Scripting administrative tasks
Top Stories
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Tip
04 Feb 2021
Get started with vRealize Orchestrator with PowerCLI
You can use PowerCLI to automate tasks in vRealize Orchestrator 8.1. Use cmdlets through the Scriptable Task feature or from a workflow in vRealize Orchestrator. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Feb 2020
VRealize Automation 8 removes key features, adds new services
VRealize Automation 8 lacks approval policies and some XaaS functionality, but it introduced ABX scripts, Cloud Accounts and Cloud Assembly as part of its cloud optimization. Continue Reading
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Tip
16 Apr 2020
What VMware Project Pacific means for the next vSphere release
Project Pacific introduces many new capabilities to vSphere, including centralized application management, API management and a new type of workflow called Pods. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Apr 2020
Avoid resource contention with the help of VMware HA
Use VMware HA VM-to-VM rules and host groups and avoid resource contention. This can help balance resources between your production and testing and development VMs. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Apr 2020
VMware licensing changes set to have long-term cost effects
VMware assured admins they would see little to no effect on costs in the short term with its switch to per-core licensing, but these changes could have long-term cost effects. Continue Reading
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Tip
07 Apr 2020
VMware Skyline Health for vSAN improves system check capabilities
VMware's announcement to merge vSAN Health and Skyline offers admins a comprehensive portfolio of various VMware support technologies under a common umbrella. Continue Reading
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Feature
30 Mar 2020
VMware cloud management successes and pitfalls
VMware's vRealize suite and its acquisitions of CloudHealth and other startups bolstered its cloud management reputation. However, it still has work to do. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Mar 2020
What you should know about host profiles in VMware
Use VMware Host Profiles to keep configuration consistent between hosts and clusters across your vSphere, and avoid common errors and mistakes to maintain stability. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Mar 2020
The recent key vSphere vMotion innovations
VMware vMotion is a function of vSphere that enables live migrations of VMs to ease load balancing and maintenance. Explore the innovations in the most recent update of vMotion. Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Mar 2020
An introduction to VMware Tanzu Mission Control
You can now implement Tanzu Mission Control to manage and set policies on Kubernetes clusters across an entire environment -- on premises and in the cloud. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Mar 2020
VMware pitches in on Workspace ONE UEM
VMware and Microsoft came together in 2019 to streamline endpoint management and create a single unified endpoint management product, Workspace ONE UEM. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Mar 2020
Fix VMware DNS troubles with proper setup
To troubleshoot DNS issues in your VMware environment, ensure all components are installed completely, including reverse lookup zones and fully qualified names. Continue Reading
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Feature
09 Mar 2020
Evaluate vSphere vs. OpenStack for your organization
VMware vSphere offers extensive virtualization, while open source OpenStack provides comprehensive cloud building tools. Understand their differences before choosing one. Continue Reading
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Feature
05 Mar 2020
VMware vRealize 7.5, 7.6 offer key admin, user enhancements
This hands-on look at VMware vRealize Automation examines the improvements made in versions 7.5 and 7.6 as well the disappearance of other features. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Feb 2020
Get to know VMware Pulse IoT
Use VMware's edge management platform, Pulse IoT, to manage IoT devices at scale. With it, you can stay on top of upgrades and patches, analyze collected data efficiently and more. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Feb 2020
VRealize Automation 8 removes key features, adds new services
VRealize Automation 8 lacks approval policies and some XaaS functionality, but it introduced ABX scripts, Cloud Accounts and Cloud Assembly as part of its cloud optimization. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Feb 2020
VSphere High Availability explained: Monitor VMs and applications
VSphere HA monitors applications and VMs. Discover best practices, storage requirements and features you should know about this service and how it compares to Microsoft Hyper-V. Continue Reading
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Feature
19 Feb 2020
How to create and deploy a VMware VM template
Learn how to create VM templates in your VMware environment to automate the process, simplify configuration tasks and standardize VMs across your ecosystem. Continue Reading
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Quiz
18 Feb 2020
Test your knowledge of vRealize Suite components updates
VMware's vRealize Suite continues to evolve with new updates to popular components. Find out how well you've kept up with the latest developments in vRealize Suite 2019. Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Feb 2020
The future implications of VMware Project Pacific
VMware's Project Pacific aims to add Kubernetes functionality to vSphere, a move that will create greater support for cloud-native applications and enable more cohesive management. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Feb 2020
Build your own at-home NSX VMware Workstation lab
Create an at-home NSX test lab by running the software on VMware Workstation. Learn the ins and outs of this technology to make it simple and cut costs. Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Feb 2020
4 considerations for vSphere disk provisioning
To provision disk space in vSphere, consider the following: The size of data stores you require, thin vs. thick provisioning, storage acceleration and managing free disk space. Continue Reading
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Tip
03 Feb 2020
A brief history of VMware, containers and its competitors
VMware has long been synonymous with virtualization. However, with the rise of containers, the vendor has pivoted strategies to compete with the likes of Red Hat and Docker. Continue Reading
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Feature
31 Jan 2020
Master VMware templates for VM creation and management
Admins who use vSphere and VM templates can improve VM operations and increase data center efficiency through configuration and management best practices. Continue Reading
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Feature
31 Jan 2020
Use DRS for VMware load balancing and streamlined environments
VMware DRS uses vMotion to automatically migrate VMs and workloads to available hosts and avoid resource contention. Discover the basics of this essential VMware utility. Continue Reading
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Tip
24 Jan 2020
VMware edge initiatives improve management at the edge
VMware is moving to the edge. The vendor has introduced products such as Edge Device Manager and new capabilities such as running ESXi on ARM to ease edge management. Continue Reading
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Quiz
22 Jan 2020
How well do you know PowerCLI cmdlets?
