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When budgeting for equipment to run enterprise networks, buying equipment that requires the least amount of upfront capital may sound like cheapest in the long run, but what about the cost of repairs and tech support?
Settling for a “good enough” network means your customers get a “good enough” warranty to go with it. Next-generation networks offer more support staff, diagnostic tools to keep networks up and running, as well as more robust warranties.
In our continuing coverage of the Seven Myths of the Good-Enough Network, we delve into myth number five: The Basic Warranty Myth.
Most enterprise networking equipment includes limited support and maintenance. With vendors like HP, according to Michael Rau (myth dispeller and Vice President, CTO for the Borderless Network Architecture at Cisco), a warranty service call is limited to answering only the most basic questions. A support rep will typically ask, “Have you tried rebooting your switch?” If that’s not the issue, a replacement is sent with no effort made to troubleshoot the problem. If you want more in-depth support you have to purchase the extended support contract – which is not free.
Here are five things customers should consider when purchasing network equipment.Read More »
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One of the key takeaways I heard consistently at the recent Citrix Synergy conference was the fact that you shouldn’t just do IT for IT’s sake: Your top consideration should be the end user experience. That’s one of the key lessons Seattle Children’s Hospital learned when it recently deployed Cisco’s Unified Computing System (UCS) blade to support a 3000-plus deployment of virtual desktops and zero clients. This deployment and Virtualization Experience Infrastructure (VXI) as a whole was the topic of a panel discussion at the conference.
The panelists included Aaron Cockerill, Senior Director of Product Management at Citrix; Doug Dooley, Director of Product Management for Desktop Virtualization at Cisco; Jake Hughes, the Chief Technical Architect at Seattle Children’s Hospital; and Harry Labana, VP and CTO of AppSense. Aaron and Doug offered up their thoughts on the Cisco-Citrix partnership, and how Cisco is leading virtualization charge with its end-to-end solution. Harry provided insights around desktop virtualization and AppSense’s role in creating flexibility and a rich user experience. Jake, as a customer who has implemented virtual solution, discussed the nuts of bolts of implementation, and talked about key points to take into consideration when contemplating a deployment.
I chatted with the panelists after the session, and they each offered up their top takeaways from the discussion.
Want to learn more about the details of the panel discussion? Read on for tips and lessons learned around implementing a virtual desktop solution.Read More »
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This week in Partner Update, Andrew and I cover a variety of topics, from ways to help partners differentiate to huge WebEx deals to B2B social media tips. And a lot more.
This time around, we also test out QR codes, a new way for you to get more information about the topics we cover. QR, short for quick response, is a barcode that you’ll see along with the URLs in our videos. To take advantage of the codes, simply download a QR code reader for your mobile phone (I used i-nigma for the iPhone).
When you see the QR code box appear on the bottom-right side of the video, simply open the app and snap the image using your reader. The reader will then automatically take you to a specified site or resource. We hope you like this new feature. Let us know what you think.
Now, let’s get to some news…
And, if you’re not a fan of QR codes, no problem. Keep reading for a text summary with links and timestamps so you can follow along with what we covered in this newscast. Read More »
Do you recall what it was like before email? Nah, me neither. If you were around for the pre-email/pre-personal computer era, you may recall sending someone a letter written using a pen and paper. The only way the letter would arrive safely was (and still is) to affix a stamp to it. Feels like ancient history now when it’s possible to email a message around the globe within a matter of moments.
Suffice it to say, technology has advanced the method and speed at which we communicate. But innovation hasn’t happened in a vacuum; the standards governing the technology industry have evolved, too. Just imagine what your digital life would be like if we didn’t create standards. Would you want to put postage stamps on your email messages?
Of course, the question is, how do you balance innovation with standards? Without standards, you may miss out on the brilliant innovations that have come before (security and a framework that keeps things running smoothly, to name a couple). But rely too heavily on standards and you miss out on future innovation.
In our continuing coverage of the Seven Myths Around the Good-Enough Network on Silicon Angle, we explore myth number four--The Standards Myth.
Last week at Citrix Synergy in San Francisco, I got the chance to see FlexPod in action. Partner MTM Technologies hosted sessions nearby at the W Hotel, showcasing their Virtual Desktop Alliance solution, which is based on Cisco Validated Design for Citrix XenDesktop, Cisco UCS and NetApp storage. They even offered attendees the opportunity to win a Mini Cooper! (Unfortunately, I wasn’t eligible to win, so I’m still stuck driving my old VW).
During the demonstration, MTM showed how businesses can move from device-centric traditional desktops to user-centric virtual desktops. Application Delivery Architect Rich Brumpton of MTM explained that a lab in Boston hosted the UCS and NetApp storage, and was outfitted with 10GB Ethernet. That was then connected over VPN to their setup at the hotel.
