Product Update : ML350 G6 servers now ship with Passive Heatsinks

We are getting a number of calls regarding ML350 servers missing CPU Fans.
The current ML350 G6 series servers do not ship with CPU fans as these servers now use Passive CPU coolers.

So please do not be alarmed if your ML350 server does not ship with a processor cooling fan.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP Networking Promotions December 2011

18% Discount on 2510/2520 switches
Until the end of December HP are offering upto 18% discount off list price on the below sku's.

• J9019B HP 2510-24 SWITCH
• J9020A HP 2510-48 SWITCH
• J9137A HP 2520-8-POE SWITCH
• J9138A HP 2520-24-POE SWITCH
• J9279A HP 2510-24G SWITCH
• J9280A HP 2510-48G SWITCH
• J9298A HP 2520-8G-POE SWITCH
• J9299A HP 2520-24G-POE SWITCH

HP 1910 Promo 20% discount
Until 31st January, HP are offering 20% discount on the below sku's

• JE005A HP 1910-16G SWITCH
• JE006A HP 1910-24G SWITCH
• JE007A HP 1910-24G-POE (365W) SWITCH
• JE008A HP 1910-24G-POE(170W) SWITCH
• JE009A HP 1910-48G SWITCH

HP Networking Trade In Programme
Trade in any vendor networking product against HPN managed switches, Access Points and Access Controllers. Now includes A, E and V Series.

A Catalyst for Change' Trade In Promo
HP Networking's “A Catalyst for Change” Cisco Trade-In Program offers customers (min order of $100k list including services) an additional saving 20% off list price as cash back rebate when purchasing eligible HP Networking A-Series, E-Series and S-Series products and trading in eligible Cisco switches (Catalyst and Nexus), wireless and router products.

Now it's easier than ever for Cisco customers to upgrade their core, data centre and campus infrastructure and get value from their legacy Cisco investment. For deals of less than $100k list the existing trade in program is still available

If you have a Networking solution you wish to implement or would like help or more details on HP's range of networking solutions, then please do not hesitate to contact the Solutions team.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

December 2011 - HP Server and Storage offers.

In order for you to have your own copy of this months offers, We can now offer them in a easy downloadable PDF for you.

Please click the image above to open the PDF.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Why should you consider Microsoft Lync?

Microsoft Lync is a unified communications software which delivers streamlined communications for the users in your business. Work across different locations and time zones using a variety of communication methods such as instant messaging, conferencing, and enterprise voice. Microsoft unified communications can also help organisations reduce the operating costs of travel, telecom and IT, while allowing them to improve their business outcomes in a sustainable way.

The key six benefits of MS Lync

• Control Costs
• Improve Productivity
• Support the mobile workforce
• Gain operational efficiencies
• Be more responsive to customers, partners, and employees
• Maintain regulatory compliance

So why choose Microsoft? – Click on the link to compare Microsoft to the competition in the market place including; Google Apps, IBM, Cisco, Open Office and Salesforce.com

Case Studies from MS Lync in the United Kingdom

• West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue
• Royal Mail
• JJ Food Service

If you need any help with providing a unified communications solution for your customer then please do not hesitate to contact the solutions team.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP Releases 300GB 15k SFF Drive.

HP have launched their new 300GB 15k Small form factor drives.

The Part number for this new drive is 627117-B21 and is only available in hot plug at this time.
As always with HP's ENT drives this carries a 3yr warranty...

To all our readers...We are back!

Over the last couple of weeks we have been having a few technical issues with regards to logging into blogger to provide you updates on all the new developments & releases from HP.

As you can see I now have access again, so during the day today I will be posting up all the information that is still relevant to this month and some details of new releases.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : HP Plan to build servers using ARM based Processors.

It looks like that HP has announced that they will be looking to use ARM based processors in some of their future server technologies. Whilst we all know that ARM processor technology is currently used in Smart phones, tablets and some terminal client machines for their high processing / low power design, there is an opportunity to use this technology in the Server market.

HP have stressed that while this technology will allow lower running costs (power and cooling) as well as around a 94% decrease in required space, it should be viewed as an alternative rather than a replacement to Intel's more powerful products. For example they mention that ARM based Servers would be good for delivering static web, whilst leaving the current processor giants to do the heavier number crunching applications.

Two new HP Networking case studies

• Nantes Habitat sees a two-year return on investment after implementing an HP AllianceONE solution.

Nantes Habitat, a French social housing corporation, deploys an HP Networking-Aastra solution to increase network performance, availability, security and manageability, and support IP telephony across several sites. It estimates a return on investment of two years.

Customer solution at a glance:

Primary solution
• HP CloudSystem Service Provider including:
• 2 x HP E8200 zl Switch Series
• 2 x HP E5400 zl Switch Series
• 17 x HP E2910 al Switch Series
• 2 x HP AllianceONE Services zl Modules

Primary applications
• Branch office
• Security
• Unified communications and collaboration
• Network software management
• Converged Infrastructure

Primary software
• HP PCM+
• HP IDM
• Aastra 5000 IPBX Call Server

Link to Case Study:
http://h20195.www2.hp.com/v2/GetDocument.aspx?docname=4AA3-5464EEW

• HP reinvents networking interoperability, readies enterprises for the future at May 2011 Interop in Las Vegas

Networking tradeshow, Interop (by UBM TechWeb), showcases cloud computing, virtualization, security, mobility, and data center advances. HP proved the reality of converged, multi-vendor networking in the cloud with HP FlexNetwork Architecture.

Customer solution at a glance:

HP Services
• Technology consulting for InteropNet

Primary hardware
• HP A12508 Switch
• HP A5820 Switch
• HP A5800 Switch
• HP A5500 Switch
• HP A8808 Router
• HP A6604 Router
• HP S5100N
• HP NJ2000 1Gb IntelliJack Switch
• HP C3000 Blade Enclosure
• HP ProLiant BL495c Server Blade

Primary software
• HP FlexNetwork Architecture
• HP Intelligent Management

Link to Case Study:
http://h20195.www2.hp.com/v2/GetDocument.aspx?docname=4AA3-7400ENW

If you have a Networking solution you wish to implement or would like help or more details on HP's range of networking solutions, then please do not hesitate to contact the Solutions team.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Live like a Millionaire with Microsoft and Westcoast

Westcoast have launched their latest incentive for our Microsoft resellers.
Its a good one so read on!

The Main Prize!
Is a space for two on a luxury yacht on the Tabacco corner of the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix in 2012. You can win one of three spaces for two to watch the Monaco grand Prix in style from the yacht with full hospitality.

There are two other monthly prizes are available..

Month One
You can win a shopping trip for two to Harrods with £250 to spend per person followed by drinks in the Veuve Cliquot Champagne bar in Harrods. Lunch in a top London restaurant and spend the night in a top London Hotel

Month two
You could win a night out in London for two, dinner at an exclusive West End Restaurant, a complementary bottle of champagne and admission to any Top London West End show followed by a night in a 5* hotel

So how you can win?
You will have been set two monthly targets. The first runs from the 17th October – 16th November and the second the 17th November to the 16th December 2011. During this time all Microsoft sales will count towards your monthly targets.

If you achieve your monthly target you will be entered into the draw for one of the monthly prizes, with each 20% you achieve over target giving you one additional ticket.

In order to be entered into the main prize draw you will need to achieve your target for both months and log in at least once every month.

You can gain additional tickets into the main draw for doing one or more of the following:

• 5 points for attending a Westcoast and Microsoft Event
• 3 points for sitting your MLSS exam*
• 3 points for requested marketing material from the Westcoast and Microsoft Gym
• 3 points each month you place an Open license order
• 1 point for adding yourself to Microsoft PinPoint*

To Login to the incentive and for full details, click here!

