ChangeBASE at VMworld Europe 2011

ChangeBASE, now part of Quest Software, exhibited at VMworld Europe in Copenhagen last week, and a good time was had by all. It was great to see how other organisations are embracing virtualisation and to learn more about key developments in the space, including those from our hosts, VMware.

In between stand duty I had the chance to take a closer look at these new technologies by attending Stephen Herrod’s keynote. After an introduction by Maurizio Carli, General Manager for Europe at VMware, Stephen took the stage to discuss the evolution in how we think about IT – moving from a focus on servers and desktops, to services and how we, as people, consume IT.

Stephen argues that we are indeed moving to a post pc era, and that we have high expectations when it comes to accessing apps anywhere, at any time, and using any device. VMware are meeting this challenge by allowing apps to escape the captivity of particular devices, or ‘Windows silos’.

Using View 5 (to create virtual profiles to suit home and work needs), ThinApp Factory, Horizon (to manage applications over both laptops and mobile devices) and Project Octopus (allowing secure document sharing) in combination, VMware seeks to provide the access that users want. To see how the pieces link together, Stephen was joined on stage by Vittorio Viarengo, PM of EUC, who took on the role of a new employee and showed the process of connecting him with the apps he needed on his first day – simple! Vittorio could even access apps on his iPad using an HTML 5 browser through App Blast.

The lastest version of vSphere 5 has been designed on the premise that IT “should just work, and work well”, and is full of new features and improvements. With vSphere 5, a VM can now have up to 32 vCPUs and up to 1 TB of GB per VM - a ‘Monster VM’. VMware also announced vCenter Operations Management Suite 5.0, Capacity IQ and new offerings in the form of vCenter Infrastructure Navigator vFabric Application Management Suite to aid the management of these VMs.

All in all, VMware seek to simplify the process of getting apps to where they are needed, a mission that also drives ChangeBASE. We had a great show, and I’d like to thank everyone who came to see us at the stand.