Microsoft Windows Azure makes move Amazon Web Services refuses to make, Tell us what Server Hardware is used in the Cloud

Some people believe the cloud is great and solve all problems.  But, those who don’t believe the hype want to know more about the data center and the hardware in the cloud.  When AWS had outages in 2012, Digital Realty Trust was forced to make it clear that the AWS outages due to power problems were not in their facilities. 

Digital Realty, DFT: No Interruptions from Virginia Storm

July 3rd, 2012By: Rich Miller

 

A facility at the Digital Realty Trust data center campus in Ashburn, Virginia

The two largest wholesale data center operators in the northern Virginia market said their data centers performed flawlessly during last weekend’s electrical storms, maintaining electrical power during grid outages and keeping customers online.

Microsoft made the announcement yesterday. that it is sharing its server hardware designs it uses in its Cloud.

The Microsoft cloud server specification essentially provides the blueprints for the datacenter servers we have designed to deliver the world’s most diverse portfolio of cloud services. These servers are optimized for Windows Server software and built to handle the enormous availability, scalability and efficiency requirements of Windows Azure, our global cloud platform. They offer dramatic improvements over traditional enterprise server designs: up to 40 percent server cost savings, 15 percent power efficiency gains and 50 percent reduction in deployment and service times. We also expect this server design to contribute to our environmental sustainability efforts by reducing network cabling by 1,100 miles and metal by10,000 tons across our base of 1 million servers.

GigaOm’s Barb Darrow covered the release and makes the point that Amazon Web Services doesn’t share its server hardware designs it uses.

The great unmentioned player here is Amazon Web Services, which dominates the public cloud infrastructure space to date. While Amazon Distinguished Engineer James Hamilton talks broadly about data center energy efficiency, Amazon does not publicize its server designs.

Is the future of Clouds a transparency telling the users what hardware you are running on?  Seems like it is good for users bad for the Cloud Suppliers.

Disclosure: I spend some time working for GigaOm Research and know many of the GigaOm editorial staff.

Containers used to Build Starbucks Stores

Starbucks has more 20,000 stores worldwide, including 6 that are built from containers.

The first one is this one in Tukwila.

And, the latest is being built now.

New Starbucks drive through being dropped off in Ballard

New Starbucks drive through being dropped off in Ballard
By Jan 27, 2014

SEATTLE -- It's the pop-up of all pop-ups; a new Starbucks drive through being dropped off at the corner of NW 53rd St and 15th Ave NW. 

Full of dents from a career of moving goods across the globe, an oversized load crew and a crane operator lifted a 40-foot shipping container into place. The first of three containers to be delivered to this site, they will be fit together to create a new Starbucks drive through and walk up store in Ballard. 

Complete Slides for Urs Hoelzle's OpenFlow talk at 2012 Open Networking Summit

I wrote a post back in July 2012 on Urs Hoelzle’s presentation on OpenFlow at Google. I pieced together the presentation from snippets around the web.

People still look for the Google presentation, so I figured it is a good thing to send an update out.

 here is the original slide deck which is much better.

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Here is the Youtube video of the talk that you can look at the slides.

Uptime Symposium takes another step in the Transition to be more Gartner Data Center Conference

I stopped going to Uptime Symposium three years ago, when I was no longer able to attend the conference as media.  My blog doesn’t qualify as full time industry publication.  Explained another way, my blog doesn’t play by the rules influenced by the industry vendors and analysts.  If I had any ad sponsorship money from the data center industry then it is hard to say it wouldn’t influence what I write.  I do get influenced by my friends and what they think. :-)

Missing the conference means I don’t see friends, but I find I can go to other conferences like 7x24 Exchange and see most of the people I want to connect. 

When I took a look at the latest schedule for the 2014 Symposium it reminded me of a Gartner Data Center conference where most of the presenters are Gartner analysts with a sprinkling of industry people.  This next Uptime has 451 group as the speakers which is great for those who subscribe to 451 Group’s services.

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I remember going to my first Uptime Symposium with Mike Manos and Christian Belady.  I learned a lot and made good friends.  One of the more memorable is an ex-Google data center engineer who I was able to have insightful discussions on the state of the data center industry and still keep in touch with.  

Industry events are great places to meet people.  Next week I am off to wireless/mobile conference in Vancouver.

Here is the event.

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The session I am speaking on is this one.

 

What’s Real at the Nexus of Forces: Mobile, social, data, cloud?

This time, change is coming from four directions. Post-web computing harnesses disruptive technologies in the cloud and on mobile devices, and puts social media and big data to work. While consumer-driven tech leaks into the enterprise, line of business management and IT must collaborate to get the most of these four critical technologies. But hold off the hype, and keep the futurists focused: this session will zero in on what’s realistic in the next 12-24 months. What’s pie-in-the-sky and what’s driving 12-24 month decisions that can show payoff?

Off to Open Compute Summit V, Who else will join the OCP efforts

I am off to the fifth Open Compute Summit.

OCP Summit V

Wednesday, January 08, 2014 · Posted by at 12:00 PM

We are pleased to announce the dates for the next Open Compute Project Summit on Tuesday, January 28 and Wednesday, January 29, 2014 at the newly expanded San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, CA.

At the last summit, attendees came from the technology sector in addition to finance, government, and consulting. These attendees represented executive-level roles of vice president or higher as well as IT directors and managers.

The Open Compute Project Foundation would like to thank these sponsors for making this event possible!

 

Venue

San Jose Convention Center - 150 West San Carlos Street, San Jose, CA 95113

The growth of Open Compute I think has surprised most every one, going from space on Page Mill Road in their office building to venues in NYC, Rack Space in San Antonio, Santa Clara Convention Center and now San Jose Convention center.

Don’t know what my rate of blogging will be.  There are plenty of media folks that will be there to cover the event. I’ll probably focus on networking and catching up with old friends, then blog later.