ISS Technology Update, Volume 7 Number 2 - Newsletter
ISS Technology Update Volume 7, Number 2
11
Why Choose HP Virtual Connect Enterprise Manager?
Data center simplification
There is a growing need to simplify system interconnections as data centers become increasingly dense and complex. HP has
responded to this need with Virtual Connect architecture for HP BladeSystem c-Class, which increases the availability of server-
to-network connections, reduces physical cabling, and significantly boosts the efficiency and productivity of data center server,
storage, and network administrators. HP Virtual Connect Enterprise Manager (VCEM) software builds upon Virtual Connect
technology with a central console that further simplifies the management of large BladeSystem infrastructures that use Virtual
Connect to control LAN and SAN connectivity and significantly increases IT responsiveness. The result is a flexible environment
where servers can be quickly and easily added, replaced, and recovered across all data center enclosures in minutes, instead
of hours, days, or even weeks.
How it works
HP Virtual Connect is an industry-standard-based implementation of server-edge I/O virtualization. It puts an abstraction layer
between the servers in a BladeSystem enclosure and external networks, so that LANs and SANs see a pool of servers rather
than individual servers (see Figure 5-1). Administrators connect servers to their respective networks by creating server
connection profiles that include LAN, SAN, and OS boot information, and assign them to each BladeSystem enclosure bay
using Virtual Connect Manager. Because server connections are assigned to enclosure bays and not physical servers, LAN and
SAN connections remain constant and are not affected by server changes. For environments with multiple Virtual Connect-
enabled enclosures, VCEM can provide a single point of control to manage MAC addresses (LAN) and Worldwide Names
(SAN), maintain server profiles, and provide rapid server deployment, server recovery, and configuration of new enclosures.
Figure 5-1. Server-edge I/O virtualization