Rich walked through the virtual desktop solution, showing how customers could use the technology to collaborate, move between desktops yet retain their individual user experience, and even access data remotely. After the demo, I chatted with Rich about the value that selling such a solution brings MTM, and how Cisco partners can benefit, as well.
Here are a few more benefits a virtual desktop solution can offer to your customers.
If what I saw at the Citrix Synergy conference in San Francisco this week is any indication of what will be coming soon, I’d better invest in a personal hairstylist.
With video becoming more and more prevalent on the network, whether it be mobile phones, Cisco Cius and other tablets, IP phones, or TelePresence – there isn’t a question of whether or not video is here to stay. But one question remains: Is your network ready? (And maybe one more question: how does my hair look?)
If your customers haven’t prepared their networks yet, here’s something that might give them the extra boost that they need: Cisco’s Visual Networking Index (VNI) Forecasted that videos will account for 90% of network traffic by 2013.
By selling Cisco Virtualization Experience Infrastructure (VXI), you’ll help customers prepare for that change. We visited the Cisco booth at the conference and caught up with Cisco’s Operations Director Jeff Platon. He gave us a full tour of the end-to-end VXI system with products that utilize high-definition video.
Watch the full tour:
What else did we see at Citrix Synergy? Read More »
When the odds are against you, there are two roads you can take:
1. Buy into the negativity and become a self-fulfilling prophecy or
2. Persevere to rise above the adversity and exceed everyone’s expectations.
When Cisco joined the server party several years ago and set out to design a new system that addressed our customer’s power, management, and server administration costs challenges, the cynics said, “It couldn’t be done.”
Then, when Cisco’s Unified Computing System (UCS), a new system that blended compute, network, storage access and virtualization into a single unit, was announced two years ago, skeptics predicted that it would never succeed.
Now, less than two years after UCS first shipped in July 2009, Cisco holds the third position in global market share in x86 blade server factory revenue as of Q1 CY11, according to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Server Tracker, May 2011. Furthermore, businesses worldwide shifted over 10% of the x86 blade market to UCS, and in the U.S. nearly 20%, as mentioned in Cisco’s Vice President of Server Access and Virtualization Business Unit Soni Jiandani’s blog post.
This information comes on the heels of last week’s exciting announcement, Cisco UCS B250 M2 Blade Server won the “Best of Show” award in the Hardware and Storage category at Microsoft TechEd 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia.
I’ll let you guess which road Cisco took to beat the odds.
We couldn’t have done it…without our partners! Read More »
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When Doncaster & Bassetlaw Hospitals in the U.K. deployed Cisco TelePresence so that a stroke specialist could examine a patient at another location, it meant the patient stood a better chance of survival.
“In medicine, saving time ultimately saves lives,” said Andrew Clarke, IT manager at the hospitals.
Two million of the brain’s three billion cells die each minute a stroke is untreated, so the 15 to 60 minutes the TelePresence system saves means patients stand a better chance of recovering. And by using high-resolution video, a doctor can see nuances that wouldn’t be visible on a conventional video conferencing system.
Video is playing an ever-increasing role on our networks, from TelePresence, to You Tube, to video conference calls. Your average “good enough” network just doesn’t have the capacity to run clear, smooth high-definition video and offer the quality of service, or QOS, we need to be productive (and even save lives).
Over on Silicon Angle this week, Mike Rau continues his blog series debunking the seven myths of the good-enough network--this week he addresses the “Basic Quality of Service (QOS)” myth.
With video projected to quadruple IP traffic by 2014 to 767 exabytes, according the Cisco Visual Networking Index Forecast, this may be why so many IT managers are gearing up for additional traffic.
This week the Channels blog will be bringing you coverage of Citrix Synergy in San Francisco. This event demonstrates how virtualization, networking, and cloud technologies work together. Cisco and Citrix have collaborated to ease the implementation of desktop virtualization by making virtual desktops simpler, more cost effective, and more robust for mainstream enterprise adoption by our mutual customers.
The event looks to be filled with interesting sessions—breakouts, keynotes, and hands-on demonstrations. This morning, we sat in on a channel breakout session where we heard about accelerating Citrix XenDesktop deployments using the combined desktop virtualization solutions from Cisco, Citrix, and NetApp.
We’re also happy to pass along the news that Cisco won an award!
In our previous installment of Social Media Spotlight, we took a look at how blogs can help tell your company’s story and draw in new customers. Well, now it’s time to take a deeper dive into how to craft a blog post.
Alex Krasne and I have been writing and blogging for quite a while now (about 30 years, combined, to be exact), so we know a thing or two about how to shape ideas in a way that engages readers and generates a conversation. Here are our eight tips on how to write a solid blog entry.
Read on to find out the details on our eight tips, as well as links to several partner blogs: Read More »
Remember the old days when work meant sitting at your desk, typing away at your desktop computer, at the office? There was no such thing as a smart phone or even a laptop or a tweet – you just sat at your desk and waited for the network, which was probably running at 56k dial-up speeds or slower. (Now I probably sound like my father who told me he had to walk uphill to school in the snow every day.)
