Finally, StarWind Virtual Storage Appliance is available on Linux allowing you to save costs on Windows licensing. Being hypervisor-agnostic, StarWind VSA easily integrates into any IT infrastructure as a fully pre-configured virtual machine ready for deployment and operation. It simply installs in any existing environment requiring no specialized SAN skills and is managed using StarWind Web console or thick client allowing to control the entire storage infrastructure from a centralized console.
Join our Tap Room Meeting on April 27 11 am PT / 2 pm ET to see all benefits of the StarWind Linux-based VSA.
Register now: https://www.starwindsoftware.com/dedicated-live-demo-session

StarWind Virtual SAN Free allows deploying a 2-node cluster providing a highly available storage for your virtual machines to Hyper-V or ESXi hypervisor for free. When deploying multi VSAN Free nodes, the data is synchronized across the network between the nodes. StarWind VSAN Free can be deployed in a hyperconverged model where VSAN Free is installed on hypervisor nodes or in a disaggregated model with separated compute and storage resources. StarWind VSAN Free management capabilities include PowerShell, with StarWind Management console available as a 30-day trial.

Read the full article by Romain Serre, a Senior Consultant at Lyon to learn how to deploy a 2-node StarWind VSAN Free for VMware ESXi 6.5 on Windows Server 2016 Core Edition.

StarWind gets closer to Linux users by providing them with special Linux-based Virtual Storage Appliance version combining the underlying OS and preinstalled StarWind Virtual SAN, allowing to save money on Windows Licensing when it’s unnecessary.
StarWind VSA is compatible with any hypervisor, be it Microsoft Hyper-V, VMware ESXi, Xen or KVM and can be managed via a Web Management Console while additionally containing a StarWind vCenter plugin allowing to manage the product directly from vCenter Server.

Read the full article by Vladan Seget, IT and Virtualization consultant to learn more about StarWind Virtual SAN on Linux

AlwaysOn Basic Availability Groups (BAG) supported in SQL Server Standard Edition and AlwaysOn Availability Groups (AG) introduced in SQL Server Enterprise Edition were designed to create a replicated environment with improved failover capabilities. However, the two types provide different capabilities while also requiring different licensing costs.

Read the full article by Shashank Singh, Microsoft MVP, and SQL Server Architect to learn more about BAG and AG cost and functionality differences.

Migrating your VMs from one hypervisor to another may be quite a complicated task if there’s no decent virtual machine converter at hand. Fortunately, there are various V2V tools allowing to turn this process into a simple thing. But, when choosing a V2V converter, there are several factors you should take into consideration.

Read the full article to learn how to choose a V2V converter that will become a perfect fit for your needs.

StarWind is currently working on the new product - a flexible and customizable web-based platform which will allow users get the full control over their IT infrastructures from a single HTML5 graphical interface including S2D, Failover Clustering and Hyper-V. More information to be found in a nearby thread: https://mangolassi.it/topic/14114/help-starwind-to-pick-the-name-for-the-upcoming-product

StarWind HyperConverged Appliance utilizes Local Reconstruction Codes, Replication, and Grid Architecture to provide an ultimate fault tolerance rate while delivering sustained high performance. With StarWind HCA, the whole infrastructure remains operational even after multiple disk or node failures. In case a failure occurs, applications are automatically recovered to working cluster disks or nodes, allowing to easily withstand a failure of more than 50% of the cluster nodes.

Watch our video to learn how to get uncompromised resiliency with StarWind HCA
https://www.starwindsoftware.com/get-uncompromised-fault-tolerance-of-it-infrastructure-with-starwind-hyperconverged-appliance

With PowerShell, automatic deployment of Hyper-V VMs in Windows Server 2016 becomes a piece of cake
No doubts, commercial software for automatic VM deployment is great, but it may be too expensive comparing to the goals that need to be achieved. That’s where PowerShell kicks in. With PowerShell commands, the creation and configuration of Hyper-V virtual machines in Windows Server 2016 become a fairly simple thing. But, what is more important, you can create a script which deploys VMs of the same configuration automatically.

Read the full article by Boris Yurchenko, a Support Engineer at StarWind, to learn how to automate your VMs deployment with PowerShell in Windows Server 2016.

Installing an HTTPS certificate is just a tip of the iceberg. This certificate has a huge number of options that usually are hidden deep inside config files. Actually, these tiny details allow distinguishing a site that can be rendered vulnerable via HTTPS downgrade attack and the one that is really secure.

