Notice : HP Value Channel consolidation service Changes (CTO Builds)

With the aim for HP to further improve end-to-end efficiency, HP have been looking at various alternatives of how to continue with the consolidation service offering for CTO Solutions.

Background information:
HP introduced a consolidation service for ESS value orders a few years ago. This service for channel partners offered consolidation of boxes for complete shipment of the order to the HP distributor or reseller. With more of HP’s ESS business going through the value supply chain, this consolidation work has increased substantially and at the same time duplicated much of the work. Fueled by increasing demand for IT infrastructure worldwide, supply chain capacity maximization has elevated to the highest priority in order to serve our channel partners and customers best

So what are these changes?
After consultation with many partners, HP have come to the conclusion that they are going to stop this service.

HP will however offer an intermediary solution of these consolidation services in HP premises at a fixed cost. This service will get an HP product number and can be built into the overall configuration (CTO builds).

HP channel partners can choose to order this service from HP, or from an HP distributor. Integration services done in HP’s factories are not impacted by this decision.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Release !! Data Protector Express 5

New to Data Protector Express 5.0 is a simplified, licensing scheme based on the number of servers to be protected. Each server license includes all the features of Data Protector Express.

Protection is delivered for file servers, application servers and Windows XP, Vista and 7 machines. Data Protector Express makes backup to disk and tape very easy and also supports backup to CD/DVD media. Powerful features such as D2Any2Any backup, Bare Metal Disaster Recovery and self-tuning parallel data streams minimize backup and recovery times without compromising ease of use.

If you need more information please do not hesiate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : HP P4000 VSA Software now supports Hyper-V

There will be no change in the VSA part number as this will work with both VMware and Hyper-V
HP StorageWorks P4000 Virtual SAN Appliance Software LTU - TA688AA

If you wish to try the software then please go to www.hp.com/go/tryvsa

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Release !! HP P2000 G3 - iSCSI SAN (AW596A & AW597A)

HP have released the new P2000 G3 iSCSI SAN which now completes the new P2000 range.

This new unit brings to you the very latest in high-performance host connection usually found only in higher priced arrays. The P2000 G3 iSCSI SAN has the same features as the other P2000 units. They use single or dual controllers, have redundant PSU and Fans, the capability to do remote snapshots and snap replication.

The two in the range models are..
AW596A - P2000 G3 10GbE iSCSI Dual Controller LFF Array System
AW597A - P2000 G3 10GbE iSCSI Dual Controller SFF Array System

If you need more information please do not hesiate to contact us.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

New Release !! HP StorageWorks 1/8 G2 LTO-5 Ultrium 3000 Fibre Channel Tape Autoloader (BL541A)

HP have finally released an Autoloader with Fibre channel connectivity !! Perfect for entry level SAN environments etc. This new unit has all the usual 1/8 Autoloader features but boasts an LTO 5 drive which means up to a max capacity of 3TB per tape (2:1 compression) and 1.6TB uncompressed.

As per usual with HP 1/8 Autoloaders if you want to install them into a rack then you still have to purchase the rack kit (AH166A).

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

NEWS : Brand new Westcoast Servers website is now live

From this new site you can access iQuote, download marketing materials, and browse the latest promotions from HP. There are also new sections like the Storage one, and the G7 page

The new url is www.westcoast.co.uk/servers so please update your bookmarks.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Reminder - QLogic HP Channel Partner Promotion

Earn Amazon vouchers for selling Qlogic & HP Virtual Connect
Here is a reminder of the Qlogic promo that runs until October 31st, 2010
Just in time for those shopping trips for the end of the year :-)

Here are the Qualifying products..

* Only applicable upon reported sale of 1 pair (2 units) of SN6000

Its Really Easy - You dont even have to register to participate! Just Claim your prizes!
Go to www.qlogic-hprewards.com then enter the relevent information.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

HP BL460 & 465 G7's released! and now with HP's FlexFabric technology

Apart from the usual refinements made to the G7 range (ILO3) HP has now added their new FlexFabric technology on the BL460 & 465 G7.

First of all, if you are not too sure on what HP's Flex technology is, here is a very basic overview. On the BL460 G6 servers for example the on board NIC card is dual port 10GbE Ethernet card, but it has HP’s "Flex" technology incorportated. If this is used in conjunction with a Flex 10 interconnect module in the chassis, the 10GbE connection can be split up into smaller 1GbE Ethernet connections which is very useful for Virtualisation environments.

So what is this “FlexFabric” technology i hear you ask? Well in a nutshell it is a Flex 10GbE network card as described above but with added fibre channel over Ethernet for connectivity to a fibre channel SAN.

So what does this mean for you? Well using the FlexFabric chassis interconnects and NIC cards means you can cut down on the number of interconnects and additional mezzanine cards needed in a HP server blade chassis and blade servers. You see all of Ethernet and SAN connections are handled by the on-board card and therefore will come from just the one interconnect (or two depending if your using the C7000) thus lowering complexity, wasted ports, power and space inside the blades.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Start your Microsoft Journey with Westcoast and win your own Adventure !!

Today is the launch of our Microsoft Snow Adventure* !!
6 lucky resellers will win a pair of tickets on a snow adventure of a life time!! Each reseller have been set a target (so if you dont know what yours is please contact your Westcoast account manager)

For every 20% of your target you achive you will receive 1 point.
For every 20% over your target you achive you will receive 2 points. You can earn additional points for selling Open licensing, attending one of our events, sitting your MLSS exam, using the Microsoft Gym, and adding yourselves to PinPoint.