As always, if you need help with a Solution with Microsoft or Servers then please do not hesitate to contact us, we wish you all the best in this incentive.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast’s new Smart Networking Tool - HP vs Cisco

Click on above Image to access the tool

Do you have a Cisco Networking opportunity?
Westcoast are pleased to announce our new Smart Networking tool, this tool will enable you to provide a HP Networking vs Cisco quote. Simply Enter the details of your Cisco quote and receive special pricing on HP Networking products

So what the benefits of using this tool?

• 48 Hour SLA – Upload your network designs or kit lists to the tool and our technical experts will endeavour to send your quote in under 48 hours*
• Pricing advantage – On average a HP solution is 20% cheaper than the equivalent Cisco offering
• Increased Margin – Qualifying deals will benefit from at least 10% additional margin**

All you need to do is simply upload your requirement to the portal and receive your competitive quotation back within 48 hours

*Timescale may increase depending on workload
**Specific criteria must be met as per HP’s partner guidelines

We hope that this tool is of use to you however, If you need help with the tool, or have questions surrounding a networking opportunity then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Product Spotlight : Cisco Fabric Extender for HP BladeSystem

The Cisco Fabric Extender for HP BladeSystem (Model B22HP) provides an extension of the Cisco Nexus switch fabric to the HP server edge. Logically, it behaves like a remote line card to a parent Cisco Nexus 5000 series switch with the Fabric Extender and the parent Nexus together forming a distributed modular system.

The Cisco Fabric Extender for HP BladeSystem forwards traffic to the parent Cisco Nexus 5000 Series Switch over eight 10 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks. Low-cost uplink connections up to 10 meters can be made with copper Twin-ax cable, and longer connections up to 100 meters can use the Fabric Extender Transceiver. Standard 10Gb optics such as SR and LR are also supported.

Downlinks to each server are auto-negotiating and work with all HP Ethernet and CNA modules allowing customers a choice of Ethernet, FCoE or iSCSI connections. Being a seamless extension of a Nexus 5000 allows traffic to be switched according to policies established by the Nexus 5000 Series Switch with a single point of management.

Performance

• Sixteen 1Gb/10Gb downlinks
• Each Ethernet downlink supports FibreChannel over Ethernet (FCoE), Datacenter Bridging (DCB), and iSCSI
• Each Ethernet downlink can autonegotiate to 1Gb to support legacy NICs and/or Wake On LAN Eight 10Gb uplinks
• Each Fabric uplink carries both Ethernet and FibreChannel over Ethernet (FCoE) traffic
• Fabric uplinks support .5m/1m/3m/5m/7m/10m twinax, Fabric Extender Tranceiver (FET-10G), 10Gbase-SR, and 10Gbase-LR optics
• Up to 24 Fabric Extenders can be managed by a single Nexus 5000 series switch
• Ports support Ethernet, iSCSI and DCB protocols

Management

• Centralized Management - All configuration & monitoring performed on parent Nexus switch
• Up to 24 Fabric Extenders can be managed by a single Nexus 5000 series switch
• Supported by CiscoWorks and Cisco Data Center Network Manager
• Support for SNMP V1, V2, V3
• XML (Netconf) support.

HP ProLiant Servers Supported

• HP ProLiant BL2x220c G7
• HP ProLiant BL280c G6
• HP ProLiant BL460c G7
• HP ProLiant BL460c G6
• HP ProLiant BL465c G7
• HP ProLiant BL465 G6
• HP ProLiant BL490c G7
• HP ProLiant BL490c G6
• HP ProLiant BL495c G6
• HP ProLiant BL620c G7
• HP ProLiant BL680c G7
• HP ProLiant BL685c G7
• HP ProLiant BL685 G6
• NOTE: Some servers listed above may be discontinued.

• HP Integrity BL860c Server Blade
• HP Integrity BL860c i2 Server Blade
• HP Integrity BL870c Server Blade
• HP Integrity BL870c i2 Server Blade
• HP Integrity BL890c i2 Server Blade

Cisco Network Switches

• Cisco Nexus 5010
• Cisco Nexus 5020
• Cisco Nexus 5548
• Cisco Nexus 5596

For some more in-depth specs of this new Fabric Extender then please click "here".
If you need help with a HP Blade solution then please contact us and we will provide a solution to your customers needs.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : Announcing the Next Generation of Tier 1 storage

On 23rd August HP announced two new additions to their Converged Storage portfolio, namely the HP P10000 3PAR "V-Class" systems and HP Peer Motion.

Watch the HP 3PAR Thin Conversion & Peer Motion video (5 mins) below to see how HP’s Peer Motion Software non-disruptively moves data and HP’s Thin Conversion Software can help customers rapidly migrate from legacy storage.



HP Peer motion software delivers the industry’s first peer-to-peer storage federation capabilities that span from a virtual storage area network (SAN) software appliance to midrange and high-end storage systems.

If you need help with a 3PAR storage solution then please contact us and we will provide a tailored solution to your customers needs.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : Westcoast Solutions Lab is now open for business!

Westcoast is proud to announce the new...



The Westcoast Solutions Lab is a multi-vendor, fully functional demo facility that you and your customers can take advantage of to maximise your business. The Lab will always showcase the most up to date products and technologies from a range of manufacturers to keep you ahead of the competition.

The Solutions Lab has an HP Rack system fully loaded with the latest technologies from HP, including Generation 7 BL460c blades and DL380 rack servers, HP 5400zl and A5800 core switches, P4000 SAN storage running Virtual SAN appliance software as well as the full suite of HP management tools and Microsoft software.

Westcoast Solutions Lab

The lab also benefits from multiple tech pods which are available to demonstrate the latest solution combinations from HP, Microsoft and other key vendors, to help you position the benefits to your customers.

• The live environment is fully Microsoft Lync enabled so demonstrates the software and technology using various Lync optimised end points.

• The Solutions Lab staff can show you and your customers Virtualisation and Management demonstrations using Microsoft Hyper-V and System Centre on an HP Blade Systems platform.

• The facility uses the latest AV technologies to ensure presentations and training are of the highest visual standard.

• The space can be re branded to suit the audience and the event using the visual display capabilities on site.

Westcoast Solutions Lab

Located in Milton Keynes and with easy access from the M1 motorway the Westcoast Solutions Lab is available for many different types of events free of charge to our resellers including;

• Reseller and end user events
• Vendor days
• Conferences
• Focus groups
• Breakfast meetings
• Training sessions

We would encourage you to please visit the Lab on our open days on the 12-14th October to see what the lab can offer you and your customers. There will be 3 identical sessions at the below times on these days.

• 10am - 12pm
• 1pm - 3pm
• 3.30pm - 5.30pm

Plus! Join us on one of these open days and get entered  into a draw for 3 chances to £200 cash back on your next servers, storage or networking order! 
One must be given away each day!

Please click the image above to book the lab

We hope that you can make use of this fantastic new facility, so please In the meantime if you need anymore information then please do not hesitate to contact us.

If you wish to book the lab then please either click the Calendar image (above) or go to this link

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast Smart Bid website now extended to HP Networking..

The new HP Networking section of the popular Westcoast SmartBid website has been now been launched where you can obtain special pricing on specific HP Networking product part numbers.

The site allows you to manage your bids and get a decision within 4 business hours.

Visit the site today and log in with your Westcoast log in details www.westcoast.co.uk/smartbid

If you have a Networking solution you wish to implement or would like help or more details on HP's range of networking solutions, then please do not hesitate to contact the Solutions team.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast at Convergence Summit South (4-5th October 2011)

With the worldwide IT and Infrastructure changing rapidly over the last 3 or 4 years as organisations of all sizes, commercial and public sector look at ways to reduce costs, increase ROI on investments and maximise their current infrastructure Westcoast have reacted to this challenge.

