V blog

When installing VirtualCenter client or server, I get an msiexec error message and the installation will fail. Came across this at a client.

The Install Shield package of VirtualCenter files is a 16-bit application that uses 8.3 file notation.
Your system may have 8.3 file name creation disabled by the Administrators or Group policy in order to increase performance on an NTFS file system.
This message is shown because there is an unknown parameter passed to the msiexec command.
Typically, this error is because the installer does not quote the %TMP% and %TEMP% variables, and if they are configured with some blank space file path, the installation fails.

Solution:

Set the %temp% environment variable to use an 8.3 naming convention path (that is, C:\temp).
You must create a new temporary folder for the installation and set the environment variables %TMP%, %TEMP% to use it:

This can be changed from Systems Properties – Advanced – Environmental Variables.

Came across this VMware comparison with Microsoft and Citrix. Thought it would be useful to share.

Ever wish you could restart a virtual machine or migrate it to another host from the convenience of your mobile phone? With VMware vCenter Mobile Access, you can.

VMware vCenter Mobile Access allows you to monitor and manage VMware Infrastructure from your mobile phone.

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Desktops of the future will need to be able to intelligently deliver data and applications on a wide variety of computing devices, web applications, and computers. Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) was the first step in this evolution. Over the past three years an entire ecosystem has been built around VDI and just as everyone beginning to realize the power of VDI, VMware is changing the game again.

VMware announced VMware View 3. VDI is now a part of VMware View. The View product portfolio will also include

• VMware View Manager (formerly VMware Virtual Desktop Manager): Enterprise class server which helps rapidly provision virtual desktops and connects users to their personalized desktops.
• VMware View Composer: New Product – Enables storage optimization and scalable management of virtual desktops from a single master image.
• ThinApp: Delivers and deploys applications more efficiently, more securely, and more cost-effectively with agentless application virtualization.

VMware announced the plans to bring virtualization and its many proven benefits to mobile phones through the new VMware Mobile Virtualization Platform (MVP). Built on innovative technology of Trango Virtual Processors acquired recently.

VMware MVP is a thin layer of software that is embedded on a mobile phone to decouple the applications and data from the underlying hardware. It is optimized to run efficiently on low power consuming and memory constrained mobile phones. The MVP currently supports a wide range of real-time and rich operating systems including Windows CE 5.0 and 6.0, Linux 2.6.x, Symbian 9.x, eCos, µITRON NORTi and µC/OS-II.

VMware Mobile Virtualization Platform will help handset vendors reduce development time and get mobile phones to market faster. In addition, end users will benefit by being able to run multiple personalities—for example, one for personal use and one for work use on the same phone.

VMware released a new PDF called “VMware VDI Storage Considerations“ it focuses on design choices for the storage environment that forms the foundation of a production VMware VDI implementation. Check it out…

VMware has announced a new data center operating system concept, VDC OS, that will leverage new features in future versions of VMware’s infrastructure products to deliver dynamic resource pools of applications and infrastructure known as a vCloud. 

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