Cisco Unveils Solutions for Data Centers Using Microsoft Technologies

Cisco announces its new set of integrated solutions aimed at data centers that use Microsoft’s Cloud OS technologies. Cisco claims that by integrating the company’s Unified Data Center architecture with Microsoft Fast Track architecture solutions, Cisco and Microsoft will help boost their customers’ IT productivity and hasten time to value.

The two companies tout offering go-to-market options for jointly vetted solutions, helping channel partners who resell both Cisco’s data center and Microsoft’s Cloud OS technologies. The go-to-market channel initiatives are available in certain countries and are rolled out to enable alignment when selling Microsoft Fast Track 3.0 architecture solutions.

“Alliances like the one we have with Microsoft allow us the opportunity to jointly develop innovative and integrated solutions to help drive out data center complexity, in turn delivering simplified operations, and improved information technology productivity and data center utilization for our partners and customers,” said Satinder Sethi, vice president at Cisco’s Data Center Solutions, in a prepared statement.

Allowing Microsoft customers to get programmatic access to Cisco’s Unified Computing System (UCS) affords them more control over and insight to the workings of Cisco’s Unified Data Center alongside the Windows Server and application software. Among the highlights of Cisco UCS are the following:

• A combination of the “Manager open API and Cisco PowerTool for Microsoft's PowerShell utility with System Center 2012 SP1,” which enables customers to manage and use physical and virtual infrastructures;
  
  
• The Cisco UCS Management Pack for System Center 2012 SP1 Operations Manager, which enables customers to manage and track their Cisco Unified Data Center using only one interface;
  
  
• The Cisco UCS Integration Pack for System Center 2012 SP1 Orchestrator, which, according to Cisco, enhances operational efficiency and provides scalable Cisco UCS management;
  
  
• And the Cisco UCS UI Extension Add-in for System Center 2012 SP1 Virtual Machine Manager, which allows for the centralized management of Cisco UCS through the controls within System Center Virtual Machine Manager.

Cisco also offers new Microsoft Fast Track 3.0 Solutions, which give customers the options of integrated reference architectures with Cisco and EMC (VSPEX Proven Infrastructure) or with Cisco and NetApp (FlexPod). (KOM) Link. Link.