Sun Microsystems releases Virtualbox 3.0 to the masses

New Capabilities Span Desktop-to-Datacenter Workloads; Sun VirtualBox Sets New Marks with Unprecedented Market Uptake of Desktop Virtualization Software
  
Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAVA) today announced a significant new version of Sun VirtualBox, its high performance, cross-platform virtualization software. VirtualBox 3.0 is capable of creating and running multi-processor virtual machines that can handle heavyweight server-class workloads, and also delivers enhanced graphics support for desktop-class workloads, reinforcing VirtualBox's position as one of the world's most popular virtualization platforms. To download the freely available VirtualBox software, visit: http://www.sun.com/software/products/virtualbox/get.jsp. 
 


Many multi-threaded server-based workloads, such as database and Web applications, can benefit from Symmetric Multiple Processing (SMP) systems, which contain multiple CPUs. VirtualBox 3.0 can now support virtual SMP systems with up to 32 virtual CPUs (vCPUs) in a single virtual machine. With this major enhancement, VirtualBox software can be used to run not only desktop workloads on client or server systems, but also demanding server workloads.

"The rapid evolution and proliferation of VirtualBox software continues," said Jim McHugh, vice president of marketing, Datacenter Software, Sun Microsystems. "With each new version, VirtualBox software delivers more innovation, performance and power. And as virtualization continues to gain momentum in the market, the world's developers and IT decision makers are turning to VirtualBox en masse."

"VirtualBox is a key embedded technology in our Business and Disaster Recovery product line. The great new SMP capabilities in the VirtualBox software allow us to build even more powerful products satisfying our most demanding customers," said Akash Saraf, CEO of Zenith Infotech.
A key component of Sun's industry-leading desktop-to-datacenter virtualization portfolio, VirtualBox software has been rapidly growing in popularity, surpassing 14.5 million downloads and 4 million registrations worldwide, as well as more than 25,000 downloads a day. A mere 50 megabyte download, VirtualBox software is incredibly compact and efficient and installs in just a few minutes.
New server features of VirtualBox 3.0 software include:

• Up to 32 vCPUs per guest to accommodate heavyweight data-processing workloads.
• Hypervisor enhancements for SMP to enable optimum performance.
• Updated API platform designed to be the basis of the community-driven VirtualBox Web Console project, which is coming soon to allow IT administrators to manage their datacenters from a Web console. This project is based on the popular Python language.

New desktop features of VirtualBox 3.0 software include:

• Microsoft Direct3D support for Windows guests, which enables graphically intensive Windows applications, like computer modeling, 3D design and games software, to run in a virtual environment.
• Support for version 2.0 of the Open Graphics Library (OpenGL) standard. As a result, high-performance Windows, Linux, Solaris, and OpenSolaris graphical applications, which typically use graphical hardware acceleration, are able to run applications like Google Earth and CAM-based software on VirtualBox software.
• Support for a wider range of USB devices, including storage devices, iPods and phones.

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NComputing vSpace Desktop Virtualization Software - "The greenest computing on Earth"

Eco-friendly computing
We can’t live without PCs, but we need to learn how to live with them: they consume too much electricity and generate too much e-waste. A typical PC takes 110 watts to run, and there are almost a billion of them on the planet. And according to the Silicon Valley Toxics Commission, e-waste is the fastest growing part of the waste stream.
The solution is simple
Today's PCs are so powerful that we no longer need one for each person. We can tap into the excess power in one PC and share it with many users. NComputing technology uses just 1 to 5 watts, lasts for a decade, and generates just a few ounces of e-waste.


Save on computer costs & electricity
NComputing systems cost at least 50% less than standard PCs, and since they draw less than 5 watts, you reduce your energy footprint by as much as 90% per user. And because NComputing devices produce practically no heat, they reduce the need for energy-consuming air conditioning. Electricity savings alone can pay for the NComputing virtual desktops in as little as one year. No wonder NComputing has won so many green awards.
Leading the way

	The kids in Lindsay Park are working in Canada’s first carbon-neutral computer lab.
	Judson ISD’s wide-ranging green initiative includes the NComputing X-series. Their detailed presentation has valuable information that you can present to your district.

Save even more with energy rebates & discounts
Electrical utilities are offering incentives such as purchase rebates and lower electricity rates for using NComputing. Click here to learn more.

Global impact Over 850 million PCs are turned on every day. If NComputing systems were used at a ratio of 6 NComputing devices to each PC: Energy use would decline by over 120 billion kilowatt hours per year CO2 emissions would decrease by 96 million metric tons - it's like planting 460 million trees E-waste would be reduced by 6.7 million metric tons

Check them out at http://www.ncomputing.com

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Opera Unite - a new way to share files directly from your web browser

Opera has just released Unite, a web server on the web browser. This is really cool! I am familiar with the Plain Old Webserver (POW) extension for Firefox which has been around for a long time. I'm curios to see how this matches up and/or extends that functionality.

With Opera 10, we are introducing a new technology called Opera Unite, radically extending what you are able to do online. Opera Unite harnesses the power of today's fast connections and hardware, allowing all of us to help define the future landscape of the Web, one computer at a time. Read about how Opera Unite is going to change the way we interact on the Web on labs.opera.com.

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How Amazon Web Services is tackling the 'security of the cloud' problem.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) delivers a highly scalable cloud computing platform with high availability and dependability, and the flexibility to enable customers to build a wide range of applications. In order to provide end-to-end security and end-to-end privacy, AWS builds services in accordance with security best practices, provides appropriate security features in those services, and documents how to use those features. In addition, AWS customers must use those features and best practices to architect an appropriately secure application environment. Enabling customers to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of their data is of the utmost importance to AWS, as is maintaining trust and confidence.