Westcoast have partnered with Microsoft, HP and Aastra to bring you a complete Unified Communications Solution.

Combining technologies from these three vendors will allow you and your customers to adapt to evolving business needs with a secure communications platform that spans across all the different ways people communicate, including telephone, e-mail, voice mail and instant messaging. Westcoast is also a leading supplier of IT Infrastructure products to the computer reseller channel.

Click here to arrange a meeting with us.

For more details on the Convergence Summit South event please go to http://www.convergencesummit.co.uk

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

September 2011 - HP Server and Storage offers.

In order for you to have your own copy of this months offers, We can now offer them in a easy downloadable PDF for you.

Please click the image above to open the PDF.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HELP : VMware vSphere 5 licensing Explained

Since the lauch of HP VMware Sphere 5 there have been a number of questions on how it is licenced as there is a little confusion from people moving over from vSphere 4.

In vSphere 5 the licence you use (Standard, Enterprise or Enterprise plus) is partly determined by how much vRAM the virtual machines have been allocated.

vRAM is new in Version 5, Unlike in vSphere 4 where the core and physical RAM entitlements are tied to a single server and cannot be shared among multiple hosts, the vRAM entitlements of vSphere 5 licenses are pooled, aggregated, across all vSphere servers managed by vCenter Server.

So what is a vRAM?
When a virtual machine is created, it is configured with a certain amount of memory available to the virtual machine, this is called vRAM.

What are the new Licences?
 The licences are split up into 3 different versions...

• Standard 1 Processor licence allow for a maximum of 32GB/entitlement
• Enterprise 1 Processor licence allow a maximum of 64GB /entitlement
• Enterprise plus 1 Processor licence allow a maximum of 96GB/entitlement

So how do I licence Servers and vRAM?
The easiest way to explain it is to provide an example.

If you were to use two DL380 G7 servers each with two 6 core processors (4 processors in total), 128GB of physical RAM and you wanted to use vSphere Enterprise edition, each physical CPU would require a license. To correctly licence vShpere you would need to purchase a minimum of four vSphere 5 Enterprise licenses (one for each processor). Now as each Enterprise license provides a vRAM entitlement of 64GB this creates a vRAM pool of 256GB.

Next, you would need to create the virtual machines.

In this example lets say you want to create 50 virtual machines each having 4GB of vRAM in each, and planned to deploy them across the two DL380 G7 servers, this would only take up 200GB of your 256GB entitlement. As both of the DL380 servers are connected to the same vCenter Server and are running the same VMware vSphere edition This vRAM pool also allows DRS and VMware vMotion to move the virtual machines between any of the CPUs without needing any additional licenses.

Even if all 50 virtual machines were running on a single CPU, no additional vRAM capacity would be required, because the pooled vRAM entitlement would not be exceeded.

If you increased the memory in the DL380 servers to beyond the vRAM entitlement, you would need to purchase additional processor licences (of the same type) for the additional physical memory you installed in the servers to be used.

For instance If you increased the memory in the servers from 128GB to 192GB each (384GB in total) but only had the 4 Enterprise licences as shown above, you would only ever see an entitlement of 256GB of that 384GB. You would therefore need to purchase another 2 enterprise licences to allow the additional memory in the servers to be used.

So what do the different versions give me?

Below is a table showing what features are with each edition of vSphere 5

I Hope that has helped with any questions around licencing vSphere 5.
If you have any questions please post them below and i will be happy to help or please contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : VMware Vsphere 5 now released on HP part numbers.

VMware from HP provides a comprehensive suite of virtualization solutions designed expressly for mission-critical enterprise computing.

HP offers a complete portfolio of VMware licences Server and Desktop Infrastructure Software.
VMware software from HP includes either a 1year or 3year 9x5 of unlimited support and subscription with uplifts to 24x7 and multiyear support for 3,4 or 5 years. With this support, customers receive installation, configuration and troubleshooting support. HP also offers VMware software bundled with HP Insight Control and the HP P4000 Virtual SAN Appliance software.

The VMware OEM portfolio from HP includes:

• All VMware vSphere 5 core server editions and related acceleration kits
• Upgrade licenses within the core server editions
• VMware vCenter management products including Site Recovery Manager (SRM), Lab Manager, AppSpeed, Chargeback, CapacityIQ
• vCloud products including vCloud Director, Request manager
• vShield products
• VMware View products
• VMware ThinApp products
• The VMware OEM portfolio from HP includes a 1- or 3-year 9x5 unlimited support and subscription services. Additional care pack services can be purchased separately with 24x7 or 3/4/5 year terms.

For more information (part numbers etc) then please go to the HP quickspecs

If you have a virtual server solution you wish to implement or would like help or more details, then please do not hesitate to contact the Solutions team.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : New Installation services from Westcoast

A couple of months ago (in this post) I mentioned that we have some exciting new services that were soon to be announced.
I am therefore pleased to announce a whole host of new Installation services that Westcoast are now offering, these include..

• Network installation and configuration,
• Server & Storage Deployment,
• Project Management,
• Site surveys,
• Capacity planning,
• Software Configuration,
• Rental

As always the Westcoast Solutions presales team are always happy to help you with your Server and Storage solution and now as we can offer the above services we can provide a full service suite to make your solution concept and implementation run more smoothly.

If you have a solution you wish to implement and would like details on the above services, then please do not hesitate to contact the Solutions team.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Video of the Week : HP 3PAR - The next generation of storage

Virtualization is transforming data centers. But this shift is also placing new demands on infrastructure that legacy storage platforms were never designed to handle.

The next generation of Tier 1 storage, HP 3PAR Utility Storage was built from the ground up to exceed the economic and operational requirements of even the most demanding and dynamic IT environments. HP 3PAR Utility Storage delivers 100% of the agility and efficiency demanded by the virtual data center and cloud computing. It does this through an innovative, purpose-built architecture that offers secure multitenancy, built-in thin processing capabilities, and unique autonomic management and storage tiering features.

Get the SAN infrastructure performance, scalability, and availability you need to transform your data center and enable virtual and cloud computing.



If you need help with a 3PAR storage solution then please contact us and we will provide a tailored solution to your customers needs.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Why its important to backup your data - UK Riots

We have all seen the riots in the streets and destruction of businesses around the UK's major city's this past week. Unfortunately as with any disaster man-made or natural, a few of these businesses will never recover due to lost data.

A study was done back in 2003 and it was found that the estimated cost of data loss in the US came to $18 billion and that only 57% of companies actually backed up their data. You can imagine that now in 2011 the cost of losing data would have gone up substantially UK included.

The UK does not really suffer from many natural disasters, however the most recent events proves that destruction of business's can come overnight from any circumstance, so doing regular backups or having a disaster recovery solution this day in age is imperative.

If you need help with developing a backup or disaster recovery solution for your customers then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Solution team member - Paul Holliday Westcoast HP Storage BDM

I would like to announce a new member to the Westcoast Solutions Team - Paul Holliday.

Paul has extensive experience within distribution and reseller markets which make him the ideal candidate for Westcoast HP Storage business development manager.

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome him to the team and wish him all the success for the future.

If you need any help with HP storage then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

August 2011 - HP Server and Storage offers.

In order for you to have your own copy of this months offers, We can now offer them in a easy downloadable PDF for you.

Please click the image above to open the PDF.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Hp Networking Offer - Buy a 24-port switch and get 8 extra ports for £1 - offer on the V1410, V1410G and V1810 Switch Series

Right now, some of HP Networking's best-value switches are better value than ever!

