Not so long ago, if Underwriters Laboratories needed to add three additional servers worth of computing power in three weeks, the company just bought three new units, says Kent Walker, manager of computer operations for UL. With more time for capacity analysis - which is both labor and time-intensive - Walker might be able to shift resources around and stave off the purchase. But when the need is immediate, there's no time for that.
That's why CiRBA's data center intelligence tool appealed to Walker. The product is designed to automatically analyze a server installation and recommend ways to consolidate hardware using virtual servers instead of physical. Walker asked CiRBA in for a 100-server trial evaluation, to see if the vendor could help rein in his sprawl of underutilized servers.
"They dazzled us," Walker says.
Other tools can tackle pieces of the analysis, such as examining server utilization levels to plan capacity. But CiRBA's tool is comprehensive, letting users factor in technical, business and workload constraints specific to their organizations, analysts say. A financial institution, for instance, might need to stipulate that its trading and research groups not share the same virtual servers due to regulatory requirements.
CiRBA gathers information about the data center in a variety of ways, including agent and agentless discovery mechanisms, and stores the details in a central repository. The tool then applies rules and constraints, builds a multi-dimensional model of the data center and spits out answers on the best way to optimize it, whether it's a physical server farm, a virtual environment, or a mixture of both.
"Very few people have the majority of their servers virtualized, so our customers tend to put it on everything. They get a lot of visibility into both" their physical and virtual environments, says Andrew Hillier, CiRBA's co-founder and chief technology officer.
CiRBA's version 4.6, released last month, added advanced benchmarking to enable users to analyze how specific server workloads would perform on any virtualization platform and fit with other resources. It also built in probability analysis and workload-scoring strategies that factor in the risk and service levels an organization is willing to accept, as well as advanced network and storage analysis.
With those new features, the tool for the first time can be used to model how applications will perform on IBM's System z mainframes and determine which workloads running in Unix- or x86-based environments might be better suited to mainframes.
The upcoming 5.0 version, due in the US summer, will build dynamic models of the data center, tracking daily changes, according to Hillier. A subsequent fall release is expected to provide tighter integration with major system management frameworks, as well as enhanced support for storage analysis, he adds.
Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Zones provide focussed content from Computerworld and leading technology partners.
Unisys Real Time Infrastructure solutions embody Unisys “less is more” approach to IT infrastructure, freeing IT organisations to deploy a simplified, more easily managed IT infrastructure that allows them to spend less time on routine management activities and more time on strategic initiatives that advance the business.
Virtualisation Knowledge Centre supported by Unisys and Intel
Video
Click on the link below to see Real Time Infrastructure defined and an explanation of its key benefits. You can also hear how Unisys has embraced RTI in its own IT infrastructure.
Watch Now
Podcast
Click on the link below to hear Unisys RTI expert Al Bender discuss virtualisation trends and issues.
Listen Now
Whitepapers
The Virtualisation Landscape to 2010
This white paper provides insights on the further evolution of virtualisation now and through to 2010, what it will do to IT infrastructure, its role within business for those who embrace it and the detrimental impact on those who don’t.
Download Whitepaper
Good for Business - Virtualisation in Perspective
Data centres are a critical component of modern business strategies, and their importance is continually growing. But so is the cost of running and supporting them. This paper looks at the urgent challenges facing organisations and their data centres, and explores some of the ways in which technology can help to address them.
Download Whitepaper
Unisys Infrastructure Management Suite
The Unisys Infrastructure Management Suite helps your organisation overcome the challenges of creating an optimised IT infrastructure with cutting-edge technology and services. As such, it is an integral component of the Unisys Real-Time Infrastructure – a long-term vision of what business and IT can achieve together.
Download Whitepaper
Comparing Multi-Core Server Virtualisation
Intel IT tested servers based on select Intel multi-core processors to analyse the potential role of each in data center server virtualisation strategies. Each server provided significant potential benefits in performance, power consumption per workload, and operating costs over older servers running non-virtualised workloads.
Download Whitepaper
Comparing Two & Four Socket Platforms for Server Virtualisation
Intel IT tested servers based on select Intel multi-core processors to analyse the potential role of each in data center server virtualisation strategies. Each server provided significant potential benefits in performance, power consumption per workload, and operating costs over older servers running non-virtualised workloads.
Download Whitepaper
Implementing Virtualisation in a Global Business-Computing Environment
Intel IT planned, engineered, and has begun deploying a virtualised business-computing production environment at several data centers, a rollout that will continue through 2008. The initiative has already confirmed anticipated virtualisation benefits such as faster, more automated deployment. Intel are initially consolidating older servers running applications that are not mission-critical; with opportunities to achieve 16:1 consolidation ratios using two-socket virtualisation hosts based on Quad-Core Intel® Xeon® processors.
Download Whitepaper
For more info on Unisys RTI services, click here
Buying Guides
Latest Products
Buying Guides