At a high level, we’ve taken the following approach to secure the AWS infrastructure:

• Certifications and Accreditations. AWS is actively seeking the appropriate security certifications and accreditations in order to provide our customers with additional confidence in our infrastructure. In addition, we will continue to publish guidance on how AWS enables customers to build applications that are compliant with standards, such as HIPAA.
• Physical Security. Amazon has many years of experience in designing, constructing, and operating large-scale data centers. AWS infrastructure is housed in Amazon-controlled data centers throughout the world. Only those within Amazon who have a legitimate business need to have such information know the actual location of these data centers, and the data centers themselves are secured with a variety of physical barriers to prevent unauthorized access.
  
• Secure Services. Each of the services within the AWS cloud is architected to be secure and contains a number of capabilities that restrict unauthorized access or usage without sacrificing the flexibility that customers demand. For more information about the security capabilities of each service in the AWS cloud, consult the Amazon Web Services: Overview of Security Processes whitepaper.
  

• Data Privacy. AWS enables users to encrypt their personal or business data within the AWS cloud and publishes backup and redundancy procedures for services so that customers can gain greater understanding of how their data flows throughout AWS. For more information on the data privacy and backup procedures for each service in the AWS cloud, consult the Amazon Web Services: Overview of Security Processes whitepaper.

The AWS Security Center provides links to technical information, tools, and prescriptive guidance designed to help you build and manage secure applications in the AWS cloud. Our goal is to use this forum to proactively notify developers about security bulletins. Such transparency is the backbone of trust between AWS and our customers.

Security Bulletins

No matter how carefully engineered the services are, from time to time it may be necessary to notify customers of security and privacy events with AWS services. In this situation, we will issue a security bulletin, available here.

If you are a security researcher and wish to communicate with us, please e-mail security@amazon.com. Customers can report suspected abuse via the contacts available here: http://aws.amazon.com/contact-us/report-abuse/

Background Information

Delivering a secure cloud computing platform involves implementing numerous best practices for on-premise infrastructure as well as a host of additional considerations unique to a hosted infrastructure environment. The Amazon Web Services: Overview of Security Processes whitepaper will provide background information and an overview of the AWS philosophy in offering a secure cloud computing platform.

Amazon Web Services Overview of Security Processes whitepaper (pdf)

Creating HIPAA-Compliant Medical Data Applications with AWS whitepaper (pdf)

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TheLadders.com Recruits 3PAR and Saves on Storage - Online Job Search Engine Cuts Total Storage Costs by 50%

3PAR, the leading global provider of utility storage, announced today that TheLadders.com, the world's leading online service catering exclusively to the $100k+ job market, cut their total cost of storage in half by replacing their legacy storage infrastructure with 3PAR Utility Storage. The online job search website deployed 3PAR Utility Storage in conjunction with server virtualization from VMware as part of a datacenter virtualization initiative. This initiative reduced the company’s storage capacity requirements by 66%, which also reduced storage administration time. In addition, by consolidating onto a single, highly virtualized 3PAR InServ^® Storage Server, TheLadders.com was able to eliminate the use of separate arrays for different applications and reliance on costly consulting services.

“By allowing us to cut our storage TCO by 50%, 3PAR was clearly the most cost-effective solution,” said Frey Kuo, Director of Information Technology and Operations, TheLadders.com. “However, it wasn’t only about the financial benefit. With 3PAR, we now have the ability to add storage at the drop of a hat and the platform’s superior reliability and high performance protects our critical end-user experience.”

With their legacy storage environment, TheLadders.com had to justify the roadmap for data growth on a per-project basis since the total lifetime capacity required for each individual project had to be purchased up front. This situation limited the number of projects that could be initiated in any given year due to cost constraints associated with purchasing all of this capacity at the outset. With 3PAR, TheLadders.com is not only able to scale their storage environment painlessly, but they are able to buy additional storage on an incremental basis and only as needed. This allows the leading online job search website to save on up-front capacity purchases, ease roadmap justification, initiate more projects, and reduce the cost of housing, powering, and cooling their storage.

For TheLadders.com, meeting their growing storage requirements by purchasing legacy storage would have required 200% more capacity than was required by deploying 3PAR Utility Storage. With 3PAR Thin Provisioning software, TheLadders.com is able to purchase only the storage capacity it needs, and only when it is actually needed, thereby reducing up-front capacity and energy costs by 75% and lowering storage administration to a fraction of what it was before. Storage configuration tasks that took days or weeks to complete with legacy storage took just hours with their new 3PAR array.

With the website listing more than 8,000 new jobs each week across every industry, it was important that the storage infrastructure at TheLadders.com be scalable while also protecting the end-user experience. Their 3PAR InServ distributes all workloads over all system resources for reliability and high performance. TheLadders.com has found automated rebalancing with 3PAR Dynamic Optimization, in combination with the array’s native mixed workload support, to be extremely beneficial. This has enabled the online job search website to maintain robust and consistent performance and avoid disruption when scaling their storage environment.

“TheLadders.com is one of many Internet and Web 2.0 companies that have come to us looking for cost savings and have stayed with us for our superior simplicity, efficiency, performance, and reliability,” said David Scott, President and Chief Executive Officer for 3PAR. “Legacy vendors are plagued by inefficient, inflexible architectures and a rigid business model. Our customers understand that there is a far better alternative that is well suited for businesses seeking a leaner, more agile approach.”

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