These days, we don’t need to be tied to a desk, but we also expect much more of our networks: they need to be fast, secure, run the applications we need, and allow employees to work anywhere, anytime, and on any device.
So how to design an enterprise network with enough flexibility and security to address users’ needs without CIOs and IT managers having coronaries in the process? And how can enterprise networks live harmoniously (and securely) with our many devices, from smart phones to iPads to laptops?
As we continue the Seven Myths of the Good-Enough Network series over on Silicon Angle, Cisco’s Mike Rau--Vice President, CTO for the Borderless Network Architecture--tackles those questions and more as he dispels the second myth: bolt-on security.
What exactly is bolt-on security anyway?Read More »
What’s a FlexPod—is it a highly flexible case for your favorite MP3 player? A cool new modern chair? No, FlexPod is a design architecture combining networking, computing and storage infrastructure that’s now available through 120 channel partners worldwide!
Yes, that’s right—since its launch in November of last year, FlexPod has seen tremendous growth in the marketplace, with 120 partners worldwide now offering this flexible, scalable shared infrastructure that helps customers lower deployment risk, increase data center efficiencies, and create a flexible IT environment to build a private cloud. FlexPod, which is built on the Cisco UCS server platform, Cisco Nexus switches, and NetApp unified storage, has also been adopted by more than 150 customers.
Furthermore, to make it even easier to purchase and deploy a FlexPod, Avnet Technology Solutions today announced it is pre-bundling the FlexPod, based on the Cisco and NetApp reference design architecture guides, for our resellers partners in the U.S. and Canada. Avnet will now provide a single source through its newly introduced FlexPod Services, offering partners all the products, assembly, testing, technical expertise, and support they need to successfully bring FlexPod to market.
Do your customers use SAP applications? Then you’ll also be interested in the last piece of today’s FlexPod news.
In a competitive market, differentiation makes all the difference. Whether you’re selling sneakers or servers, being able to offer the widest selection of products to meet a broad set of needs is critical in helping to drive growth and grow profits.
So today’s announcements of three new reference configurations focused on Microsoft applications and technologies will likely please you—now our partners will have even more opportunities to sell a broader set of solutions, giving customers more choice.
Today, along with our storage partners, Cisco is greatly expanding our channel partners’ ability to offer customers Microsoft-based private cloud, data warehouse, or OLTP configurations based on shipping Cisco UCS server and Nexus networking products. Three standalone, discrete reference architectures are now available: A Cisco-developed SQL Server 2008 R2 Data Warehouse solution; a Cisco-developed SQL Server 2008 R2 Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) offer; and Cisco as the server partner with NetApp as they bring to market their NetApp for Private Cloud offer as part of Microsoft’s Hyper-V Private Cloud program.
Many believe that number 13 equals bad luck. And on Friday the 13thsome may take extra precautions to ensure nothing bad happens. There are literally hundreds of myths out there around things that could bring bad luck: a black cat crossing your path, walking under ladders, and breaking mirrors, to name a few.
One thing that’s guaranteed to bring good luck to all, however, is watching the latest Partner Update newscast. What could be more lucky than getting all of the latest Cisco partner news in less than five minutes?
It’s been a busy week! In this newscast, we share ways that Cisco is simplifying and making easier to do business with us, we cover the top networking myths, new IT cloud and print solutions, give you a recap of our B2B lead generation and marketing webcast with tips on turning leads into customers, a way to turn your customers’ old networking equipment into money for you, showcase B2B blogging tips, and highlight our Tweet of the Week.
Keep reading for highlights and links to everything we covered in this week’s Partner Update along with timestamps so you can easily jump to each item. Read More »
I’ll admit I was surprised to hear so many people check their phones even before having a morning cup of coffee, mostly because I didn’t realize other people did that, too!
This phenomena probably won’t be as surprising in a few years when there will be one mobile device for every person on Earth, according to the Connected World Report, 2010.
While these stats may sound like drivel, they actually underscore the importance that a reliable network plays (and will play) for an increasingly mobile workforce — not just for those people checking Facebook under the covers.
Let’s face it: a network built on “good enough” equipment isn’t going to deliver the same experience as one using next-generation equipment designed for the loads of today’s demanding applications—including voice, video, and data.
Curious about the importance of the network as it relates to mobile? Head over to Silicon Angle where Mike Rau (Vice President, CTO for the Borderless Network Architecture at Cisco) blogged on myth number one --The Single-Purpose Network Myth.
In the post, Mike explains that a good enough network is not designed to handle the needs of an increasingly mobile population, but is built to serve the single purpose of connecting users to resources in silos of connectivity. As mobility demands on the enterprise increase, he indicates that it becomes critical that an end user is consistently managed as they access the network, whether over a wired, wireless, or VPN connection.