Take this eight-question quiz to determine how much you know about PowerCLI and its cmdlets -- the short scripts that enable you to automate nearly anything. Continue Reading
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Answer
20 Jan 2020
What to consider before you install vCloud Connector
VMware vCC requires a handful of prerequisites before you can deploy it. Install vCC once you have the correct processors, memory, network controllers and software. Continue Reading
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Answer
20 Jan 2020
The importance of vCloud Connector server, interface and nodes
The three crucial components of vCC are the interface, the server and the nodes. The interface enables admins to modify the environment, while the server acts as the go-between. Continue Reading
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Answer
16 Jan 2020
What is vCloud Connector and what does it do?
VMware vCC enables organizations to move workloads, such as VMs, templates and vApps, between clouds by extending the data center, synchronizing content and managing content. Continue Reading
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Feature
16 Jan 2020
What to expect from VMware in 2020
VMware experts Brian Kirsch, Alastair Cooke and Rob Bastiaansen take a look at what's ahead for the virtualization vendor in 2020 as it builds Kubernetes into its suite. Continue Reading
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Tip
15 Jan 2020
An introduction to VMware vRealize Operations Cloud
VMware is set to release a cloud-based management software as a service in 2020, which uses predictive analytics and AI features to optimize, plan and scale VMware-based hybrid clouds. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Jan 2020
How to survive in today's IT without DevOps and containers
If you don't write software, you might not require DevOps or containers in your data center. You don't need to give into the pressure to adopt them. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Jan 2020
Compare vCenter Foundation vs. Standard before implementing
VMware's vCenter software comes in two different versions: Foundation and Standard. Both enable SMBs to create hosts and VMs, but Standard offers more features, such as DRS. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Dec 2019
How to use SnapCenter for VMware backups
NetApp storage appliances and VMware's vSphere platform provide widely used data center resources. Combine their capabilities by using NetApp's SnapCenter to back up vSphere. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Dec 2019
Latest vRealize suite features impact on-prem, cloud-based workloads
VMware's vRealize suite has introduced new updates to products such as vRealize Operations and vRealize Business for Cloud, which impact both on-premises and cloud-based workloads. Continue Reading
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Tip
20 Dec 2019
5 considerations for efficient VMware design
Designing a VMware environment requires you to consider many factors, such as storage, CPUs, security and VM density. A few tips can keep your design simple and elegant. Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Dec 2019
What to consider before you deploy NSX
An SDN like VMware's NSX can provide your organization with agility, automation, microsegmentation and cloud capabilities. However, you must still think carefully before you adopt. Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Dec 2019
VMware NSX Intelligence boosts data center visibility, security
The new NSX Intelligence distributed analytics engine is part of VMware NSX-T 2.5. Learn how it gives networking teams deep visibility into virtualized and containerized workloads. Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Dec 2019
How to connect VMware Workstation virtual machines to the Internet
Learn how to configure VMware Workstation virtual networks, including connecting guest virtual machines to the Internet, use the Virtual Network Editor and more. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Dec 2019
VMware aims to simplify container-VM management
VSphere can now manage containers, as well as VMs, and adds Cloud Native Storage. This helps address certain inefficiencies that come from using cloud, containers and VM in VMware. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Dec 2019
For VMware, DSC provides ESXi host and resource management
You can now use DSC to manage VMware vSphere and ESXi hosts. Install or upgrade the module with a cmdlet, and then manage resources such as High Availability clusters, DRS and vSS. Continue Reading
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Guide
02 Dec 2019
The key VMware acquisitions and announcements in 2019
In 2019, VMware acquired Intrinsic, Carbon Black and others as it branched into new markets. It also improved its well-established virtualization line and introduced new products. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Nov 2019
VMware Cloud on AWS cost and capabilities -- then vs. now
When you compare VMware Cloud on AWS' initial release to its state in 2019, the cost of entry has lowered, the feature set has expanded and it now meets most compliance standards. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Nov 2019
