Word on the Street

What's the latest happening around town and what's being talked about on the street.

June 2009 - Posts

  • Need help with VMware vSphere 4? Check out these virtualization books.

    Looking to learn and master VMware's latest virtualization technology?  A good place to start is learning from the virtualization experts.  Check out these books that will be hitting the virtual bookshelf soon enough. 

    Mastering VMware vSphere 4 (Computer/Tech) - By Scott Lowe

    As part of the highly acclaimed Mastering series from Sybex, this book offers a comprehensive look at VMware vSphere 4, how to implement it, and how to make the most of what it offers. 

    Coverage Includes:  

    Shows administrators how to use VMware to realize significant savings in hardware costs while still providing adequate "servers" for their users

    • Demonstrates how to partition a physical server into several virtual machines, reducing the overall server footprint within the operations center
    • Explains how VMware subsumes a network to centralize and simplify its management, thus alleviating the effects of "virtual server sprawl"

    Now that virtualization is a key cost-saving strategy, Mastering VMware vSphere 4 is the strategic guide you need to maximize the opportunities.

    Link to Amazon

    Scott Lowe's virtualization blog.

     

     

    VMware vSphere and Virtual Infrastructure Security: Securing the Virtual Environment  - By Edward L. Haletky

    Complete Hands-On Help for Securing VMware vSphere and Virtual Infrastructure by Edward Haletky, Author of the Best Selling Book on VMware, VMware ESX Server in the Enterprise

    As VMware has become increasingly ubiquitous in the enterprise, IT professionals have become increasingly concerned about securing it. Now, for the first time, leading VMware expert Edward Haletky brings together comprehensive guidance for identifying and mitigating virtualization-related security threats on all VMware platforms, including the new cloud computing platform, vSphere.

    This book reflects the same hands-on approach that made Haletky’s VMware ESX Server in the Enterprise so popular with working professionals. Haletky doesn’t just reveal where you might be vulnerable; he tells you exactly what to do and how to reconfigure your infrastructure to address the problem. 

    VMware vSphere and Virtual Infrastructure Security begins by reviewing basic server vulnerabilities and explaining how security differs on VMware virtual servers and related products. Next, Haletky drills deep into the key components of a VMware installation, identifying both real and theoretical exploits, and introducing effective countermeasures.

     


    Coverage includes:

    • Viewing virtualization from the attacker’s perspective, and understanding the new security problems it can introduce
    • Discovering which security threats the vmkernel does (and doesn’t) address
    • Learning how VMsafe enables third-party security tools to access the vmkernel API
    • Understanding the security implications of VMI, paravirtualization, and VMware Tools
    • Securing virtualized storage: authentication, disk encryption, virtual storage networks, isolation, and more
    • Protecting clustered virtual environments that use VMware High Availability, Dynamic Resource Scheduling, Fault Tolerance, vMotion, and Storage vMotion
    • Securing the deployment and management of virtual machines across the network
    • Mitigating risks associated with backup, performance management, and other day-to-day operations
    • Using multiple security zones and other advanced virtual network techniques
    • Securing Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
    • Auditing virtual infrastructure, and conducting forensic investigations after a possible breach

    Link to Amazon.

    Edward L. Haletky's virtualization blog.

     

    VMware vSphere 4 Administration Instant Reference - By Matthew K. Johnson and Jase McCarty

    VMware vSphere 4 Administration Instant Reference is a quick-reference guide for day-to-day administration of VMware's newest virtual infrastructure software. The book includes design features such as thumb tabs, secondary and tertiary tables of contents, and special heading treatments to provide quick and easy lookup, as well as quick-reference tables, lists, and step-by-step instruction to provide VMware administrators answers on the spot. This book is the perfect companion to any book on VMware, including Sybex's Mastering VMware titles.

    Link to Amazon

    Jase McCarty's virtualization blog.

  • Ask the Experts Session at VMworld 2009

    If you are one of the lucky individuals heading to VMworld 2009 in San Francisco at the end of August, you might want to consider adding Session TA2259 "Ask the Experts at VMworld 2009" to your agenda.

    This session has proven to be an interesting and worth while session to attend in the past.  Rather than the information coming directly from VMware or one of the many vendors or partners who were lucky enough to be selected to present this year, this session comes from the hearts and minds of some of the folks who operate the great virtualization blog sites that you probably enjoy every day. 

    The other nice thing, if you want to participate, you might be able to submit a question or two on their blog sites for review during the live session!  Need some help?  Who better to ask then these experts?

    Session ID: TA2259

    Session Title: Ask the Experts - Virtualization Design

    Track: Technology and Architecture

    Abstract: Are you running a virtual environment and experiencing some problems? Are you planning an upgrade from VI3 to vSphere 4 and have some questions about the infrastructure architecture changes required? Do you have a virtual infrastructure design and want it blessed by the experts? Come join us for a one hour panel session where your questions are the topic of discussion! Join the Virtualization Experts: Rick Scherer from VMwareTips.com; Scott Lowe, author of Mastering VMware vSphere 4 and blog.scottlowe.org; Duncan Epping from VMware and author of Yellow Bricks; Chad Sakac from EMC and author of Virtual Geek; and Tom Howarth from planetVM.net as they answer your questions on virtualization design.

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