I participated in GestaltIT’s TechFieldDay which is a sort of inverse conference, where the bloggers and independent analysts go to the vendors and then discuss the information they have received. We visited the following storage vendors:
* Data Robotics where we were introduced to the new Drobo FS
* EMC where we discussed stretched storage and other interesting futures
* HP where we were introduced to the IBRIX products
Edward L. Haletky, aka Texiwill, is an analyst, author, architect, technologist, and out-of-the-box thinker. As an analyst, Edward looks at all things IoT, big data, cloud, security, and DevOps. As an author, he has written about virtualization and security. As an architect, Edward creates peer-reviewed reference architectures for hybrid cloud, cloud-native applications, and many other aspects of the modern business. As a technologist, Edward creates code prototypes for parts of those architectures. Edward is solving today’s problems in an implementable fashion.
Virtualization Forensics: How different is it?
Since coming out with VMware vSphere and Virtual Infrastructure Security: Securing the Virtual Environment, I have continued to consider aspects of Digital Forensics and how current methodologies would be impacted by the cloud. My use case for this is 40,000 VMs with 512 Servers and roughly 1000 tenants. What I would consider a medium size fully functioning cloud built upon virtualization technology where the environment is agile. The cloud would furthermore contain roughly 64TBs of disk across multiple storage technologies and 48TBs of memory. Now if you do not think this exists today, you were not at VMworld 2009, where such a monster was the datacenter for the entire show and existed just as you came down the escalators to the keynote session.
Drobo FS, Your Link to the Cloud
Data Robotics just announced the Drobo FS. Drobo FS via Drobo Apps (which are free) will have a link to the Oxygen Cloud. This could lead to several interesting options for the small business to large enterprise with respect to data storage and accessibility. Not to mention protection.
Anti-This, Anti-That, getting into the Virtualization Security Game with Introspection
Virtualization Security vendors are starting to seriously investigate the possibilities of the various introspection APIs available to the hypervisors. Introspection APIs allow security groups to now investigate the security of a virtual network, virtual machine, and other components from without. In other words, why rely on an agent within the VM to protect your network, virtual machine, or components. Instead, we can use these APIs to peer into these components from without the system to be tested.
VMware vSphere Security Guidance, just the Beginning
On the most recent Virtualization Security Podcast, the panel was joined by VMware’s Charu Chaubal to discuss the latest draft of the VMware vSphere hardening guide.
Veeam SureBackup
Veeam has introduced a new product named SureBackup. SureBackup is designed to not only use Veeam’s Backup technology to backup your virtual machines (VMs) but will also test the restoration of each of these VMs to ensure that they at least boot and at most the applications involved are actually running within the VM.