For a limited time, your customers can improve their network at the Edge with a 24-port switch, plus benefit from an extra 8-port switch from the same family for only £1 extra!

It's great news for small and growing business, for a network that's flexible, secure and reliable.
This offer is valid August 1st - September 30th 2011,
Please click here for more information
 
For more information on what we can do for you please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Release : 6Gb/s SAS BL Switch for HP BladeSystem.

HP have finally launched their 6Gb/s SAS switch for the HP Bladesystem.
This means that now you can attach 6Gb/s SAS attached products to the Hp Bladesystem chassis such as the P2000sa SAN unit.

You can purchase the unit either on its own or in a dual pack.

• Single unit part number - BK763A
• Dual pack part number - BK764A

To attach the blade servers to a P2000sa SAN you will need to make sure a P711m or P712m (with cache module) Smart Array controller is installed in each blade server. The P711m & P712m acts as a pass-through to the P2000 with RAID functionality for shared SAS storage provided by the P2000 G3 array.

If you wish to know more information please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast to sponsor Microsoft WPC 2011 in Los Angeles - Live Stream

As you already know Westcoast are sponsoring the UK party at the Microsoft WPC this year.
If you wish to catch up on the WPC then you can either watch the Keynote sessions "on demand" or streamed live.

If you wish to view these sessions then please go to Microsoft WPC 2011

Cheers all.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast to sponsor Microsoft WPC 2011 in Los Angeles

Westcoast will be sponsoring the UK Party at the 2011 Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC). WPC 2011 is a five day conference held in Los Angeles from 10th – 14th July.

Westcoast is one of only four fully authorised commercial Microsoft Distributors in the UK.
WPC gives partners the opportunity to gain insights into the Microsoft business and technology roadmap for the coming 12 months and beyond. Guest speakers this year include Sir Richard Branson.

If you wish to know more information on this event then please do not hesitate to contact the Microsoft Team 

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : HP awards Aastra with HP AllianceONE technology partner of the year award.

Aastra has been awarded HP's AllianceONE best technology Partner of the Year Award.

This award, in the networking category acknowledges Aastra’s IP telephony and Unified Comms applications are fully integrated with HP’s networking infrastructure.

So what is this AllicanceOne award?
HP AllianceONE is a comprehensive partner program focused on HP’s Converged Infrastructure strategy of providing a shared services model to deliver secure, best-in-class applications.

As you already know Westcoast can supply full UC solutions using Aastra and HP. If you want to know more about what Aastra and HP can offer by way of UC solutions then please do not hesitate to contact us with your requirements.

For more information on the Aastra product range please click "Aastra" in the tag cloud on your left. In the meantime we extend our congratulations to Aastra for winning this award.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast Solutions Blog 1 Year old today !

Well its been a pretty busy and eventful year for the Solutions team here at Westcoast. There have been many new products and technologies introduced from HP which we feel now fill in the "gaps" that the solutions product portfolio had.

For example a few of the big releases this year was the release of the HP 3PAR product range, the new HP server G7 Range and the huge new range of products added to HP's networking brand through the 3Com and HP merger.

I hope that the information posted on the Blog has proven useful for all 2,994 people who have visited this site and for the 1,272 that vist on a regular basis.

One last thing is that we have some exciting new services to announce this year!
So in light of these exciting new services I thought I would give you a quick reminder on the services we currently offer. Westcoast Solutions team can provide technical advice, quotations, sales & marketing support. We can deliver training to your staff on HP and Microsoft with content catered specifically for your business, We can configure servers for you to your specific requests and DOA test them before shipment, We also provide a complete set of tools to help sell the portfolio. Our Microsoft licensing tool (L@W) and our HP Server configuration tool (iQuote) are best in class.

So please keep on looking back at the blog for up to the minute details on these new services and information as it happens from the Westcoast Solutions Team.

Thank you.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

July 2011 - HP Server and Storage offers.

In order for you to have your own copy of this months offers, We can now offer them in a easy downloadable PDF for you.

Please click the image above to open the PDF.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP Drops the name Storageworks

Over the last 24 months HP has completely transformed itself, bringing together storage assets (Storageworks, Lefthand, IBRIX, 3Par & HP Labs) and leveraging storage, server and networking innovations to deliver new storage and storage architectures for the next era of computing.

As from the 6th June HP have dropped the name "Storageworks" in favor for The HP master brand "HP Storage"

Therefore the name "Storageworks" will be removed from all existing materials over the coming months.

If you need any more details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP New product launch

June has seen the release of a few new Products to add to HP's UPS, Hard Disk and SSD (solid state disk) range. So what has been added?

HDD's
HP have launched a new 3.5" Midline 3TB SATA HDD for use in hot plug and non-hot plug servers. NOTICE: To support HP hard drives exceeding 2.2 TB, HP Smart Array Firmware version 5.0 or later is required for the following controllers:

• HP Smart Array P212 Controller
• HP Smart Array P410 Controller
• HP Smart Array P411 Controller
• HP Smart Array P711m Controller
• HP Smart Array P812 Controller

To use hard drives exceeding 2.2 TB, you must create a boot volume using offline ACU version 8.75 or later. HP Smart Array controllers do not support boot volumes exceeding 2.2 TB.

SSD's (Solid state disks)
HP have launched a range of new 2.5" SSD's for use in their Proliant servers.
These drives deliver higher performance, lower latency and low power solutions when compared with traditional HDD's.

6G SAS Hot Plug Enterprise Performance Solid State Drives
HP 200GB 6G SAS SLC SFF (2.5-inch) Enterprise Performance Solid State Drive - 632492-B21
HP 400GB 6G SAS SLC SFF (2.5-inch) Enterprise Performance Solid State Drive - 632494-B21

6G SAS Hot Plug Enterprise Mainstream Solid State Drives
HP 200GB 6G SAS MLC SFF (2.5-inch) Enterprise Mainstream Solid State Drive - 632502-B21
HP 400GB 6G SAS MLC SFF (2.5-inch) Enterprise Mainstream Solid State Drive - 632504-B21
HP 800GB 6G SAS MLC SFF (2.5-inch) Enterprise Mainstream Solid State Drive - 632506-B21

HP UPS (Uninterruptible power supplies)

R1500 UPS to go from G2 to G3 - New features include..

• New rear panel
• New SKU (AF469A, AF40A, AF471)
• New internal communication board and firmware
• New logo and jackblack color bezel
• New management software

R/T3000 to go from G1 to G2 - New features include..

• New rear panel
• New SKU (AF466A, AF467A, AF468A)
• New logo and jackblack color bezel
• New management software

T750/T1000/T1500:

• New logo and jackblack color bezel
• New management software

If you need any more details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Challenge Westcoast and Win £2000 !!

Westcoast are challenging you to beat the saving that we have made on our new G7 Server Infrastructure. Read our case study to see how we did it!

Westcoast are currently saving £75K per year since upgrading and we are challenging you to beat our saving.

So if you think you have saved your customers more money than Westcoast as a result of upgrading them to a G7 Server, please go to http://microsites.westcoast.co.uk/servers/challengewestcoast/ and fill in the details.

The 3 accounts with the highest customer percentage saving above Westcoast's will win the following:

• 1st Prize - £2000
• 2nd prize - £1000
• 3rd Prize - £500

If you need any more details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEW : HP Converged Infrastructure Case study (Westcoast Ltd)

As you may be aware Westcoast (us) have been expanding over the last couple of years, now with offices in Theale, Nottingham and Ireland. Our I.T infrastructure was due a refresh so we decided to "practice what we preach" and see if the claims HP made could indeed turn into real £££££ savings.