VMware vSphere monitoring ensures system health, performance
Admins can monitor their vSphere environments with tools such as vSphere Web Client and vSphere health service, which provide access to real-time usage information and system health data. Continue Reading
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Tip
21 Nov 2019
VMware HCX improves VM mobility between vSphere clusters
VMware developed HCX to help customers move to VMware Cloud on AWS. HCX has since evolved as an offering and now enables VM and app migration between any two vSphere clusters. Continue Reading
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Feature
20 Nov 2019
An overview of VMware snapshots and how to manage them
In a VMware environment, you can use a snapshot to save a short-term image of a VM prior to patches or upgrades. However, too many snapshots can cause performance issues. Continue Reading
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Tip
18 Nov 2019
5 tips to ease Kubernetes adoption and legacy VM management
Kubernetes manages containers, but integrating the platform with legacy systems is still a work in progress and requires prior planning to ensure successful adoption. Continue Reading
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Tip
15 Nov 2019
NSX Intelligence evolves network security and load balancing
NSX Intelligence can bolster your zero-trust network security, provide microsegmentation analytics and balance loads in your network. Learn more about this new VMware product. Continue Reading
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Feature
12 Nov 2019
How AppDefense works to detect app and VM anomalies
AppDefense, a newer addition to the VMware security tool portfolio and part of the vSphere Platinum edition, helps organizations detect security related anomalies in VMs and applications. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Nov 2019
How to upgrade from VCSA 6.5 to 6.7 -- both online and off
Use the online VCSA management interface, VAMI, or an ISO file from VMware to get started with your online or offline VCSA upgrade. Continue Reading
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Tip
06 Nov 2019
AppDefense adoption reconstructs the virtual admin role
Security is critical to many organizations' planning stages, with virtual admins seeing additional security responsibilities as weaknesses in security teams' capabilities emerge. Continue Reading
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Guide
05 Nov 2019
Understand VMware disaster recovery from start to finish
To craft a good DR plan for your VMware environment, prepare for possible issues ahead of time. Devise a strategy with your knowledge of disaster recovery best practices and tools. Continue Reading
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Tip
04 Nov 2019
3 PowerCLI snapshot management cmdlets you can use
You can use PowerCLI to manage snapshots in vSphere. With just three cmdlets, you can create, revert to and remove snapshots to keep your environment running smoothly. Continue Reading
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Tip
04 Nov 2019
VMware and Oracle join forces to ease management for customers
Despite a rocky past, VMware and Oracle have come together to enable customers to run VMware workloads on Oracle cloud infrastructures and Oracle cloud apps on VCF. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Nov 2019
Back up VMware environments with these best practices and tips
When you back up a VMware environment, use best practices to guide you, and weigh pros and cons of different methods. You can also automate backups and use third-party tools. Continue Reading
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Answer
28 Oct 2019
Learn which edge data center types are best to virtualize
You can implement ESXi on ARM -- or other RISC processors -- in micro and nano data centers. A nano data center is more specialized but also more limited than a micro data center. Continue Reading
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Answer
28 Oct 2019
What does an ESXi on ARM architecture look like?
When you run a hypervisor such as VMware ESXi on ARM architecture, consolidation shouldn't be your goal; isolation, sandboxing and management should be. Continue Reading
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Answer
25 Oct 2019
Implement edge virtualization to ease device management
Virtualization at the edge offers pros and cons. By virtualizing edge devices, admins can use a familiar management platform for devices both in and out of the data center. Continue Reading
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Answer
25 Oct 2019
Choose between CISC vs. RISC processors for edge virtualization
CISC and RISC processing architectures have different benefits and drawbacks when it comes to implementing virtualization at the edge, but RISC processors reduce power consumption. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Oct 2019
VMware security best practices guide
Without the proper security, you could put your entire VMware environment at risk. These best practices can keep your hosts and VMs safe from potential attacks. Continue Reading
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Feature
21 Oct 2019
What's the difference between VMware vCenter and vSphere?
