SQL Server, a great workload for Hyper-V?

People ask me what are good candidates for Virtualization, and can Hpyer-V really run those heavy workloads. I tell them, that with Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V, almost all workloads are candidates, and when you couple Hyper-V with the great management you get with System Center, you have a great infrastructure platform for virtualization.

Yesterday, Vipul Shah, a Senior Product Manager with the Virtualization Team, showed some proof to my statements when he guest posted on Virtualization Planet about how Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V and System Center is a great platform for running SQL Server consolidated workloads. He pointed to a newly released video by Ted Kummert, Senior Vice President, Microsoft Business Platform Division that outlines how virtualization enables consolidation.

This is exciting as we ran some performance tests against a complex stock trading application using a machine with Second Level Address Translation (SLAT) and saw good performance throughout the tests. We recently discussed in the Best Practices for SQL Server Virtualization webcast (click here) and in the SQL Server Consolidation Guidance (click here) the results of those tests, and guidance on running SQL as a virtual machine.

Other Business Critical Applications like Microsoft Exchange and Microsoft SharePoint are also fantastic workloads to be consolidated.

It is good to see this information getting out there. Thoughts?

Kenon

SCE 2010 RC Released – Mid Market Wonders

System Center Essentials is a Mid to Small Market integrated Management solution that combines Physical and Virtual systems Management along with Client Management. It is exciting that this release is coming as now smaller customers will realize a way to fully leverage their physical and virtual infrastructure and increase their efficiencies to provide their organizations top tier IT.

Check out this Video: Virtualization Features of SCE 2010 also, check out the cost. Yeah, I know this is for SCE2007, but still, customers can see tremendous value, and SCE 2010 will be a GREAT Value as well. Check out this whitepaper on licensing.

From the SCE PM

The System Center Essentials 2010 Release Candidate and is now available to the public for download. This was a huge milestone for the team as it brings together twenty-two months of planning and development to deliver a unified virtual and physical IT management solution for midsize businesses. With almost nine thousand customers registered for the public beta, we look forward to driving even more awareness with the release candidate. Here are the new features and functionality added for RC:

· Additional virtualization support: Pro tips integration, Live migration with clustering support, Jobs view

· Upgrade / Migration support: TAP customers running beta can upgrade to the RC; Customers running SCEv1 (including running VMM workgroup edition) will be able to upgrade to SCEv2 RTM; Disaster recovery and moving from to a new server while retaining data will be supported in SCEv2 Resource Kit.

· Licensing: New workflow for purchase from evaluation; SKUs are buildable with correct license terms.

· Agent deployment with WSUS: If a failure occurs deploying Operations Manager agent, SCE will attempt to deploy using WSUS infrastructure.

· Localization build & process complete: Completed full test pass on localized build; Localized SCE MP and integrated partner localized MPs into build process.

So, Check it out and enjoy!

Massive iSCSI IOPs for Hyper-V

Suzanne Morgan, a Senior Program Manager – Storage and File Systems at Microsoft is presenting a webcast today at 11 PST on some fantastic iSCSI performance numbers (Check out this blog for information on the webcast).

I don’t want to steal all the thunder from this webcast, but would like to share with you some exciting information. The webcast talks about both Windows Server 2008 R2 iSCSI performance numbers, but also Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V performance numbers.

What this graphic shows is that with Hyper-V using Intel VMDq and Microsoft VMQ, we are achieving 750,000+ IOPs, and achieve native throughput at 8k and above block sizes.

What does this mean? Well, if you are going to run, say, Microsoft Exchange in a VM hosted on iSCSI storage, you will be able to handle a tremendous amount of mailboxes even under a “heavy” profile.

Take a listen to the webcast and see where Windows Server 2008 R2 has gotten to.

4 Big Guns on a Conference Call Recap

Wow! the Microsoft/HP call/announcement went out and it was great to hear them on the call answering questions.

I think Mark Hurd said it best when someone asked isn’t this just the same old, same old? He said something to the fact that if this wasn’t big, you wouldn’t have gotten these people on the phone together. This announcement is going to change the way customers can reap the benefits of virtualization. It is going to be huge.

I wrote on it on the Windows Server 2008 R2 Experts Blogs today, so check it out. I think the two things to note for Virtualization are:

• HP and Microsoft will put together bundles that make virtualization easier for the masses
• Systems designed for Virtualization
• Management Integrations to make it fly
• Where we are going to take the cloud gives our customers endless possibilities

This is going to be fun.

4 Big Guns and a Conference Call

CNET Posted an article a little while ago that tomorrow morning, CEO Steve Ballmer, and HP Chairman and CEO Mark Hurd, along with the president of Microsoft’s Server and Tools Business, Bob Muglia, and HP’s executive vice president and general manager  of their Enterprise Servers and Networking, Enterprise Business, Dave Donatelli will be on a joint teleconference tomorrow morning.

That is a lot of firepower out there to take questions about “new, significant investments the two companies are making to help customers and partners prepare for the future of business computing”.

Should be an interesting day tomorrow.

I will comment more tomorrow.