So with this additional expansion requirement we needed to increase our infrastructure capability whilst keeping return on investment as high as possible. Westcoast decided to look at HP's Converged Infrastructure by using the HP BladeSystem, HP ProLiant BL460G6 servers, P2000 SAN's and Microsoft Hyper-V for virtualisation of our servers.
 
Please read our HP case study and discover how you too can reduce running costs, after all  we managed a saving of £72,000 per year just based on power usage!! Not to mention other savings streams such as management time, recovery and resilience.

Westcoast Deploys HP Converged Infrastructure

If you are interested in looking at reducing your operational costs by consolidating servers and using virtualisation technologies like we have, then please do not hesitate to contact the Solutions team where we can create solutions based on your individual requirements.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Video of the Week : Aastra 6725ip and 6721ip phones for Microsoft Lync

The Aastra 6725ip and 6721ip are true IP phones that can operate as a standalone Microsoft Lync endpoint. Both phones feature a full color 3.5" LCD screen, dual Gigabit Ethernet ports and provide exceptional voice quality.



The 6725ip phone has a separate Unified Communications (UC) presence icon providing direct access to features and presence indications in Lync. When the 6725ip phone is connected to a Microsoft Lync 2010 equipped desktop, it provides a tight integration with the desktop client enabling additional functionality, including Click-to-Dial. Desktop control of calling features such as: Transfer, Hold, Call Park and Conferencing are also enabled providing enhanced call control.

Aastra 6725ip & 6721ip Key Features

• Embedded Microsoft Lync 2010 Phone Edition Software
• Color screen
• Dual Gigabit Ethernet ports
• Direct desktop integration
• Personal presence indicator
• USB interfaces
• Speakerphone
• Standalone IP Phone operation 

If you would like to know more about Aastra's range of IP solutions and Microsoft Lync then please see This post back in January this year when the product was released with Westcoast.

If you need any more details on the Aastra range or need help with designing a solution then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast Solutions Blog is now optimised for mobile devices...

We understand that your not always near a PC to get HP ISS technical product information from the Westcoast solutions team as it happens. Well now you can!

Simply scan this 3D barcode into your smartphone (using a free barcode camera scanner) to be taken directly to the mobile version of the Westcoast Solutions blog.

Now you can access all the information when your on the go.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP Proliant Server Portfolio

In Light of a number of new HP Server announcements, we have attached a link so you can download a copy of HP's entire Proliant Server portfolio to help you in your decision to choose a series of server based on basic Specifications.

Please Click on the image to open the Document

 This document actually covers the entire Proliant range from the ML110 to the Superdome servers, It also covers the Storage solutions HP provide from the basic JBOD units (D2000 series) to the P2000, P4000 3par EVA and XP's.

Of course if you are not sure of what solution to choose or which one best fits your customers’ requirements now or in the future then please do not hesitate to call us.

If you need any more details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

June 2011 - HP Server and Storage offers.

In order for you to have your own copy of this months offers, We can now offer them in a easy downloadable PDF for you.

Please click the image above to open the PDF.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP Microsoft Rok Cashback Offer - Offer Extended

Claim up to £200 Cashback with qualifying HP/Microsoft Operating Systems

Purchase a qualifying Top Value ProLiant server together with a qualifying HP Microsoft Operating System (as outlined in the qualifying products), between 1stFebruary – 30th June 2011, complete the claim form and you will receive up to £200 cashback from HP (Values vary with each Operating System)

Attach Microsoft Telephone Support HP Care Pack (U9269E) and you will receive an additional £200 cash back.

Microsoft HP Care Pack Services provide an easy and cost effective way of providing your IT Team with direct access to skilled HP Response Centre engineers who have extensive experience in resolving Microsoft Operating system and application Software issues.

If you need anymore details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP ProLiant Microserver £100 Cash Back - Offer Extended

Purchase a 1X250GB ProLiant Microserver (part code 633724-421) between 1st February – 30th June 2011, complete this claim form and HP will refund £100 Cashback.

In support of this offer, attach HP Care Pack (UR482E) and claim a further £30

How to Claim

• Complete this claim form.
• Attach proof of purchase (reseller invoice(s)) to the claim form, with qualifying products and HP part codes circled and make copies for your records.
• Product must have been invoiced between 1st February – 30th June 2011.
• Mail to: HP Claims Dept, PO Box 7393, Reading, RG27 7JJ. All submissions must be received by Friday 29th July 2011
• You will then receive an email confirming the rebate due to you and your individual reference number within 7 days of posting. If you do not receive this email then please contacts us at promotions@out-bound.co.uk.
• Cheques will be issued within 28 days of receipt of your correct invoice
• You will then receive an email confirming the rebate due to you and your individual reference number
• Cheques will be issued within 28 days of receipt of your correct invoice.

If you need anymore details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Hp Networking Offer - 3 for 2 on selected switches in V1810 and V1910 range

When you buy any 3 identical Smart Managed Gigabit switches you will pay for only 2.

This offer applies on the following switches.
J9449A HP V1810-8G Switch
J9450A HP V1810-24G Switch
JE006A HP V1910-24G Switch
JE005A HP V1910-16G Switch
JE007A HP V1910-24G-PoE - (365W) Switch
JE008A HP V1910-24G-PoE - (170W) Switch
JE009A HP V1910-48G Switch

Offer valid 1st June – 31st July 2011

If you need anymore details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Release : HP 900GB Hot Plug Small form factor Drive

HP SFF Drive

HP have launched a new 900GB SFF drive for use with their servers that take SFF hot plug drives (2.5")

• 619291-B21 - HP 900GB 6G SAS 10K rpm SFF (2.5-inch) Enterprise 3yr Warranty Hard Drive

This should help with configurations which in the past required having to use a different server entirely or moving to HP CTO.

If you need anymore details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Storage from Westcoast - New Microsite

This new website is designed to be a resource for you so you can download case studies, keep up to date with the latest offers and locate the tools you need to make your solution easier to understand and create.

http://microsites.westcoast.co.uk/storage/

Managing storage growth is a difficult task on the whole, but the distributed nature of unstructured file-based data adds to the challenge significantly, and drives the need for improved file-serving solutions.

Rapid file storage growth, driven by rich media such as audio, video, graphics, backup files and email, is impacting businesses more now than ever before.

You not only require immediate access to exploding volumes of data, but government regulations and corporate governance are dictating what must be kept, for how long and the speed with which it must be accessed.

Therefore, it is critical that you invest in a cost-effective, modular, file-serving solution that can support your business now and well into the future.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

May 2011 - HP Server and Storage offers.

In order for you to have your own copy of this months offers, We can now offer them in a easy downloadable PDF for you.

Please click the image above to open the PDF.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Podcast : Let Westcoast Simplify Blades for you

With over 30 years industry experience, the Solutions team is available to help you generate leads, provide training and assist with anything to grow your HP server business. We can plan, design, architect and implement complex cloud and Converged Infrastructure projects.

We can also train your people to adopt change effectively and be up to date with the latest technology.

Please watch the below Podcast and see what we can do for you.
For this Podcast we are focusing on the HP BladeSystem.



If you wish to know more information about the HP BladeSystem or how we can help with your requirement then please do not hesitate to contact us and we will be more than happy to help.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Solutions Team Spotlight & Video of the week : HP Integrated Lights-Out Advanced features

This weeks spotlight and Video of the week is on HP's Integrated Lights out Advanced features.

Firstly what is Integrated Light out (iLO)?
HP Integrated Lights-Out provides standard and advanced levels of lights-out, remote management functionality. Basic system board management functions, diagnostics and essential Lights-Out functionality are provided as standard features of the server and are referred to as Integrated Lights-Out Standard.

