Simple Network Mapping In an earlier post I demonstrated how you could use a very simple toolset such as VMware tools and Netstat to create visualisations for what devices are talking to each other on a network. I had a few thoughts of my own on some additional simple steps that could be taken to […]
Network Mapping I had fun working out a simple way to extend application discovery using VMware tools, following a retweet or two (or 17) it seems like a lot of folks enjoyed reading about it too. So fresh from putting together a simple method to interrogate application data, helped by some very clever engineering from […]
Application Discovery I read with great interest the recent article from William Lam regarding application discovery being included in VMware Tools version 11. I’ve worked for many organisations in the past where having access to this information has been crucial for both strategic planning and operational activities. Previously to get that information to support those […]
The impact of gravity on the cloud, what am I talking about now… Gravity is defined as “the force that attracts a body towards the centre of the earth”, that can be extrapolated onwards to state “or towards any other physical body having mass”. It’s a force that has shape everything in our universe. Which […]
One of the highlights of last year was the VMUG National user conference held at the space centre in Leicester. A fantastic venue for not only the conference event but for the pre event vCurry and quiz, so it’s no surprise that it’s being held there again this year. The vCurry on the 26th and […]
When there is an outage, it is natural to panic a little and maybe try a rush troubleshooting steps. In my experience this is oftentimes counterproductive. Symptoms can often be missed as the root cause, which has the net effect of extending the time to resolution. So where would I suggest is the best place to start, well that in part depends on the symptoms. However, the log files will tell you everything that you need to know.
Working with a customer last week I came across an interesting gotcha when connecting the Skyline Collector to vCenter. I picked up the case as the customer was having difficulty gathering logs for a case raised with VMware GSS, they couldn’t log into the console of the collector as root and were not clear how […]
Part of the VMware TAM service are Best Practice Reviews, enabled in many cases by the VMware Health Analyser tool. This post is a list of the top five configuration and best practice issues I typically encounter, and how you can resolve them within your estates. Use persistent and remote syslog logging to improve manageability […]
I put together a presentation not so long ago that focused on some key resources that are publicised to varying levels by VMware. There are some real gems kicking around, if you know where to look 🙂 Resources VMware Skyline https://www.vmware.com/uk/support/services/skyline.html You owe it too yourself to investigate the use of skyline in your estates, […]
My VMUG tour for 2019 continued in March with a trip up to Manchester. However, this was a bit different, I was presenting this time. The week before the event a colleague reached out to ask if I would be available to cover his slot, at first it seemed like a terrible idea. I ran […]