Unless you are careful upfront and during implementation, multivendor solutions rarely provide worry-free ways for a service provider to meet customer needs. But done right, our close partnerships have simplified cloud deployment and support for our customers, and help ensure end-to-end visibility. Building off of a successful relationship, Cisco and EMC recently set a standard for such partnerships with their announcement of a “Three Paths to the Cloud” strategy.

The strategy benefits providers and customers alike by reducing complexity and enabling the leading time to market and lowest total cost of ownership for converged cloud infrastructure. The “Three Paths to the Cloud” are based on: Read More »

Tags: Cisco, cloud, EMC, Service Provider, Vblock, VCE, vspex

Cisco CVD’s are published…Giddy up!

Cisco Solution for EMC VSPEX…the overview

Yesterday Cisco and EMC announced new milestones in our collaboration on IT Transformation with VCE Vblock and with EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructures.  The announcement includes two new Cisco Validated Designs (CVD) along with aligned channel partner incentives and customer support for VSPEX.  Through these advancements, and a decade long partnership, Cisco and EMC are working closer than ever together to accelerate IT transformation and the journey to the cloud.

3 Paths to the Cloud

Cisco and EMC together offer customers a flexible set of choices.  We refer to it as the three paths to the cloud.  The choice is fairly simple.

* Implement a customized design with best of breed products.

* Purchase a pre-integrated converged infrastructure with VCE Vblock System.

* Install a validated, easy to deploy reference architecture with Cisco Solutions for EMC VSPEX.

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Tags: EMC, nexus, UCS, vmworld, vspex

I’ve been spending the last couple weeks with friends from EMC, discussing what’s top of mind re: desktop virtualization and capabilities that we agree are effectively attacking the elusive ROI of virtual desktops.  So it’s no surprise that when you put Cisco and EMC solutions together, (something we’ve done well, for a LONG time) towards the common goal of making virtual desktops and applications easier to deploy, with reduced cost and improved manageability, you end up with a very compelling end-to-end offer.

Essentially, our joint value nets-out as follows:  i) enabling implementers to balance costs, while meeting SLA’s, ii) making virtual desktops less complex and time-consuming , especially where rapid provisioning and recovery is key, and iii) addressing the desktop management equation with a simplified approach that eliminates what used to be multiple tools

In these areas EMC and Cisco are offering an industry-leading platform with best-in-class desktop hosting density and performance, engineered solutions that absorb I/O storms and dramatically improve boot times, rapid provisioning of server infrastructure using service profile templates and self-service data recovery, and simplified desktop creation with automated deployment capabilities.

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Tags: Cisco, citrix, EMC, UCS, VCE, vdi, VMware, vxi

The previous two weeks of Olympic competition held the world’s attention like never before. We were able to stream events from our phones, get info in real time, and follow our favorite athletes on Twitter.

And isn’t nice to know that our partners share something in common with the Olympic champions. Like the athletes, our partners dream big, give it their all, and work hard to hone their skills—both as technology providers and trusted business advisers. Read More »

Tags: channel partners, Cisco House, citrix, EMC, Intel, john chambers, London 2012, olympics, SAP, Schneider Electric, videoscape

As you can well imagine, Cisco is excited and proud to be the Official Network Infrastructure supporter to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. But you know what else we’re proud of? Cisco House, our 20,000-square-foot connected business showcase. It’s taking our customers to new heights—literally. And our technology partners are central to its success.

Throughout the games, customers are touring the “house,” which is perched above the entrance to Olympic Park. We’re engaging visitors with a multi-media, business transformation journey, where Cisco is uniquely relevant in a landscape where organizations, cities, and even entire countries are transforming to thrive in an increasingly connected world.

And the message is coming through loud and clear. It’s not just what Cisco makes. It’s what we make possible. And sharing this not-so-futuristic story wouldn’t be possible without the help of our incredible technology partners.

So hats off to Citrix, EMC, Intel, SAP, and Schneider Electric. They’re playing an invaluable role as we highlight a portfolio of customer- and public-facing technologies such as Videoscape, Stadium Vision, iServices, and my personal favorite, the Virtual Shopper experience. That’s worth its weight in ‘Gold.’ Read More »

Tags: BTE, business transformation experience, channel partners, Cisco House, cisco London 2012 Olympics, citrix, EMC, Intel, iservices, London 2012, London 2012 Olympics, olympics, SAP, Schneider Electric, sports and entertainment, stadium vision, TelePresence, videoscape, virtual shopper