So what are these Advanced features?
Integrated Lights-Out Advanced offer sophisticated virtual administration features for full control of servers in dynamic data center and remote locations, please watch the following video which explains the features of Advanced iLO.



HP Integrated lights out is not only available on its own but it also comes bundled with HP Insight control environment which is a full management suite, for more information on Insight control environment please see this post

if you wish to know more information about iLO advanced or Insight control environment then please do not hesitate to contact us and we will be more than happy to help.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Release : Two new HP Servers Join the G7 Range

This week has seen the release of two new servers joining the G7 Range, the ML110 G7 entry tower server and the DL120 G7 entry rack server.

There are some improvements on the spec of both servers to their predecessors.

ML110 G6 vs. G7 Differences include..

• Processors used are now Xeon i3 (Dual core) and Xeon E3 (Quad core)
• PCI express slots are now all PCI-Express Gen 2
• New Redundant PSU options via an enablement kit.
• New Hot plug drive option (LFF and SFF)
• USB ports have been boosted from 8 to 9 (4 front, 4 rear and 1 internal)
• iLO has been upgraded from 100i to the new iLO3 (Dedicated LAN port is optional)

DL120 G6 vs. G7 Differences include..

• Processors used are now Xeon i3 (Dual core) and Xeon E3 (Quad core)
• New Redundant PSU options - more details to follow
• All models are either Cold plug or Hot Plug Hard drive Bays (Cold plug uses hot plug drives but without hot plug capability)
• iLO has been upgraded from 100i to the new iLO3 (Dedicated LAN port is optional)

There may be more updates on these specifications so please keep checking the blog.
If you have any more questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Release : HP New Small form factor Drive Size available

HP SFF Drive

HP have finally launched a couple of new 1TB SFF drives for use with their servers that take SFF hot plug drives (2.5")

• 605835-B21 - HP 1TB 6G SAS 7.2K rpm SFF (2.5-inch) Hot Plug Midline 1yr Warranty Hard Drive

• 625609-B21 - HP 1TB 3G SATA 7.2K rpm SFF (2.5-inch) Hot Plug Midline 1yr Warranty Hard Drive

This should help with configurations which in the past required having to use a different server entirely or moving to HP CTO.

If you need anymore details then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New HP Top Value Avalanche program

For April only HP are offering cashback to make these servers (see table) even more competitive than ever before!

Combine these with the ROK or AMD Cashback offers where applicable to create an even more compelling offer for your customer!

Part number	Description	HP offer	Cash back
470065-163	ML350 G6 Dual Processor Capable Intel Xeon 5504 Quad Core,	£ 899	£ 50
470065-384	DL385 G7 Dual Processor Capable, 1 x 6128 (2.0GHz) Eight-Core,	£ 1299	£ 75
605029-425	DL380 G7, Dual Processor Capable, Intel Xeon 5640 Quad Core	£ 1799	£ 100

But hurry these offers won’t be around for long!

Purchase any of the 3 qualifying Top Value Avalanche Servers between the 1st April and 29th April then complete the required claim form and HP will refund up to £100 depending on which server has been purchased.

Terms apply. Offer limited to five units per customer.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

April 2011 - HP Server and Storage offers.

In order for you to have your own copy of this months offers, We can now offer them in a easy downloadable PDF for you.

Please click the image above to open the PDF.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

REMINDER : HP Networking E2510G Series Promotion - Buy 2 get 3

E2510G (48 Port)

Take advantage now of the Buy 2, Get 3 on E2510G series switches.

J9279A HP E2510-24G Switch (click to open the specs)
J9280A HP E2510-48G Switch (click to open the specs)

This promotion will run until April 30th 2011

If you have any questions please contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP Networking Discount offer Extended until 14th April 2011

HP Networking 10% Public Sector Discount Extended !!

HP Networking have extended the double discount promotion on Public Sector orders until the 14th April 2011 (This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer)

Public Sector covers Education, NHS, Council, Government and Charities.You will need to provide the Organisation name and a Contact name when placing orders.

For more information please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP Networking E2610 Switch and £1 Gbic Offer

HP E2610 Switch

Sell any HP E2610 Switch and give customers this Gigabit SFP Transceiver for only £1 (Promotion Runs from 1st-31st April 2011)

Wired infrastructure solutions
The HP E2610-24 and E2610-48 Switches provide robust and flexible 10/100 edge connectivity. Both products offer four Gigabit uplinks.

• Security with network access and traffic control
• Enterprise management
• Easy to use
• Excellent quality and reliability
• Lifetime warranty

Convergence solutions
The HP E2610-24-PPoE , E2610-24-PoE and E2610-48-PoE Switches provide PoE (Power over Ethernet) capabilities. An ideal choice for deploying robust convergence solutions.

• Ideal for VoIP, Wireless, Video Streaming/Surveillance
• Flexible PoE deployment from 12 to 48 PoE ports
• Redundant power supply
• Robust edge capabilities
• Excellent quality and reliability
• Lifetime warranty

Switch Part numbers
HP E2610-24-PPoE Switch (J9086A)
HP E2610-24-PoE Switch (J9087A)
HP E2610-48-PoE Switch (J9089A)
HP E2610-24 Switch (J9085A)
HP E2610-48 Switch (J9088A)

HP X121 1G SFP LC SX Transceiver (J4858C).
Adds gigabit fibre connectivity to your customer’s network for seamless integration.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Westcoast "Race for the Gold" BladeSystem Matrix reseller incentive.

HP BladeSystem Matrix

Be the FIRST reseller to order your BladeSystem Matrix from Westcoast and win your GOLD voucher!

The voucher entitles you to one of the following prizes:

• West End show
• Casino night with hotel stay and dinner
• Week end break anywhere in the country
• Drive 4 of the world’s most exciting sports cars
• Spa or Golf break for 2
• Family of four theme park day
• Limo/VIP day

For more information on the HP BladeSystem Matrix please click "HP BladeSystem Matrix" in the Tag cloud (to your left) or follow this link

Promotion Runs until the 29th April 2011

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEW: HP UPS Comparison tool

HP have created a nice new comparison tool for comparing APC to HP UPS units.
Give it try out below or download a copy for yourself (Zip) (if you have trouble reading it)



For more information on HP's range of UPS units, their features please do not hesiate to contact us

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

What are the benefits of using HP Insight control environment?

HP Insight control Quickspecs (click)

Insight control environment is a suite of services that allow you to manage, deploy and optimize power in your HP infrastructure (HP ProLiant ML/DL 300,500 and 700 series servers and HP BladeSystem infrastructure).

Insight Control software uses an integrated installer to deploy and configure HP Systems Insight Manager (HP SIM) and essential infrastructure management software rapidly and consistently. These solutions deliver complete management for HP ProLiant and BladeSystem servers and infrastructure. HP Insight Control brings a single, consistent management environment for rapid deployment of the operating system and hardware configuration.

HP Insight Control also includes full capabilities to migrate complete servers (both physical and virtual) to new server (both virtual and physical), supporting conversion from physical to virtual and vice-versa and conversion between virtualization platforms from various vendors. In addition, Insight Control provides proactive health and performance monitoring, power management, performance analysis, lights-out remote management, and virtual machine management for HP ProLiant ML/DL 300,500 and 700 series servers and HP BladeSystem infrastructure.

Insight Control also extends the functionality of Microsoft® System Center and VMware vCenter Server™ by providing seamless integration of the unique ProLiant and BladeSystem manageability features into Microsoft System Center and VMware vCenter Server management consoles.

