NEW System Center 2012 CTPs for Windows Server “8” beta

(CTP = Community Technology Preview – which means “earlier than beta”)  Late on Friday the System Center Virtual Machine Manager Blog released a post enthusiastically titled “System Center 2012 CTP for Windows Server ‘8’ Beta support now available!!!”.  It would seem the System Center team is looking for early feedback on running System Center against … Continue reading NEW System Center 2012 CTPs for Windows Server “8” beta

System Center 2012 Unified Installer: The Screencasts

Happy Friday!I thought I’d just take this opportunity to again share my three-part screencast series with you; this time all in one place. The topic: System Center 2012 Unified InstallerThe goal: Help you prepare for and use the Unified Installer to build your lab for testing and trying the System Center 2012 components outThe added benefit: … Continue reading System Center 2012 Unified Installer: The Screencasts

How many VMs can VMM M? (So many questions. So little time. Part 22.)

At our TechNet Event in Kansas City a couple of months ago, Travis asked: “How many virtual machines can a single VMM instance manage?” That’s easy: As many as you want, and as your hardware can handle. “But how many are supported?” Ah.. well, that’s simply a matter of how many Microsoft was able to … Continue reading How many VMs can VMM M? (So many questions. So little time. Part 22.)

Does Exchange play well with Hyper-V Dynamic Memory? (So many questions. So little time. Part 21.)

We got this question at our TechNet Event back in January.  The person didn’t give their name, so let’s call him Jooblety-Goop. “Dynamic Memory and Exchange 2010 - What happens in that scenario?” Well JG, I assume you’re asking about how Exchange Server 2010 works as a virtual workload (Short answer: Just great!), and more … Continue reading Does Exchange play well with Hyper-V Dynamic Memory? (So many questions. So little time. Part 21.)

BREAKING NEWS: Windows Server 8 Beta is now AVAILABLE!

Finally!  After the long wait, and expectation growing as the day approached, we are finally able to announce to the world that the Beta of the next version of Windows Server, currently codename: Windows Server “8”, is now available for download. From the download page: Windows Server "8" is the broadest, most scalable and elastic … Continue reading BREAKING NEWS: Windows Server 8 Beta is now AVAILABLE!

Screencast: System Center 2012 Unified Installer (Part 2 of 3)

Continuing on where we left off from our part 1 screencast yesterday, when we discussed the downloads and the prerequisites and what you needed in place for the installation; today in part 2 we discuss how to configure your servers. “Is it really all that complicated, Kevin?” Actually, yes.  If you read the User Guide, … Continue reading Screencast: System Center 2012 Unified Installer (Part 2 of 3)

Hyper-V Snapshots and “Now” (So many questions. So little time. Part 19.)

This person at our Saint Louis, MO TechNet Event didn’t share their name, but it’s still a good question: “In snapshots, why is ‘now’ misleading on where you really are w/snapshots?” What Jerry (Let’s just call him or her Jerry) is referring to here is something that I think most of us experienced when we … Continue reading Hyper-V Snapshots and “Now” (So many questions. So little time. Part 19.)

The best way to virtualize SQL Server (So many questions. So little time. Part 17.)

Several weeks ago at our TechNet Event in Saint Louis, Joe F asked me: “When virtualizing SQL Server I need to know how to best configure SQL and the VM to ensure it will run well.  Where can I find configuration and setup information?” A quick Bing of “virtualize SQL Server using Hyper-V Best Practices” … Continue reading The best way to virtualize SQL Server (So many questions. So little time. Part 17.)

Managing Hyper-V Server (So many questions. So little time. Part 16.)

David U. asked this of us at our Saint Louis TechNet Event:  “Free Hyper-V Server can be installed on bare metal.  Do I need Windows Server 2008 R2 plus Hyper-V running elsewhere to manage the Hyper-V Server, or is there another way I can manage that?” Great question David.  Thanks! For those of you not … Continue reading Managing Hyper-V Server (So many questions. So little time. Part 16.)