Avocent First to Combine Management of Virtualized and Physical Assets in the Data Center

Business Wire, Sept 5, 2007

DSView([R]) 3 Software is First to Provide a Single Platform for Unified IT Management

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- Avocent([R]) Corporation (Nasdaq: AVCT) today introduced a major upgrade to its award-winning flagship DSView 3 management software that enables IT managers to seamlessly access and control virtualized environments in the same way they access and control their physical IT environments. Avocent DSView 3 software is the first management platform to enable combined access and control of both virtual and physical servers - in the same "pane of glass" - reducing the cost and complexity of managing data centers.

"Virtualization offers significant economic benefits to the enterprise, and we're pleased to add this powerful new capability that our data center customers demand," said Dave Perry, executive vice president and general manager. "This emerging mix of virtual and physical servers is adding a new layer of complexity to IT management and it's becoming a huge management issue for our customers. Avocent's enhanced software lessens that complexity because it provides a single platform for combined access and control of both physical and virtual servers thereby eliminating the need for a separate set of tools for managing the virtual world." The software will be demonstrated publicly for the first time at the VMworld event in San Francisco September 11-13.

In addition to combining the management of physical and virtual servers under one roof, DSView 3 software also supports VMware by creating a unified view of the entire virtual infrastructure within an enterprise with multiple VirtualCenters - something only DSView 3 software can do. Typically, VirtualCenters are viewed separately and require IT managers to access them on an individual basis for management. DSView 3 software can consolidate, display and enable access to all virtual machines across multiple VirtualCenters. Additionally, DSView 3 software can consolidate visibility across multiple ESX Servers or a combination of VirtualCenters and ESX Servers, allowing IT managers a combined view across an entire infrastructure to see all physical and virtual servers and machines on a single screen, saving time and simplifying management.

"This federated view approach to server management is significant because virtual environments are always in a state of change. Data center managers will be able to view and to track virtual machines as easily as they can create, remove and move them between host servers, and the end user never has to know which server is being accessed or its location," said Lloyd Cohen, Director Worldwide Market Analysis of IDC. "The Avocent solution complements VMware's offerings, and its integrated visualization of all the virtual objects will make virtualization technologies easier to adopt on an enterprise-wide basis."

Along with its benefits, virtualization also introduces new levels of complexity for IT security teams associated with administering access rights, maintaining those rights as virtual servers are moved in data centers, managing virtual servers across different virtual centers, and protecting multiple virtual servers from the failure of any single physical component. To address these issues, DSView 3 software authenticates users and audits access with a single record of who is doing what and why. The software is able to collect events and alerts from both types of servers in a single interface for easier access, control and rights management for improved adherence to federal regulations and company security policies.

"While virtualization technology is a major contributor to increased data center scalability, virtual sprawl -- the excessive proliferation of virtual machines -- is becoming a significant management issue for enterprises. These operational challenges can be readily managed with DSView 3 software," said Chantal Ingerson, product manager for DSView 3 software. "This solves potential IT fragmentation, and eliminates inefficiency associated with separately managing physical and virtual environments."

Specific functionality in this software update includes:

* Integration and discovery between DSView 3 software and VMware Virtualization Infrastructure

* Synchronization of changes

* The inclusion of events and alarms from the VMware virtualization infrastructure

* Ability to view and access multiple Virtual Centers from a single console

The updated DSView 3 software also has expanded support for blades systems to include IBM, generic blade systems, and additional HP system models, adding to the HP and Dell blades systems models supported since last year. With DSView 3 software, IT managers can configure and display blade systems, including blade systems running virtual machines, as well as access the blades directly.

DSView 3 software with virtualization and blades support will be available on Tuesday, September 11. This new support will be sold as an add-on module for DSView 3 software and will be available in packs based on the number of servers to be managed. For additional information, please visit www.avocent.com.