VMworld 2018 Recap
VMware US 2018 is officially wrapped! So what’s new and upcoming for VMware? With all the announcements, this list could get pretty exhaustive, so I’m going to hit on the highlights. If you missed VMworld, you can watch the on-demand sessions here.
VMworld US 2018 Announcements
vSphere 6.7 U1 and VSAN 6.7 U1
Coming later in 2018, Update 1 of vSphere and VSAN 6.7 will be released. With Update 1, comes some exciting new features and functionality.
- vSphere Client Updates
- To everyone’s delight, the HTML 5 client will now be fully functional in U1. That means no more switching between the HTML 5 and flash client to perform different tasks. Along with full functionality, improvements have made to existing processes for greater ease of use and speed. It’s worth noting that you can continue using the flash client in 6.7 U1.
- vCenter Converge Tool
- Another highly anticipated feature being released is the vCenter Converge Tool. This gives customers the ability to consolidate their external PSC architecture into an embedded PSC architecture.
- VSAN and HCI Improvements
- vSphere 6.7 U1 and VSAN 6.7 U1 bring improvements to VSAN and your HCI. Starting at the top, a new Cluster Quickstart workflow will be implemented for easier deployment of your HCI. The workflow provides a single wizard to manage and configure hosts and clusters while providing validation and best practice recommendations.
Another exciting feature in VSAN 6.7 U1 is the ability to utilize UNMAP/TRIM. This will allow for greater storage efficiency in VSAN environments by automatically reclaiming unused space. It was also announced that VSAN patching can now be performed through vSphere Update Manager.
- vSphere 6.7 U1 and VSAN 6.7 U1 bring improvements to VSAN and your HCI. Starting at the top, a new Cluster Quickstart workflow will be implemented for easier deployment of your HCI. The workflow provides a single wizard to manage and configure hosts and clusters while providing validation and best practice recommendations.
- Other notable 6.7 U1 improvements include; enhanced Content Libraries, enhanced vMotion capability for vGPU VMs, and support for Intel FPGA
vSphere Platinum
Along with vSphere 6.7, comes the release of vSphere Platinum. Platinum is a new tier of vSphere for organizations looking to strengthen their security posture. vSphere Platinum combines vSphere Enterprise Plus and AppDefense. If you are unfamiliar with AppDefense, it is a SAAS-based security product that uses machine learning to establish an intended state for your application(s) and alert or remediate anything that deviates from that state. Unlike an anti-virus solution needing updated virus definitions, AppDefense detects abnormal behaviors to uncover unknown threats.
Project Dimension
Edge computing was also a popular discussion at VMworld. But, what is “the Edge”? The Edge refers to areas outside of enterprise data centers or cloud locations; Think retail stores, oil rigs, remote offices, etc. In these locations, it is quicker and more efficient to processes data on-site where the data is collected as opposed to shooting it across the wire. However, it can get expensive and time-consuming to manage equipment in these locations. Enter VMware’s Project Dimension. Project Dimension aims to simplify the Edge by utilizing VMware’s Cloud service to deliver SDDC infrastructure and hardware as-a-service to on-premises locales. They do this by supplying VMware Cloud Foundation in a hyper-converged appliance to the on-prem location. This appliance is controlled by a Hybrid Cloud Control Plane through the VMware cloud. Since this is all provided as a service, VMware installs the appliance in addition to monitoring and managing your SDDC. This management includes issue detection and response as well as maintenance tasks like patching and updating; ultimately, enabling companies to focus more on the business, not the infrastructure.
Project Concord
VMworld 2018 also saw the announcement of VMware’s block-chain project, Concord. Project Concord is an open source decentralized infrastructure which utilizes Byzantine fault-tolerant consensus protocols. More on Project Concord can be found here as well as source code located on GitHub.
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