Newsletter: August 27, 2015

Hello all,

I know I am late with this.  Things have been very busy and time has been in very short supply.  I am in San Francisco for training, which is nicely discounted as part of the VMworld event.  I am definitely looking forward to VMworld and it is close!  I know some of  you are starting to head out already so travel safe.

I updated my very weird lab issue article with what I think was the root cause and a way to avoid the issue in the future.  I also did an article on the v2 of the DataGravity firmware.  And someone asked me about VIN and why I liked it so I thought it was time to document why I like it.  I have also recently updated my article on why I like the vSphere Web Client.  I have not added any vSphere 6 stuff to it yet, but it does have some good info on why the Web Client is worth using.  In a recent conversation with people using vSphere there was something in my list for each person - meaning they did not know about it.

I am now just finishing this off Friday night after my training is finished.  Everyone have a great show!  I need a drink!

Michael

ESXi Embedded Host Client Fling Updated to v2
This is a very cool fling.  I installed it in my lab when it was v1 and it was great!  HTML5 and very fast so it was a pleasure to use.  I cannot wait for this fling to be part of ESXi .  Not sure how quick that will occur but I cannot wait!  As well, this is a great example of what the vSphere Web Client might turn into.  Check out what William has to say.  BTW, the VUM package was not working at first but that has been fixed.  This is very worth implementing!

vRealize Operations SSL Certificates
Here is an article that has pretty good info on replacing the vR Ops SSL certs with your own.  There are a few steps that is for sure!

Syslog and vCSA 6.0
Doing syslog in the vCSAv6 is a little different.  In fact it is a very much nicer way.  Find out here.  BTW, I get that from William Lam, who has a very nice collection of vCSA articles.

Determining Replication Agreements and Status with the Platform Services Controller v6
This command line utility should be very handy indeed for people that have multiple PSC in their environment, and who want a better understanding on the communications they are partaking in.  Find out more about this utility here.

VMware Certificate Authority - My favorite New Feature of vSphere 6 - Part 1 - History
This is a nice article about how we arrived at the VMware Certificate Authority.  Pretty interesting.  I think there is still a bit of interesting growth to the CA that is on the way.  But this is a good article and I look forward to part 2.

vSphere 6 Foundations: Administer Virtual Machines and vApps
David Davis has another of the Foundations series for vSphere 6 Foundations.  Which is one of the new vSphere 6 exams.  He does great work and if you are writing this test - and I may or may not depending on what I find out in the next while - then his first rate PluralSight training quite useful!

EVC Best Practices
Here is an article that is about EVC and how you should use it.  I certainly do but the article comes from the author hearing that you should not use it.  I remember when we used to do CPU masking, and I remember when I had to build a cluster with two different models of DL380’s and what a pain that was.  So I really like EVC and do in fact use it by default.

VMware Remote Console
I have been using the VMware Remote Console lately and really prefer it now.  In the not so distant future it may be the only choice.  Find out more here.  The next time I update my View desktop template I will be adding it.

Horizon View Agent Install - the system cannot continue ….
I have seen this error myself and so it is good that Chris has written it up.  Check it out in case you run into it during your View install / upgrade.

vRealize Orchestrator log considerations
A very nice article about how you can make sure your passwords do not show up in a visible log display and get saved in the clear in the database.  Very handy to know this stuff.

Microsoft Advanced Threat Analytics now GA
I had no idea that Microsoft was working on this but the fact is it is very good indeed they are.  I think they have a wonderful brain-trust of people that have very deep knowledge in this area and I think it will be easier to use as a result of otter experience that MS has.  So check this out if you are interested.

PernixData at VMworld
You can check out the next version of PernixData FVP at their booth, and of course register for their great contest!

The unofficial, official VMware Certified Professional 6 - DCV Study Guide
This looks very handy for anyone that is going for their VCP6 - DCV - which I believe is much harder then in the past.  There is a lot of new features in vSphere 6, and the Optimize & Scale class is pretty detailed.  So this study guide is pretty useful.

Sonar
Thanks to the vExpert program I have an NFR for Sonar.  Which, BTW, is a cloud based reporting service for the virtual datacenter.  It is pretty darn cool - in fact it is sort of a health check.  I should mention that the .docx files I downloaded that were my reports were not quite right when I used Mac Office 2016 but where good when I used PC Office 2013.  That should be resolved soon.

iTunes on the SAN
My very good friend - who I wish I could visit more often - has done a very interesting article on how your can use the amazing DataGravity software - that I helped create no less - to ensure that you do not host iTunes on your storage array!  Check it out here.  Nice job Gabe!

Synology Hybrid Backup  - Part 1 and Part 2
Here is an interesting article (part 1, part 2) that I covers off home backup in good detail.  I do agree with much he mentions - particularly the DS1813+ which I have one of too.  However, for some of us, me included, things can be much more simple - Time Machine, Super Duper, and BackBlaze.  But he provides a lot of detail so you can learns lots from him, and not just about backup.

How to:Platoform9+Ravello+VMware
This is a pretty interesting article how the author was able to make a interesting collection of things work in Ravello.  Have I mentioned how much I like Ravello?

Array Offloaded VM Cloning
This is a good story about how most array do cloning and how VAAI can help it.  Thanks for this Alastair.  This is important and useful technology so good to understand.

New NSX for vSphere Troubleshooting Guides
I know, and quite like, the best resource for NSX.  Ray is his name, but the fact is, the troubleshooting guides can scale way better then Ray.  So I think an important resource since NSX is so powerful and flexible and thus as a result is a little complicated.

Startup Intro: Zerostack
Duncan has an excellent intro to a very interesting company called Zerostack.  Some of the company DNA is people that have done some amazing stuff like SIOC, SDRS and DRS.  As well a very good friend - Justin King - is working with them.  So I think a company worth visiting at VMworld, and keeping an eye on.

The Software-Defined Storage Platform of the Future
This just in - Virtual SAN 6.1 out at VMworld.  But more importantly the very important fellow behind VSAN talks of the future.  Check it out.

Want to learn how to work at the command line?
You can here.

VMworld Ultimate Home PC DC Giveaway
PernixData FVP is a killer product.  I would buy it for my home lab if I had extra money.  It is that good.  Almost every single customer should be using it.  So I would always visit their both and be happy to listen and say thanks.  I am also a user of the software so it is easy for me to say it would help a lot of customers out there.  And now they have an amazing giveaway.  Truly in the Holy Crap category - I must admit I entered it too.  Find out more here.

IT Professionals Day
SolarWinds has started the idea - a very good one - to have an IT Professionals Day every September on the third Tuesday.  I think that IT Professionals are often working a tough job with few thanks.  So this is a great way to recognize them.  So remember #ITProDay.  I wish I could find the press release for this but cannot - however I found this.  But this is a good idea so remember to celebrate and say thanks.

The Best Online Backup Service
This is an interesting and detailed article.  The number 1 recommendation is one I used for several years but wanted to spend less money and so their number 2 is now my number 1.  So a good article I think

Thanks for reading or skimming this far!

Michael

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