VMware Certified Instructor Rob Bastiaansen addresses the difference between VMware vSphere and vCenter, and where in the mix the ESXi hypervisor fits. Continue Reading
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Feature
18 Oct 2019
Secure VMware environments with these tools and tips
VMware security relies on products such as AppDefense and NSX, as well as the vigilance of admins. Certain acquisitions bring additional security measures into play. Continue Reading
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Quiz
15 Oct 2019
Test your VMware NSX-T, NSX-V knowledge
VMware's software, NSX, enables admins to stand up networking in a software-defined data center. Take this quiz to ensure you're getting the most out of NSX. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Oct 2019
Examine the major vSphere 6.7 updates you'll see in U3
VMware's most recent update to vSphere -- vSphere 6.7 U3 -- supports several technologies such as Zen 2 processors and includes features such as vmx-15. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Oct 2019
VMware Horizon requirements for a VDI cloud deployment
Before you use Horizon in the cloud, you must configure AD, connect Horizon to your IaaS, set up a user access gateway and assign admin roles. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Oct 2019
How to use PowerCLI and how it can help you
PowerCLI enables you to use PowerShell commands to automate a VMware environment, streamlining your system and adding simplicity compared to using a GUI. Here's how to get started. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Sep 2019
VMware security portfolio grows as security market evolves
The constant evolution of enterprise security presents challenges that VMware hopes to meet as it develops its security portfolio. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Sep 2019
How to resolve a vSphere TPM error
If you encounter a host TPM attestation alarm -- meaning the system cannot verify your host -- in vSphere 6.7, you can modify settings in the server's UEFI to troubleshoot. Continue Reading
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Feature
26 Sep 2019
VMware strives to integrate VMs and containers
With products and initiatives such as VIC, PKS, Octant, Project Pacific and Tanzu, VMware aims to better integrate VMs and containers for admins and developers. Continue Reading
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Tip
20 Sep 2019
Compare VMware Horizon cloud vs. on-premises
VMware Horizon runs in on-premises, public cloud and hybrid cloud environments. Each scenario presents different drawbacks, benefits and costs for customers. Continue Reading
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Tip
18 Sep 2019
Deploy vCenter and vSphere without using a VAR
VMware platforms are more than just virtualization software; they create an SDDC. If you take the time to understand vSphere and vCenter, you can deploy them without a VAR. Continue Reading
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Feature
18 Sep 2019
VMware's Bitnami acquisition grows its development portfolio
VMware acquired Bitnami and added an important app-packaging tool to its development portfolio. This buy helps VMware stay current, but forces it to enter uncharted market waters. Continue Reading
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Quiz
17 Sep 2019
How much do you know about VMware AppDefense?
How much do you know about VMware's security product, AppDefense? This quiz asks you about AppDefense's technology and use cases to prove your understanding. Continue Reading
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Tip
16 Sep 2019
Use these PowerCLI vMotion cmdlets to automate VM migration
VMware vMotion moves VMs between hypervisors and storage devices to keep those VMs running. You can use PowerCLI to easily automate complex vMotion tasks. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Sep 2019
Examine the growing role of VMware in the IoT market
In a growing IoT market, VMware decided to focus on system management. Although users might not bet on VMware to become an IoT market leader, the company has its strengths. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Sep 2019
Prevent VMware environment failure with a solid design
You can mitigate the threat of failure through good VMware environment design, with practices such as creating management clusters and carefully considering host size and density. Continue Reading
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Feature
30 Aug 2019
VMware multi-cloud approach becomes next phase of SDDC evolution
VMware's vision has evolved. The vendor that once focused solely on virtualization now pivots toward the multi-cloud market and hopes to make its cloud products the next evolution of SDDC. Continue Reading
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Photo Story
28 Aug 2019
Best of VMworld 2019 U.S. Award winners
The Best of VMworld 2019 U.S. Awards highlight the most innovative products on display at VMworld 2019. Here are the winners of all six categories and the Best of Show. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Aug 2019
What's new with VMware Cloud on AWS
Updates to VMware Cloud on AWS include improvements to the migration workflow and enhancements to HCX, as well as support for Project Pacific and VMware Cloud Marketplace. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Aug 2019
What the VMware VCP certification backtrack means for you
In 2019, VMware rolled back its VCP certification policy. This means that expired VCP 4 and 5 certificates have gone live again, and VCP names now correlate with year. Continue Reading
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News
26 Aug 2019
VMware unveils host of cloud-based apps for new hybrid cloud
The company's VMworld announcements included Project Pacific, a rearchitecting of vSphere, and upgrades to its VMware vRealize suite and CloudHealth. Continue Reading
