HP FlexFabric – Virtualize your network connections and capacity

IT Organizations have long realized the disadvantages of a traditional datacenter architecture and underutilization of isolated server, storage and network resources. Since then, virtualization of servers and storage to meet changing business needs has been an accepted fact.  But this drive is applying new pressures on the multiple networks in the data centre. Some of the issues faced are : frequent changes to network configurations due to increased population of virtual machines,  requirement of more network bandwidth per server as server utilization increases. So the traditional network architecture cannot provide the performance, low latency , and quality of service required by virtualized data centres of today.

HP FlexFabric creates a new, wired-once , virtual I/O network, that provides a new data centre network architecture that is more coherent, flexbile and agile.  It can connect multiple servers to a virtualized, high performance, low latency, multi protocol network. Once the FlexFabric is wired and pre-provisioned, servers and virtual machines can be added or moved dynamically and the connections are automatically migrated as they are moved.

Some of the benefits of FlexFabric  are -

·         Predictable performance and low latency for demanding application workloads.

·         Capacity scaling and provisioning connections can be done dynamically and securely, improving business agility.

·         Change management processes which are costly and time consuming, can be removed.

·         Compatibility to existing Layer 3 switches and support for open standards gives investment protection.

For a deep dive into HP FlexFabric  please visit :

 HP FlexFabric Whitepaper

6 ways to work more effectively on a virtual team

The world is becoming a smaller place as organizations are going global and IT is creating bridges between teams which are geographically far apart. It is becoming commonplace to find yourself working with a colleague who may be in a different city, country or  half a globe away in a different time zone.

I found a interesting document from Microsoft which suggests six ways which might help working with people who are in a different geographical location.

The six ways , in brief, are :

Ø  Using instant messaging for quick meetings.

Ø  Using a virtual conference room for formal group meetings.

Ø  Keeping the meetings organized.

Ø  Setting up a virtual water cooler, where you can have a informal discussion.

Ø  Reviewing the edits of co-workers , wherever they may be.

Ø  Staying in touch, using a PDA.

Most of us would be knowing about first, second and sixth. For those of you do not know, the document gives quick insights.  

As such virtual meetings become common and frequent , organizing them is a very useful idea. The third point talks about it. 

The fourth one is interesting.  By this you can have a feel of those informal chats with your colleagues, when you meet at the water cooler or the café. This is important since you get to know your co-workers and can work as a team. 

The fifth one talks about when you’re and your team member cannot go through a document together, then the ability to track the changes that any of the team member makes could be very useful and important.

The link to the document is :

 http://www.microsoft.com/atwork/collaboration/virtual.aspx