IO has been around for a while as a Microsoft branded activity – see www.microsoft.com/io for a wealth of information on the IO optimization model and how to move up the stack.

However, before can start an IO improvements program you sometimes have to go right back to basics!

This morning (whilst finishing our new Windows 7 with Office 2010 Beta build for the ThinkPad X series – yes I’m a sad git at 07:00!) I’ve deleted space consuming binaries and install media for older beta products that have been superceeded or are about to be.

For the cull are SCE2010 Beta, DPM 2010 Beta v3 (RC is due in early feb), and a really old SCVMM 2008 R2 RC…. saved a mere 26GB of disk space there! (yes this is sarcasm!)

Now I’m not intending to write possibly the most pointless and dull blog post in the history of the blaahhhg, but more as a reference to myself of our involvement in these stages of product testing and development.

If for some reason you’re not aware of how you get hold of Microsoft early release beta’s and release candidates then take a trip to http://connect.microsoft.com.  Be warned this may start a long and time consuming passtime of exploring new software, but the rewards are there for your efforts.

Anyway, its time to start reusing some of that reclaimed disk space and start extracting the 4.10GB of SCE2010 RC I downloaded the other day… who’s going to bet its even bigger than the beta?

It’s been a couple of years since we had snow in London, but at the time of the last wee flurry in January 2007 I took a snap from our bedroom window and emailed it to the BBC Winterwatch weather site.  The photo was posted under the www.bbc.co.uk’s main site and as a side benefit resulted in number one spot on Google for the search ‘reuben cook’ for quite some months (how SEO works… the IT consulting business I founded, The Full Circle (www.thefullcircle.com) later spent thousands trying to achieve similar results :S )

Anyway, this isn’t a technology post other than the slight SEO reference that may raise a wry smile from those who know our SEO shenanigans, it’s about the weather!

From our bedroom window this morning! Reuben Cook (24-Jan-2007)

This morning after deciding against driving half way down the M3 to Basingstoke and to ‘let the VPN take the strain’ I then had time to replicate the shot from a couple of years ago…

From our bedroom window this morning! Reuben Cook (02-Feb-2009)

…definately a drop more more this time!  (we measured 6″/15cm on the flat, and lots more in drifts).

The news from the BBC... stay at home!

I was expecting a usual Xbox update after reading the standard prompt about being signed out of Live if not taking the update, but then noticed a new progress bar… the Experience upgrade (about 2 minutes).

WOW!  just a bit!

A totally new UI and effects deck, much nicer integration with Media Center (am running Vista Media Center), overall awesome work Microsoft Xbox team, okay, taken a few ideas and developed them further, but they definately have taken them further!

The official site is at http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/hardware/memoryupdate/default.htm and states…

In order to connect to Xbox LIVE and enjoy everything the new Xbox Experience has to offer, you will need an Xbox 360 Hard Drive. While you can connect to Xbox LIVE using an Xbox 360 Memory Unit with 128MB of available space, you will not be able to enjoy all the great features like Xbox LIVE Primetime and video downloads.

As part of our business – an IT consulting firm called “The Full Circle” www.thefullcirle.com – and as a Microsoft Gold Partner that likes to ahead of the game by being an early adopter, we are always playing with new software and that means building and rebuilding boxes.  Clearly virtualisation can make huge savings, especially in time but not always is virtualisation suitable (such as testing the latest 64-bit drivers and support packs).

However recently I came across an HP Proliant ML110 G5 server (dual core Xeon 2.33GHz, 1GB RAM expandable to 8GB, 250GB SATA, Gigabit Ethernet) for only £220 + VAT which is about £100 cheaper than HP’s value DX2300 desktop range and better spec’d (well bar the 8MB Matrox GPU! .

I sent a mail to my colleages titled “An HP server for less than a desktop?  Virtualise when you can have a physical?”

Bonkers!

HP ProLiant ML110 G5 Xeon 3065 2.33/1333 Dual-Core, 1×1GB, Non Hot Plug SATA

250 GB, DVD±RW (+R double layer), Gigabit Ethernet – £220 inc VAT

I’m in the process of building a new ML110 G5 with Windows 2008 Server Enterprise Core (x64) which is now RTM with a view to this being a Hyper-V platform for a number of other guest VM’s including my main desktop which may or may not prove a little optimistic re: things like driver support, etc. we will see…

Note – you need to enable the CPU VM support before installing, it is disabled by default.

will aim to get a physical Vista platform built to test suitability for normal desktop use and may even try restoring an existing XP image just for the hell of it but won’t be spending too much time troubleshooting if it doesn’t play nicely for obvious reasons.

In the meantime some interesting & essential reading below if you are thinking of Windows Server 2008 virtualisation…

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/us/default.aspx

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/us/virtualization-consolidation.aspx

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/us/hyperv-install.aspx

I’d say the RC1 ref’s re: Hyper-V support are now out of date as I’ve successfully installed it on the RTM platform I built this morning, although already running into issues with ‘core’ that may have me reinstalling with a nice GUI such as:

Enabling Hyper-V in a Server Core deployment

The following steps will replace steps 4-7 above for a Server Core installation.

1.Type “Start /w ocsetup Microsoft-Hyper-V” to enable Hyper-V role.

2.     Restart when prompted.
Note: To Manage Hyper-V, you can remotely connect to the server from an existing Hyper-V Manager MMC on a different system.

I think without training (I’ve re-included the recent WS2008 links) it may be too much to learn/dig around with not enough time (other priorities!) trying to pursue the core build, I can feel a shutdown /c “rebuild with GUI” /f /r coming on…

 …since writing that mail in mid-February I’ve been on the UK Hyper-V RDP training with Microsoft and have learnt lots about server-core and just how difficult it currently is to remote manage… will be posting some findings and tips n tricks soon… (althojgh next job building a T61p laptop to be a Hyper-V host for some Centro / Essential Business Server work we are doing…

Best regards all, Reuben