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News
26 Aug 2019
VMware hybrid clouds refreshed with containers
Hoping to remain competitive with rivals Microsoft and AWS, VMware is updating its hybrid cloud platform, marrying cloud products with a number of container-based technologies. Continue Reading
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Feature
23 Aug 2019
Use affinity and anti-affinity rules to guide VM behavior
Affinity rules define the relationships between VMs and hosts. You can create them in DRS, and then use them to improve failover and optimize VM performance. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Aug 2019
Design vSphere clusters with consistency in mind
You can reduce the chances of poor performance and data loss with a solid vSphere cluster design, one that keeps networking and configuration consistency in mind. Continue Reading
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Tip
20 Aug 2019
With Packer, VM template creation is easy
Templates are the quickest, easiest way to deploy VMs in vSphere. You can use a free tool such as Packer and a builder such as vmware-iso to automate the creation of VM templates. Continue Reading
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Feature
20 Aug 2019
What to expect in the next 10 years of VMworld's future
The future looks bright for VMworld. Experts Brian Kirsch, Alastair Cooke and Rob Bastiaansen discuss what they hope to see from the VMware conference over the next decade. Continue Reading
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Feature
13 Aug 2019
Features of vSAN that improve storage and security
You can combine vSAN with an HCI appliance to streamline operations, and use its many features -- such as ReadyNodes and Performance Diagnostics -- to improve storage and security. Continue Reading
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Opinion
12 Aug 2019
The future of VMware and Kubernetes integrations
Kubernetes has become the most popular platform for managing containers. VMware might have a few opportunities to cash in on that, including vSphere-integrated Kubernetes. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Aug 2019
An overview of VMware's UEM market involvement
Despite a slow start, the UEM market is on the rise. VMware offers Workspace ONE and forges deals with Sprint, Dell and Honeywell in the hopes of increasing UEM adoption. Continue Reading
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News
08 Aug 2019
VMware HCX updates aim to simplify workload migration
The latest version of VMware HCX was designed to simplify workload migration and includes non-vSphere to vSphere migration and large-scale bulk migration. Continue Reading
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Tip
06 Aug 2019
NSX-T 2.4 could surpass NSX-V as VMware's primary SDN platform
VMware NSX-T now includes High Availability, a simplified UI and firewall updates. If it can provide your data center the same functionality as NSX-V, consider making the switch. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Aug 2019
Design a VMware environment with CPUs, storage in mind
A solid infrastructure is critical to smooth operations in the data center. Admins designing a VMware environment should think about CPUs, storage and reference architectures. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Aug 2019
Top 10 VMworld 2019 sessions to consider
The catalog for VMworld 2019 has more than 900 sessions. Whether or not you already planned your schedule, take a look at our top picks to see what you might have missed. Continue Reading
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Tip
31 Jul 2019
Top 25 VMware ESXi commands
This VMware ESXi command line cheat sheet is a must-have resource for IT professionals who maintain and troubleshoot ESXi. Continue Reading
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Tip
31 Jul 2019
How to troubleshoot unexpected ESXi host reboots using crash logs
When your ESXi host abruptly reboots, you can use logs to track the potential causes, whether they are planned, environmental or hardware-related. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Jul 2019
How to install ESXi on a USB drive and why you should
With just a USB flash drive and an ISO image, you can install VMware ESXi. Learn how this can save you time and money, as well as two methods for installation. Continue Reading
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Guide
26 Jul 2019
VMware cloud services span several partnerships, integrations
VMware stakes a bigger claim in the cloud market with VMware Cloud on AWS, VMware on Azure and VMware Cloud on Dell EMC, in addition to cloud management and multi-cloud tools. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Jul 2019
Learn the ins and outs of NSX-T vs. NSX-V
NSX-V integrates tightly with vSphere, whereas NSX-T integrates with cloud and container platforms. Each version of NSX has its place, but NSX-T might be the way of the future. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Jul 2019
Design vSphere data stores with VM change and growth in mind
As the data inside a VM grows, you can make sure your storage accounts for that growth using a few methods, such as thin-provisioning VMDK files and limiting snapshots. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Jul 2019
Examine the role of VMware in the HCI market
VMware carved out a leading position for itself in the HCI market. But HCI's evolution to encompass new areas, such as public cloud, keeps VMware on its toes. Continue Reading
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Tip
16 Jul 2019
Run ESXi on NUC for a quiet but powerful at-home test lab
You can use Intel's NUC to set up a small but mighty at-home VMware test lab. Decide whether to nest your environments, and then learn how an NUC could benefit you. Continue Reading