Symantec – Tuning Backup For Virtualisation, Appliances And The Cloud

Symantec Backup Launch Highlights

• Launches Backup Exec 2012 and NetBackup 7.5
• Simplifies software interfaces
• Integrates more fully into Microsoft and VMware virtual environments
• Integrates with NetApp snapshots
• Enhances Cloud services and appliances to extent beyond its traditional licensing sales approach
• Is the world’s fifth largest software company

Symantec SAMG Version 6.0 – A More Evolutionary Approach For Cloud Builders

Symantec SAMG Version 6 Highlights

• Makes a mature suite more relevant to modern operations
• Helps an evolution to private Cloud from traditional infrastructures
• Concentrates on helping to reduce spending on servers and storage through organisation, de-duplication and compression
• Customer testing ‘til November and availability in December

LV 1871 Uses IBM Virtualisation For Consolidation, Cost Savings And Productivity Improvement

LV 1871 And IBM Virtualisation Highlights Q211

• LV 1871 is a medium sized mutual insurer which has consolidated, improved services and reduced costs through advanced virtualisation
• IBM has simplified the way it talks about virtualisation, outlining a series of small to large options with associated benefits
• Claims advantages in the number and cost of virtual machines running on its x86 and RISC servers
• Has learnt from decades of experience in virtualisation from mainframe, through Unix to x86 and Cloud
• Believes IBM will be a fierce competitor with the likes of Dell and HP as users invest in virtualisation and Cloud

Symantec Fills Out Appliance Strategy With NetBackup 5200 And FileStore N8300

Symantec Launches Hardware Appliances – A Non-Cloud Form Of IT Simplification

Symantec September 2010 Announcement Highlights

• Enterprise Vault 9.0 addresses new content sources
• NetBackup 5000 is a ‘dedupe’ appliance
• Filestore N8000 is a NAS storage system solution
• Appliances come from its joint venture with Huawei
• Appliances and Cloud Computing both provide IT simplification – the first mainly as Cap Ex and latter as Op Ex
• Appliances enhance the portfolio of offerings for partners

The Sanctuary Group – Successful Virtual Client Deployment In A Large Dispersed Enterprise

Sanctuary Group’s Ben Andrews Highlights

• Is dispersed in structure with many non-IT users among its 6k staff
• Has adopted a ‘Terminal Services’ approach to virtualisation
• Still manages fat PCs, especially for tied-in applications, such as alarm and door entry systems
• Bases its infrastructure on Citrix, Wyse thin clients, Symantec tools and a resilient MPLS network
• Uses EV archiving to address the difficulties of .PST files in a virtualised world
• Always plans to stream ‘line of business’ applications using XenApp
• Intends to digitise extensive paper records in the near future
• Is an excellent example of a large enterprise saving money and improving service levels through centralisation

Corporate PC Strategies – Time To Go Virtual?

Corporate Client Strategy Highlights

• PC sales have declined more in larger companies during the recession
• Cloud Computing is highly connected to virtual client developments
• Users want access to corporate applications – not just email – via Smart Phones
• ITCandor defines four types of client device – laptop, desktop, thin client and smart phone
• ITCandor defines four types of virtual client – local VM, streaming, internal hosted and external hosted
• PCs can be used as thin clients, but thin clients can’t be used as PCs
• Users hate being asked to use anything other than a fully functional PC
• VMWare’s lead in x86 server virtualisation doesn’t necessarily make it the winner in client virtualisation
• There will be an increasing uptake of virtual clients which will suppress some hardware spending
• There will be many interesting supplier announcements coming up

Vision Solutions Double-Take Software Steps Into Cloud Computing With Amazon EC2 – Promises ‘Recovery as a Service’

please note – Double-Take is now part of Vision Solutions

Double-Take Software Cloud Computing Highlights

• Has selected Amazon’s EC2 as the first deployment platform and partner
• Offers real time replication at around $250/month for the first and $150/month for subsequent servers
• Focuses on ensuring recovery, rather than merely backing up data
• As an asynchronous technique with a recovery point, will not be used for transaction processing
• Is only available for x86 servers running Windows or Linux
• Will move to ‘Recovery as a Service’ provider status
• Will consider partnerships and more integrated solutions in future
• Is focusing on Large as well as Medium and Small Enterprises

Windows 7 Pushes Microsoft Back To Revenue Growth In Q4 2009

Microsoft Q4 2009 Highlights

• Quarterly revenues and net profits were the highest in its history
• The Client Division’s successful introduction of Windows 7 was the main contributor
• Microsoft’s software revenues are recovering faster than most other leading vendors
• Microsoft has a long way to go to become a Web 2.0 player
• It continues to announce Cloud Computing products and initiatives, but is slow to drive change
• Windows 7 is more than an upgrade – it is driving a rapid improvement in the PC market

‘Storage OnLine’ Offers Practical Disaster Recovery Services With A Just A Gist Of Cloud

 

Storage OnLine Recovery Service Highlights

• The company is expanding from Ireland, through the UK to continental Europe through introducing recovery centres
• A long-term Symantec partner, the company uses Backup Exec (BE), Backup Exec Systems Recovery (BESR), Enterprise Vault (EV) and other offerings in its services
• It has always seen de-duplication as a way to offer online backup, but has been waiting for it to become cost effective to offer a solution
• Its Backup Monitor is offered as a SaaS offering
• It places an emphasis on recovery and in particular the ability to recover systems
• Its customers are mid-sized organisations with around 100 servers each
• It offers ‘quick ship recovery’ as well as ‘recovery to the Cloud’
• It sees Symantec’s inclusion of de-duplication, enhanced Disaster Recovery (DR) services, integrated archiving and the enhanced support for virtual agents as the major benefits of BE 2010