Insight Control includes several important functionalities:

HP Insight Control remote management, featuring iLO Advanced
This provides comprehensive lights-out remote management capabilities for ProLiant servers, including high-performance virtual KVM for routine and emergency remote administration, remote access to server power control and event logs, virtual media for simple deployment and update of remote servers, and single server power measurement and regulation.

HP Insight Control helps distributed IT teams effectively collaborate to solve complex IT problems. The shared console capability allows up to four team members to view and share control of a single virtual KVM session. In addition "console replay" captures and saves screen video to enable review of failure sequences and easily document complex configuration administrative tasks.

Key remote management features:

• Provides embedded hardware Graphical Remote Console capabilities that can turn a supported browser into a virtual desktop, giving the user full control over the display, keyboard, and mouse of the host server. The operating system-independent console supports graphic modes that display remote host server activities, such as shutdown and startup operations. It works with a standard browser and no additional software is required on the remote server or client system.

• The USB-based Virtual Media feature allows an IT administrator to boot the remote server using a standard 1.44-MB diskette on the client machine, a DVD/CD drive or USB flash drive on the client machine, or the image of a floppy diskette or DVD/CD from anywhere on the client's network. After the remote server has booted a USB-capable operating system (e.g., Windows® 2000, Windows 2003, or Red Hat Linux 7.2), the virtual device or ISO 9660 image is available as if it were a local USB device. The Virtual Media features save time and increase efficiency by eliminating the need to visit the remote server just to insert and use a diskette or DVD/CD. This feature allows administrators to carry out any of the following functions remotely from an applet user interface, command line or script.

• Integrates with enterprise-class directory services to provide secure, scalable, and cost effective user management. Directory services, such as Microsoft Active Directory and Novell eDirectory, can be used to authorize directory users with assigned user roles to Integrated Lights-Out (iLO) processors. With Active Directory, customers have the flexibility to integrate with or without a schema extension. An easy and reliable installation program is available to install a management console snap-in and extend customer's existing directory schema to enable directory support for the HP lights-out management products. A directory migration tool is available to automate setup for both methods of integration. Also supports the Active Directory nested groups feature.

•  Provides advanced user authentication with two-factor authentication using digital certificates embedded on smartcards or USB flash drives. Using this form of strong authentication, iLO access can be restricted only to IT individuals possessing a certificate bearing smartcard or flash drive and a PIN.

•  Integrates with Microsoft Terminal Services to provide a high-performance graphical remote console by automatically or manually switching to Microsoft Terminal Services when the operating system is fully loaded and available on the host system. When the operating system is not operational, continues to provide its secure, hardware-based Lights-Out console for end-to-end remote access to the host server. In addition, the Microsoft Terminal Services session is routed through the management network interface to improve production network security.

•  Provides enhanced initial HP BladeSystem configuration and setup using the familiar Lights-Out interface. An embedded wizard guides users through initial Lights-Out, blade server and operating system configuration and installation including integrated activation of Virtual Media using the appropriate media such as SmartStart and OS DVDs or ISO 9660 images. In addition, Insight Control remote management automatically renders an HP BladeSystem rack image for easy point and click navigation between blades and enclosures within a single rack.

Insight Control remote management, which incorporates iLO Advanced, supports the latest iLO 3 release for a select grouping of HP ProLiant server platforms. Users of HP iLO 3 (version 1.05) can enjoy the following enhancements:

• Support for the next generation of HP ProLiant servers
• Faster Remote Console incorporating the newest technologies
• 3x Faster Virtual Media for ProLiant ML/DL series servers
• Launch URL or scriptable Virtual Media from Remote Console
• Streamlined user interface using Web 2.0 technologies
• AES (in addition to RC4) encryption in hardware for improved performance

HP Insight Control power management
HP insight control power managment is an integrated power monitoring and management application that provides centralized monitoring and control of datacenter power consumption and thermal output. This software solution provides new energy instrumentation levers into HP Systems Insight Manager for greater Unified Infrastructure Management, and is compatible with any operating system residing on the managed server. Insight Control power management provides efficient and effective tools needed to increase the capacity of your datacenter by reducing power and cooling requirements of ProLiant servers to an amount that accurately reflects the workload of your server. Built upon ProLiant Power Regulator technology it provides performance when you need it, and cost savings when you don't.

Key power management features:

• Provides a central location where power and thermal data for tens, hundreds, or thousands of servers may be viewed and managed.

• Limiting the server(s) power consumption to an average level, power capping can be set to minimize overall power consumption and heat output.

• Data Center Power Control is a new feature within Insight Control Power Management that allows customers to reduce their energy costs and take control of their power and cooling during catastrophic events. Customers set pre-defined rules to handle power and cooling rules. These rules act selectively on systems based on attributes and relationships to gracefully shutdown the OS or change iLO power regulator state. In addition customers can take control over their energy usage and power down non-essential servers during peak hours.

• Integration with facilities management software allows customers to do their planning on actual power data instead of estimates. Information from facilities management software will be imported into Insight Control power management allowing us to provide an electrical inventory along with load data.

• Discovery of metered PDU's allowing Insight Control power management the ability to measure power consumption for a heterogeneous environment. Includes the capability to monitor leading non-HP power distribution units (PDUs).

• Dynamic Power Capping represents a significant advancement in power management. Unlike previous power capping technologies Dynamic Power Capping will safely limit power usage with no performance degradation and without risk to electrical infrastructure. For single rack servers, power caps applied via the iLO management processor will limit power usage to a specific Watt or BTU/hr level. For enclosures of blades, users will set an enclosure level power cap, and the Onboard Administrator will dynamically adjust individual server power caps based on their specific power requirements. By capping power usage at historical peak power usage instead of significantly higher face-plate, ROM burn, or power calculator default values, IT organizations can fit up to 36% more servers in their existing rack infrastructure.

• Intelligent Power Discovery enables visualization of datacenter thermals with the management of mixed environments, with automatic detection of wiring errors and automatic updates for electrical inventory. Discovery capabilities have been enhanced with 'outlet control', which enables the intelligent power distribution units (PDUs) to manage each outlet where a device is plugged in - for enhanced power monitoring with remote control from Insight Control.

• Each graph has an Analysis dashboard that summarizes key information for the selected server(s). The data displayed varies for each graph and includes total power consumed in kWh, the estimated costs of powering and cooling the selected server(s) and the estimated costs saved through the use of policy-management based on HP's Power Regulator technology.

• Insight Control power management supports taking action on the selected server(s). Insight Control can change the HP Power Regulator settings on a single server or on multiple servers all at once. These actions may be executed immediately or scheduled to occur at a future time or on a recurring basis. Action scheduling can be used to set time-based power policies on single servers as well as collections of servers.

Insight Control performance management
HP Insight Control detects, analyzes, and explains hardware bottlenecks on HP ProLiant servers. HP Insight Control provides the tools you need to receive proactive notification of building bottleneck conditions, and debug existing performance issues. The performance information is analyzed to determine if there is a building or existing performance bottleneck issue. You can interactively display this information, log the information to a database for later analysis or reporting, and set up proactive notification using the HP Systems Insight Manager notification mechanism.

Key performance management features:

• Monitors the hardware performance continuously, compares it with known performances capabilities of each component and determines, in real time, what components are experiencing performance issues.

• Creates events when the performance state of a server changes. Insight Control detects these changes early, displaying a warning before an actual bottleneck happens.

• Provides an interactive, online debugging tool that can be used in real time to understand and correct performance issues. The tool provides precise indications of what the issue is, why it is of concern, and what can be done about it. Features such as real-time performance graphing allow system administrators to decide whether an issue needs to be addressed immediately or corrective actions can wait.

