop aiming at a more strategic converged solution, maybe you should consider the next model. Strategic converged platforms. Strategic converged solutions are being implemented all over in data centers, branch offices, and even in the cloud. Platforms like Nutanix, Simplivity and Scale Computing each offer a unique way to deploy a small footprint with a lot of power. You can use these smaller platforms very strategically to displace larger converged systems and to fit a good use-case. Desktop delivery, for example would live very well on a Nutanix appliance. Couple this with Nutanix’s software-defined solution and you’ve got a very robust converged deployment. Use-case specific converged systems. Scalability and the capability to process critical web-based workloads has become a necessary component for many modern enterprises. But not every converged platform is designed for that specific job. Ever hear of HP’s Moonshot platform? Here’s a chassis that shares power, cooling, management and fabric for 45 individually serviceable hot-plug server cartridges. What’s it perfect for? Running cloud-based applications capable of handling a large number of parallel, task-oriented workloads. You certainly wouldn’t want to put a large number of VDI users on this type of server environment. Although this system isn’t built for everything, when you use it with the right use-case it can be a powerful platform which can deliver breakthrough efficiency and scale. Got the idea? Converged platforms are certainly not all created equal. In many cases, you absolutely need to understand your use case before you acquire a converged infrastructure. Remember, although these are certainly flexible units, getting the wrong architecture can be very detrimental for your business. With that in mind, converged platforms offer a powerful alternative to traditional server and compute models. The all-in-one methodology allows for rapid replication, dynamic scalability and some great resource controls. The future of the cloud will directly revolve around your ability to deliver rich resource to a truly distributed user base. Converged systems offer you the ability to stretch your data center model into the cloud and beyond. (Comment on this)
12:30p	Friday Funny: What’s the Best Caption? So the end of the work week is here. Let’s have some fun and festivities. That includes our weekly caption contest, with cartoons drawn by Diane Alber, our favorite data center cartoonist! Please visit Diane’s website Kip and Gary for more of her data center humor. Here’s how it works. We provide the cartoon and you, our readers, submit the captions. We then choose finalists and the readers vote for their favorite funniest suggestion. The winner receives a hard copy print, with his or her caption included in the cartoon. Please vote for the best captions for the “List” Cartoon. Take Our Poll (Comment on this)
2:17p	A Look Inside Apple’s iDataCenter in North Carolina Apple has provided the first look inside its data centers in a series of media interviews designed to promote its use of green energy. In interviews with Wired and The Today Show, Apple Vice President of Environmental Initiative Lisa Jackson has shown off the massive solar power arrays that power the company’s data centers in Reno, Nevada and Maiden, North Carolina. The NBC video includes a brief look inside the Maiden data center, where correspondent Anne Thompson walks through the hot aisle of a row of servers. The aisle is contained, with end doors and clear ceiling panels, and Jackson says the temperature is about 103 degrees. Why the hot aisle? Apparently it’s to conceal the server and storage technology Apple is using. “I was allowed to describe everything I saw, with one exception: the manufacturer of the servers,” writes Wired’s Levy (who also appears in the Today Show piece). “I can say that they are not Mac Mini’s or anything else that you’d buy in an Apple store.” Here’s a look at the video. The data center tour begins at about the 1 minute mark. Yes, there’s probably a pre-roll ad. You can also check out the video at The Today Show site. Levy, who also got the first look inside Google’s data center, doesn’t provide much detail on the data halls or technology, but offers observations on Apple’s design aesthetic. “The outside of the administration building has some sweet design elements, like decorative strips of terra cotta paneling in three shades of red, giving it a feeling of a desert lodge,” he writes. “The halls are festooned with huge, neatly hung photographs of tiny details iPhones and other Apple devices. Even the computer rooms seem to have an Apple vibe—they’re not so industrial. The doors to the hot aisle have frosted glass, like lavatory doors at a hip restaurant. The air-cooled facility is relatively quiet; unlike some other data centers, no earplugs required. You get the feeling you could probably eat off the server floor.” (Comment on this)
3:30p	Numerify Launches Next Generation Cloud Analytics Numerify emerges from stealth with its turnkey Numerify360 solution for cloud analytics, Alteryx releases Analytics 9.0 with easy access to insight from a number of new sources, and Siemens AG selects Teradata to industrialize its big data analytics. Numerify launches with turnkey cloud analytics. Emerging from stealth Wednesday Cupertino, California based Numerify announced the general availability of Numerify360 for IT — an innovative solution that transforms the way IT uses analytics to drive transparency, accountability, and efficiency by providing visibility and intelligence across the full spectrum of IT service operations. Delivering previously complex and costly enterprise capabilities in a pre-built, turnkey application, Numerify360 for IT provides powerful operational and financial insights for organizations of all sizes to optimize their IT service investments. Anchored on ServiceNow and powered by a robust patent-pending analytical platform, application design, and automation technology, Numerify360 for IT integrates data from IT, operational, and financial systems into a dimensionally-conformed, cloud data warehouse. “Numerify360 for IT gives IT Executives charged with running the ‘Business of IT’ the tools they need to measure like a CFO so they can manage like a CEO,” said Gaurav Rewari, Founder and CEO of Numerify. “Architected from the ground up for a world in which data relevant for decision-making is often dispersed across cloud and on-premise sources, Numerify360 applications extend the power of the SaaS delivery model from the operational to the analytical layer.” Alteryx releases Analytics 9.0. Alteryx released Alteryx Analytics 9.0, empowering deeper business insights that can be achieved without the need to code and without the need for data scientists. The new release introduces easy access to and blending of all major and emerging sources of customer insight – from social sources to marketing automation to emerging customer data stores like Amazon Redshift. New repositories of customer insight information in version 9.0 include DataSift and GNIP support, the full sales and marketing lifecycle of Salesforce.com, and data warehouses such as Amazon Redshift, Pivotal, Greenplum and HP Vertica. The newest Alteryx release provides capabilities to scale the volume of data that can be analyzed using  R-based tools, making it even simpler to create analytic applications. ”Through user-centric design and the most scalable analytics platform, Alteryx destroys the barrier for the non-PhDs to make data-driven decisions,” said George Mathew, President and COO of Alteryx. “We’re delivering a high fidelity experience to blend data and build advanced analytic models without being a programmer. Alteryx is the software instrument of change for all analytical leaders from the back office to the boardroom.” Siemens AG relies on Teradata.  Teradata (TDC) announced  that Siemens AG will be able to enhance its manufacturing processes and product quality by deploying Teradata technology. For the first time, Siemens will be able to combine and analyze data from sensors, the manufacturing process, and machine data, along with data from various source systems. After in-depth evaluation of relevant big data technologies on the market, Siemens decided to implement the Teradata UDA. The framework enables organizations to take advantage of the complete variety of data – both traditionally structured and new, diverse data. Depending on the analytical purpose, Siemens can combine and analyze different types of data on the most suitable platform. ”We can now recognize the value within our data more quickly and efficiently,” said Dr. Michael May, Head of Technology Field Business Analytics and Monitoring (BAM). “Transforming big data into smart data will allow us to optimize the quality of our products and can provide our customers with improved service.” (Comment on this)

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