Using virtualization to use CPU resources more efficiently in IT is such a familiar concept, it’s hard to think of a time before it was commonplace. The same cannot be said for using GPU resources, which in many organizations still operates at a one node per one user experience. To address this, VMware acquired Bitfusion in 2019 and is now rolling out their tech into vSphere 7. This allows users to request GPU resources using the bitfusion command, which can then aggregate and distribute resources over the network. Christopher Kusek heard some of the initial details at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld 2019, and is excited to see them rolling out. He’s sees this as evidence of the maturation of ML and AI workloads in the enterprise, and Bitfusion will let organizations make best use of their existing GPU infrastructure.
2019 Year in Review – Al Rasheed
Al Rasheed takes a look back at a busy 2019 in this post. It was truly a year of accomplishments, with new certifications and getting involved with more tech community groups. We were lucky enough to have Al as a delegate at several Field Day events throughout the year. We can’t wait to see him at more in 2020.
Stopping vMotion Roulette With Virtana
Tom Hollingsworth takes a look at what Virtana presented at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019 and how they stop the roulette wheel of vMotion movement. He found they offered a solution to be smarter about making decisions to move your VMs.
VMware Project Pacific at Tech Field Day Extra 2019
One of the major announcements to come out of VMworld US 2019 was Project Pacific. At Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019, the delegates got an architectural overview of VMware’s rearchitecting of vSphere to integrate Kubernetes. In this post, Brandon Graves digs into the presentation and the implications for the future.
Architecture, Governance and Multi-Cloud: Takeaways From TFDx at VMworld
Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld had a lot of great technical deep dive content. There was also a great Cloud Roundtable discussion, which we were fortunate to have Adam Post participate in. Be sure to check out this post with his takeaways from the talk.
Cloud Is Hard. Kubernetes Won’t Save You
Public cloud providers and enterprise IT vendors alike position Kubernetes as the control plane for cloud-native applications. They promise an application environment that will run on any public or private cloud, reducing cloud lock-in and enabling hybrid and multi-cloud designs. Drew Conry-Murray breaks down the promise and challenge of Kubernetes in this post, inspired from the VMworld Cloud Roundtable.
VMworld Cloud Roundtable Discussion
At VMworld, Christopher Kusek participated in a roundtable discussion with some fellow visionaries of Cloud Architecture. They discussed the past, present, and future of Cloud Architecture and Infrastructure. This conversation highlighted a bright future for cloud, multi-cloud, security, and containers.
Two Different Approaches to Data Storage Analytics
In this post, Enrico Signoretti looks at different approaches to data storage analytics. This can have tremendous value for organizations of all sizes. Enrico specifically highlights the importance of ease of use and monitoring to get the most out of a solution. He thought Virtual Instruments excelled in that regard, based on their presentation at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019.
The Unconscious Choice for Multi-Cloud
Ownership of application and cloud architecture is constantly shifting and is becoming a shared responsibility of business, operations, developers, architects, and security. If you don’t guide the process of cloud consumption within your organization, you’ll end up with a disjointed multi-cloud. In other words: many different disconnected islands, each with incomplete, badly implemented, unaudited security and compliance standards. Joep Piscaer digs into the details in this piece.
Making Sense of Your Multiple Clouds: 5 Takeaways From VMworld
Dell Technologies presented at Tech Field Day Extra a t VMworld US 2019. In this post, they break down their multi-cloud takeaways from the larger show, and how they used these to inform their presentation to the Tech Field Day delegates.
Bitfusion at VMworld 2019 With TFDx
ML and AI workloads are only going to grow more in the enterprise in the coming years. At VMworld 2019, VMware showed how they are going to help meet the infrastructure needs of this shift. Using assets aquired from Bitfusion, VMware is able to virtualize GPUs, effectively doing for ML workloads what VSAN did for storage. Brandon Graves digs into the architecture that he saw at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019 in this post.
Apstra’s Intent – What Do They Mean?
Dan Frith heard from Apstra for the first time at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld 2019. Their intent-based networking and overall infrastructure vision with their Apstra Operating System was a bit out of Dan’s typical fare, which is more typically grounded in storage. After hearing their presentation, Dan was definitely impressed by their solutions, and can see why the company get’s a lot of buzz.
Finding the Cure for vMotion Sickness at Tech Field Day Extra
Virtual Instruments presented at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019, the first presentation from the company we’ve seen. In this post from their CMO Len Rosenthal, he recounts how the presentation capped off an insanely busy, but productive month for the company. Be sure to check out his impression from the event and watch their entire presentation video to get caught up with their latest and greatest.
Virtual GPU and FPGA With Bitfusion at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld 2019
VMware is one of the giants in IT, and it’s always a pleasure to have them at a Field Day event. This time, they joined us from their own party, presenting at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019. It’s an event that’s packed with important announcements. One of the things they highlighted during their time with the delegates was the addition of virtual GPU and FPGA with Bitfusion, something increasingly important in the world of Ai and ML workloads.
Project Pacific at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld 2019
Kit Colbert with VMware shared a blog post about the company’s perspective presenting at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019. They did a deep dive on Project Specific, the company’s rearchitecture of vSphere to integrate Kubernetes. The Tech Field Day Extra delegates got to hear about the architectural decisions VMware made for this project, and learned about a lot of the technical specifics. Be sure to check out the presentation video for all the specifics.
We’re Not Here to Talk About Storage!
At NetApp’s Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019 presentation, Andy Banta wanted to…not talk about storage. Al Rasheed was a delegate at the presentation, and he heard Andy discuss Enhanced Data Center Workloads. This started with a look at the history of the data center, then got into modern considerations of allocating compute, memory, and storage resources.
Mission: Project Pacific
At VMworld US 2019, VMware showed off Project Pacific, their integration of Kubernetes into vSphere. Al Rasheed was at the event, and attending VMware’s Tech Field Day Extra presentation there, where they got into a technical deep dive on Project Pacific. Be sure to check out his thoughts on this exciting move by the virtualization giant.
VMware Entering the IT Infrastructure Composability Game
Enrico Signoretti found VMworld US 2019 to be full of fascinating announcements. It showed VMware making serious inroads into composability for virtualized servers, with the ability to now virtualize GPUs over the network. Enrico sees this working similar to how VMware treats NVMe storage resources in vSphere and VSAN. He doesn’t see this completely disrupting the current composable infrastructure market, but its an important step for VMware. Be sure to check out all the video from Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019 for all the technical deep dives on this!
Apstra’s VMworld US 2019 Experience
Apstra presented at Tech Field Day Extra at VMWorld US 2019 earlier this month. They are no stranger to the Field Day audience and delegates, having presented at several Networking Field Days in the past. In this post, Apstra’s Rami Rammaha reviews some of their announcements and highlights from the event and their presentation.
A Software First Approach
Tech Field Day delegate stalwart Al Rasheed heard an update from Apstra at Tech Field Day Extra at VMworld US 2019. He was familiar with the company based on their prior presentation at Networking Field Day. They presented on how companies often take a hardware-first approach to infrastructure transformation. This locks them into specific solutions and reduces their agility long term. Apstra demonstrated why they advocate a software-first approach to infrastructure, one that gives organizations the most option to meet their business needs over time.