• Can be configured to log server performance data. This data can later be extracted and replayed in offline analysis just as if the user was sitting in front of the server when the performance issue happened. When used in conjunction with the dynamic performance graphing and altering features, administrators can determine if an off-hours performance issue needs to be addressed immediately or corrective steps can be put off until normal business hours.

• Analyzes the configuration of server components and determines if the server configuration contains potentially problematic configurations. Potential issues such as PCI bus imbalance, SCSI drives operating at reduced speed, and inactive network ports are detected and reported.

• Supplies a summary report that shows the percentage of time the server was in a bottleneck state or near-bottleneck state and overall performance utilization for a system broken down by its subsystems combined with a complete inventory report of that server.

• Supports performance monitoring and analyses of select MSA shared storage devices. This functionality provides full drill-down capabilities from a server to attached shared storage devices, and from there "drill-up" to the attached servers.

Insight Control server deployment
HP Insight Control offers a complete deployment solution for HP servers. Insight Control automates the process of deploying and provisioning server software, enabling companies to quickly and easily adapt to changing business demands. Insight Control server deployment includes the ProLiant Integration Module (PIM) and Integrity Integration Module (IIM) which consist of software optimizations for HP servers, including the HP scripting toolkits, configuration jobs for industry-standard leading operating systems, sample unattended files, and HP server support packs that include software drivers, management agents, and important documentation. Deploying servers can be accomplished either through imaging or through scripting. Insight Control supports deploying Windows, Linux, VMware ESX and Microsoft Hyper-V systems.

Key server deployment features:

• Provides a fast, easy, drag-and-drop solution for deploying standard server configurations and software builds in an automated fashion from a remote console

• Simplifies automated server deployment allowing companies to rapidly respond to changing workloads

• Improves overall consistency of configurations across multiple servers

• Establishes virtual presence and control for server deployments and redeployments within the data center or at remote locations, eliminating the need for IT personnel to be physically present

• Reduces IT resource requirements during large-scale deployments

• Provides scripts developed, tested, and supported by HP to enable rapid deployment of HP servers

• The ProLiant Integration Module provides latest versions of the SmartStart Scripting Toolkit, HP optimized drivers and management agents pre-loaded in the deployment console

• HP supplied deployment events and scripts, using SmartStart technology, maximize productivity -by automating the process of server configuration and software deployment - driving world-class levels of IT efficiency and decreasing the Total Cost of Ownership

• Operating System integration is a snap with HP supplied configuration events for both Microsoft Windows and Linux further simplifying the initial OS deployment and driver integration steps all in an automated fashion

• Supports SAN Boot or SAN Attach deployment on ProLiant BL servers and select ProLiant DL servers.

HP BladeSystem deployment optimizations:

• Enables rapid serviceability with Rip-and-Replace features. Pre-failure alerts enable proactive replacement of blade servers for service. New blades automatically assume personality of previous server based on location in enclosure and rack.

• Blade servers are easy to identify by physical location in racks - blades are displayed with easy to understand icons of rack, enclosure, bay

• With Virtual Rack, Enclosure, Bay features, users can now assign an event to be executed the first time a blade is inserted into the bay. The user will have the ability to create a virtual enclosure and its associated virtual bays via a console interface and the ability to associate a single event with the bays of the enclosure when they are created.

Insight Control server migration
HP Insight Control makes it easy to upgrade or replace your existing server, or to implement virtualization. HP Insight Control enables you to replicate your well-functioning, but under-performing or over-provisioned server to a new physical or virtual server in an automated, accurate and affordable way.

Key server migration features:

• Perform Physical-to-ProLiant (P2P), Virtual-to-ProLiant (V2P), Physical-to-Virtual (P2V), or Virtual-to-Virtual (V2V) migrations from a single integrated user interface

• Supports Migrations from any x86/x64 server regardless of vendor to the latest HP ProLiant or BladeSystem server technologies

• Source can be any x86/x64 server with a supported OS or a supported VM-type

• Destination can be a supported HP ProLiant or BladeSystem server or a supported virtual machine

• Heterogeneous virtualization platform support: Ability to migrate between virtualization platforms; VMware ESX, Microsoft Hyper-V and Citrix XenServer

• Automates the migration of the OS, application and data from an existing physical server or virtual machine to a new ProLiant server or virtual machine. Manual steps required to do the migration are eliminated. Automatically install the latest PSP when migrating to a ProLiant server (P2ProLiant or V2ProLiant).

• The extremely intuitive user interface enables migration to be kicked off with no prior training required.

• The source server is always available just the way it was running before the migration since no additional drivers are installed on the source server. No modification to the source server ensures a consistent image between source and destination.

• Having no source device driver dependency enables the migration of any x86/x64 source server running a supported operating system.

• Match availability of drive space on the destination server by excluding drives and partitions and/or resizing NTFS partitions during the migration. The size of the NTFS partitions may be increased or decreased.

• Tried and tested with the correct destination device drivers for all supported destination servers.

• Support for migrations in a SAN environment when migrating to HP BladeSystem c-Class, including migrating servers from direct attach storage to boot from SAN.

Insight Control virtual machine management
The HP Insight Control significantly extends HP Systems Insight Manager (HP SIM) capabilities to manage virtual machines. HP Insight Control seamlessly merges hardware and heterogeneous virtualization management of VMware ESX, Microsoft Hyper-V, Citrix XenServer, and Xen (on RHEL & SLES environments) virtual machines

Insight Control enables you to get the most out of a unified physical and virtual server infrastructure. Insight Control offers the only-out-of-the-box solution that can receive a predictive failure alert and automatically evacuate all VMs from a VMware ESX host server by initiating VMware DRS.

Key virtual machine management features:

• Provides associations between virtual machines and physical host and integration into a single console and enables all tasks to be run from the Insight Control console, leveraging existing discovery, identification and notification processes.

• Provides control functions for virtual machines in VMware ESX, Microsoft Hyper-V, Citrix XenServer and Xen on RHEL & SLES from a central console that allows users to manage virtual machines in a consistent manner irrespective of virtualization layer.

• Provides start, stop, pause, reset, move, copy, backup, create template and restore functions for VMs remotely from the Insight Control console.

• Flexible move capabilities allow multiple usage scenarios. In high-availability situations that do not allow service interruptions, Live Move (initiate VMware vMotion technology from Insight Control - requires VMware vCenter) can be used (for VMware ESX hosts only). Where flexibility is required to execute fast moves between dissimilar host hardware, SAN-based fast move can be enabled (VMware ESX hosts only).

• In high-availability situations, quick move capabilities can be used for HP integrated Citrix XenServer 5.0 or above (resource pool environment only) and Microsoft Hyper-V (MSCS clusters only).

• Where the VM Host is not connected to a SAN, a file-copy move can be used.

• Enable Failed Host Recovery situations by assigning alternate hosts to VMs. If host fails, quickly restart VM on new host.

• Make informed decisions on workload optimization with "at a glance" single view of virtual machine and associated host server performance. Set usage thresholds for CPU, memory, and disk usage and proactively receive alerts in SIM when thresholds are exceeded and take corrective action.

• Automatically respond to predictive hardware failures on VMware ESX host servers by relocating VMs before a server fails, reducing downtime.

• Launch VMware vCenter or Microsoft System Centre Virtual Machine Manager from Insight Control to perform tasks as needed. View VMware ESX host cluster and resource pool properties from VMware vCenter in the Insight Control console.

• Collect events from VMware ESX and VMware vCenter to use HP Insight Control as your central event consolidation and alerting tool.

• Enables the safe and orderly shutdown of VMware ESX hosts when the VMware's DPM has freed up a VMware ESX host to shut down for power saving purposes.

For more information on HP insight control, its features and what it can do for you please do not hesiate to contact us

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team