Each month there are great prizes you can win from hot air ballooning to Euro Star vouchers. At the end of the incentive all points are swapped for tickets and 6 resellers will be going on the trip to Switzerland. The promotion runs until the 19th of December and the draw will be in January and the trip at the end of February.

You have to log on to the website each month, if you haven’t logged on then you will not get entered, The website you need to go to is www.westcoast.co.uk/snowadventure (Please click)

For more terms and conditions as well as the username and password for the above site please contact your account manager at Westcoast.
*for UK and Irish resellers only,

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Blog Update : We now have a new look

We have updated the look of our blog to make it a little easier on the eyes.
We will be adding some new "explained" sections soon so keep an eye out.

In the meantime we hope you like the look of the Blog.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Notice : Microsoft OCS changes to Microsoft Lync™

Microsoft OCS is being rebranded with the name Lync Server 2010!

Please see the conversion table below and an outline of the features in Microsoft Lync 2010

Current Version	New Version
Business/Family (formerly Microsoft® Communications)	Microsoft® Lync™
The server (formerly Microsoft® Office Communications Server 2007)	Microsoft® Lync™ Server 2010
The Online Service (formerly Microsoft® Communications Online)	Microsoft® Lync™ Online
The client (formerly Microsoft® Communicator 2007	Microsoft® Lync™ 2010
The reach client (formerly Microsoft® Communicator Web App)	Microsoft® Lync™ Web App

New Connected Experience

• Find and communicate with the right person, naturally. With native Active Directory® integration, Lync Server 2010 helps users find the right person to connect with, view their presence, and then communicate with them in the most effective way—via voice, video, or sharing an application or PowerPoint. If desired, users can initiate these connections directly from the new Contact Card. With Skill Search powered by SharePoint®, users are also able to search for others based on skills, expertise, and group information.

• Stay connected from virtually anywhere, with just a standard Internet connection.* Microsoft Lync™ 2010 offers the same rich functionality and security features outside the firewall without requiring a Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection and enables mobile and Web access across leading browsers and platforms.

• Build social connections and stay up-to-date on colleagues’ activities. Lync 2010 encourages closer social connections with a new Activity Feed that shows updates from contacts when they change status note, picture, title or office location.

Integration with Microsoft Office

• Communicate with context from Microsoft Office applications. Lync Server 2010 works with Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SharePoint Server and Microsoft Office applications for a richer collaborative experience with consistent presence, click-to-call options, and a new Contact Card.

• Office Backstage™ integration. The new Office Backstage view integrates various communication options so users can share documents and presentations via instant messaging (IM), share the application itself or click-to-call directly from the application.

Converged Communications

• Enhanced virtual meetings for improved productivity. Users can schedule a meeting from Microsoft Outlook® and join through Lync 2010 via the PC, phone or Web interface. Lync Server 2010 provides a meeting user interface with integrated audio and video that enables participants to share presentations, annotate slides, superimpose text and use visual pointers for more effective discussions. Additionally, users have the options to create ad hoc meetings, for example, moving from an IM conversation to a Live Meeting directly from the Lync interface..

• Complete set of enterprise-grade voice features. Lync Server 2010 delivers a standalone voice offering to enhance or replace traditional PBX systems and extends these capabilities outside the office via Internet access without requiring a VPN connection. This includes common calling features such as answer, forward, transfer, hold, divert, release, and park, along with Enhanced 9-1-1 calling* for North America, and support for legacy devices and a broader range of IP and USB user devices from partners. The solution is designed to support high availability through Call Admission Control, branch office survivability* and extended options for data resiliency.

Interoperable and Extensible

• Connect across networks. Lync Server 2010 supports federation with public IM networks such as Windows Live™, AOL, Yahoo! and, through the XMPP Gateway, Google Talk, allowing workers to use their corporate identities to connect to customers and partners. Lync Server 2010 supports audio and video calls with users on Windows Live Messenger.

• Utilize existing A/V infrastructure. Conferencing interoperability enables organizations to use existing infrastructure including room systems and high-end conferencing solutions.

• Integrate with existing IP PBX systems. Lync Server 2010 works with almost any PBX system either through Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) or qualified gateways and integrates with qualified third-party SIP Trunking Service Providers.1

• Embed communications in business processes. New and improved client-side APIs allow developers to embed Lync functionality into Microsoft Windows® and Microsoft Silverlight®-based applications with supported, ready-to-use code snippets. Enhanced server-side APIs make it easy to instantiate and deliver alerts via IM or phone, find experts, enable web chat and provide automated self-service using query-response bots and IVR.

Simpler Deployment

• Easily deploy systems of any scale, and manage them with ease. Lync Server 2010 can provide presence, IM and conferencing for organisations of literally any size, with up to 10,000 users per server, 100,000 users per pool and an unlimited number of pools. Automated tools not only simplify capacity planning and topology design, but also automatically push configuration information and changes to all servers in the network, thus eliminating manual work and the associated chance for errors. The new Lync Server Control Panel consolidates scenario-driven tasks in a single interface, while PowerShell support allows administrators to automate repetitive tasks using a familiar tool. Lync Server 2010 relies on Active Directory, eliminating the need for separate user and policy databases and uses Role Based Access Control (RBAC) to allow the assignment of appropriate management roles and scopes to different administrators

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team

Product News - HP 146GB 15k LFF (384854-B21) is now end of life.

The Current backorders we have with HP will still be honoured, but officially as of now these drives are EOL.

There is going to be no direct replacement for these, so the new drive to use will be the 300GB 15k LFF drive part number 516814-B21.

Regards

Technical ISS Solutions Team