Managing Virtual Environments: Big Deal or No-brainer?

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Managing Virtual Environments Big Deal or
No-brainer?

• Andi Mann
• Research Director
• Enterprise Management Associates

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Session Abstract

• Whether you have already deployed, are planning
  to deploy, or are just wondering about
  virtualization in your data center, this is an
  absolute must-see session. Anyone can deploy a
  virtualization solution, but how you manage it
  can make the critical difference between success
  and failure. This session will give you
  actionable examples and recommendations to make
  that difference, and help you ensure a
  successful, long-term virtualization strategy.
  During this session, Andi will present EMA
  research data and expert analysis on
• Key virtualization outcomes -- with data and
  examples from both good virtualization
  deployments, and from bad ones
• Critical virtualization management challenges --
  across multiple disciplines, with implications
  for people, processes, and technology
• Recommended solutions -- to address the multiple
  layers of virtualization complexity, and drive
  positive business outcomes
• Real-life experiences -- presenting EMA case
  studies of successful virtualization management
  approaches

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Who Is Enterprise Management Associates (EMA)?

• Why is EMA Different? Because of the real-world
  experience of our skilled analysts, our
  reputation for objectivity and our focused
  insight into the IT Management market.

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EMAs Practice Areas
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Agenda

• Key Virtualization Outcomes
• Data and examples from both the good and bad
  sides of virtualization deployment
• Key Concerns for Virtual Systems Management (VSM)
• Across multiple disciplines, with implications
  for people, processes and technology
• Recommended VSM Solutions
• To address the multiple layers of virtualization
  complexity, and drive positive business outcomes
• Real-life VSM Experiences
• EMA case studies of successful virtualization
  systems management approaches

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The Good NewsMultiple Use Cases, Positive
Outcomes
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Not Only For Server Consolidation
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Not Only In Test And Development

• Test and development is the leading use case (79
  of enterprises)
• Increasingly a production technology
• 75 deploy for production app
• 50 deploy for production Db/web servers
• Fundamental for mission-critical services
• Deployments for all workloads have increased
  since 2006

Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Virtualization Delivers Measurable ROI
Has your virtualization deployment resulted in
real, measurable cost savings?
Vast majority report real and measurable cost
savings
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Virtualization Delivers Multiple Outcomes
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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The Bad NewsMultiple Layers of Complexity
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Multiple Platforms
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
13
Multiple Technologies
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Multiple Vendors
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Multiple Layers of Complexity
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Multiple Layers Of Complexity, Multiple Problems
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Key Concerns for Virtual Systems Management (VSM)
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Key VSM Concern -- Managing VM Sprawl

• Uncontrolled VM deployment and migration results
  in
• Increased management requirements
• Software compliance issues
• Best practice compliance issues
• Configuration management problems
• Security and risk exposure
• Uncontrolled cost
• Service and performance problems

Enterprises must automate and control virtual
machine lifecycle processes to prevent these
exposures
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Key VSM Concern -- Managing Process

• Coordination
• Maintaining configuration, patch cycles,
  availability
• Connecting dynamic VM environment with existing
  processes, procedures
• Compatibility
• Of human and process interfaces, inputs, outputs
• Of skill sets and other human issues
• Of integration and orchestration technologies
• Of management tools
• Of versions and releases

Source Enterprise Management Associates
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Key VSM Concern -- Security, Audit, Control

• 41 cited Improve Security and Control as a
  critical driver
• Only 31 cited Security and Control as an
  effective outcome
• Security Administration is the 1 discipline that
  gets harder in a virtual environment
• Complexity increases risk and security issues

Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Other VSM Concerns

• Abstraction and Visualization
• Managing the Rate of Change
• Dealing with Complexity
• Ensuring Consistency
• Governance and Risk Management
• Containing Costs
• Providing Support
• People and Human Issues
• Manageability

Virtualization is not a silver bullet -- how well
you manage it is a critical success factor
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Compounding Issue -- Virtualization Skills
25 of all enterprises with virtualization
deployments do not have the skills they need
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Result -- Questionable VSM Satisfaction
Only 16 of enterprises with virtualization
deployments are completely satisfied with how
they manage them
Source Virtualization and Management Trends,
Forecasts, and Recommendations, Enterprise
Management Associates, 2008
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Recommendations for Effective Virtual Systems
Management (VSM)
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Virtual Machine Management Recommendations

• Physical and Virtual
• Discovery
• Configuration Audit/Control
• Change Management
• Automation

Ensure compliance and availability of virtual
systems with visibility and control
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Performance Management Recommendations

• Discovery
• Physical infrastructure monitoring
• Virtual infrastructure monitoring
• Operating environment monitoring
• Connecting the pieces

Meet service levels with end-to-end monitoring
and control
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Process Management Recommendations

• Automation
• Reduce MTTR, embed skills, reduce errors
• Integration
• Connect platforms, technologies, vendors
• Orchestration
• Connect automation and integration

React in seamless, automated ways to complex
business and IT needs
IT Process Automation
Open Service Request
Advise User, Manager
External Updates
Approval Routing
DepartmentalCoordination
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Core Recommendation -- Connect Physical Systems
Management With Virtual Systems Management
Enterprise Systems Management
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Core Recommendation -- Connect All Systems
Management With Business Objectives
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Virtual Systems Management in the Real World
Selected EMA Case Studies
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EMA VSM Case StudyMaintaining Compliance With
Virtualization Audit and Control
It reduced the whole interview with auditors
from 3 hours to around 45 minutes.
It has been a huge time saving in validating
that the changes the development group said they
were making, are the changes that are actually
taking place,

• Edfinancial Services

When problems happen, we can cover them with
fewer people.
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EMA VSM Case StudyManaging VM Sprawl With
Virtual Configuration Management

• Leading North American finance company

We are much better at finding changes that are
not appropriate. I dont think the auditors are
going to find any problems this time.
We wrote script after script just to manage the
environment. Now we can eliminate them all. I
dont have to worry about maintaining them, or
keeping a scripter on staff.
Things that would take an hour to understand,
now I can have a report in minutes.
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EMA VSM Case StudyManaging Resource Utilization
with Performance Management

• Leading global consumer products company

I can spend less time to get the information
that I need. On a monthly basis, this will save
me about 5-6 hours.
We were flying blindly not saving as much as
we could by deploying a maximum of 4 VMs per
core regardless of actual utilization
We now have better server-to-VM ratios that are
based in reality, not just a best guess.
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Questions
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Wrap Up
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EMA Research Report -- Virtualization And
Management Trends, Forecasts And Recommendations
Are Available Now!

• Over 70 pages of in-depth analysis from April
  2008, including over 50 charts representing over
  200 data points from over 600 enterprises
• Comprehensive collection of data, analysis and
  advice covering all aspects of virtualization and
  virtualization management
• The largest, most extensive, most in-depth
  independent virtualization research study
  conducted to date
• First and only research study to provide
  data-driven long-term trend analyses, forecasts
  and recommendations on best practices

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EMA Research Report -- Virtualization And
Management Trends, Forecasts And Recommendations
Are Available Now!

• Includes invaluable four-page reference guide, A
  Taxonomy of Virtualization
• To purchase the complete research report, or to
  learn more about Enterprise Management
  Associates portfolio of services
• Telephone [phone]
• Email sales_at_enterprisemanagement.com
• On the Web at www.enterprisemanagement.com

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Thank You For Attending!
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