Read the full article by Gary Williams, a virtualization, storage, and Windows systems administrator, to achieve the highest security.

StarWind team will take the floor at Storage Field Day 15 to reveal new awesome backup storage technologies: Virtual Tape Library with Cloud and Object storage and backed by ProActive Support! Our speaking slot is the first in line: March 9, 8-10 am PT, don’t miss it!

For Livestream, go to https://www.facebook.com/TechFieldDay/ or watch on http://techfieldday.com/, Livestream.com - includes the entire event.

Gamers use Atlas OS to strip Windows down to its essentials and get better frame rates. But if you manage enterprise infrastructure, there’s something here for you too. Atlas OS can be repurposed to build lean, fast golden images for VDI, HPC, or dev environments – without compromising security (if configured properly).
Learn from our latest guide and installation walkthrough by Vladan Seget, a virtualization expert, for StarWind, how to use Atlas OS beyond gaming. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/sq

UAB Rusnava, a Lithuania-based provider of IT infrastructure services, had standalone servers and #DAS that lacked High Availability (HA) and were prone to downtime in case of hardware failure. The company required a cost-effective, simple-to-manage software-defined storage solution to achieve HA on existing hardware. By deploying StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN), UAB Rusnava creates an HA IT environment without costly SANs, improves its application uptime, and reduces infrastructure costs by 60%. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/sl

Effectively managing your IT Infrastructure isn’t optional. Our latest comprehensive article by Ivan Ischenko, a StarWind Pre-Sales Engineer, explains how smart Infrastructure Management boosts availability, security, performance, and ROI. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/si

CC Young & Co Ltd, a British accounting firm, relied on legacy Syneto/HP infrastructure, causing frequent crashes, slow performance, and an inability to support the company’s continued growth. The company required a reliable, budget-conscious hyperconverged solution with sufficient compute and storage capacity to meet current demands and support long-term scalability. By implementing StarWind HCI Appliance (HCA), CC Young & Co Ltd achieves a scalable, high-performance, and cost-effective infrastructure that resolved all performance issues and enabled 20% annual business growth. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/sf

Windows Server 2025 brings some long-overdue changes to host networking. With intent-based setup using Network ATC and live diagnostics via Network HUD, managing virtual networks gets simpler and more reliable.
Check out what’s changed in WS2025 and how it compares to the old way of doing things in our latest article by Brandon Lee, an IT Consultant, for StarWind. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/sc

If you’re running #ProxmoxVE, setting up #ProxmoxBackupServer (PBS) is the next logical step to protect your virtual machines.
Our new tutorial by Karim Buzdar, an IT engineer & Linux expert, walks you through the full process – from installing PBS via USB to configuring storage and running your first VM backup. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/s9

Wilson Electronics, a U.S.-based provider of signal-boosting technology, lacked virtual infrastructure redundancy in its remote office/branch office (ROBO) data centers. The company required a cost-effective solution that could provide high availability (HA), operate on existing hardware, and introduce storage redundancy without exceeding the budget. By deploying StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN), Wilson Electronics builds fully redundant Hyper-V clusters in its ROBO data centers, achieves HA, exceptional performance, and saves over $50,000 in enterprise SAN storage costs. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/s6

StarWind has joined forces with DataCore. In our upcoming free webinar, we’ll explore how this partnership opens new possibilities for your IT infrastructure – from core to edge, to cloud. Learn what stays the same, what improves, and what’s next. Register now: https://starwind.com/s/s3

Still using VMware out of habit? Or considering a switch to Hyper-V? Our latest guide by Ivan Ischenko, a StarWind Pre-Sales Engineer, compares both platforms in practical terms – what each does best, where they fall short, and how their licensing models impact your IT budget. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/rz

LGL Recycling & Affiliated Companies, a U.S.-based waste and recycling service provider, struggled with an outdated, complex, and costly Dell-based IT infrastructure that couldn’t keep up with its operational demands. The company needed a simple, scalable, and cost-effective hyperconverged infrastructure that could deliver high availability (HA) without the complexity of traditional setups. By deploying StarWind HCI Appliance (HCA), LGL Recycling & Affiliated Companies replaces its outdated IT infrastructure with a simple, scalable 2-node cluster, achieves HA and operational efficiency while reducing complexity and costs. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/rw