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.

If you’re looking for a way out of the VMware ecosystem, HPE VM Essentials might be the solution. It’s a new hypervisor based on KVM and managed via Morpheus Data, supporting both KVM and vSphere environments.
We tested it to see how it performs. Check out our detailed review and walkthrough by Ivan Ischenko, a StarWind Pre-Sales Engineer. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/ph

telcomedia, a Polish managed IT services provider (MSP), had standalone Dell servers running VMware and Proxmox, which lacked shared storage and prevented HighAvailability (HA) and replication. The company needed a cost-effective solution to implement HA and achieve reliable performance. By deploying StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN), telcomedia enables HA and real-time replication, thus ensuring service continuity and cost-effective infrastructure modernization. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/pe

If your VMware vCenter Server Root Password has expired and you can’t log in, don’t panic. Our latest step-by-step guide by Vladan Seget, a virtualization expert, for StarWind shows how to reset the password – even if you don’t know the old one – and how to configure expiration settings to avoid it next time. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/pb

Looking to cut hardware costs, reduce energy use, and scale with ease? Server Virtualization can help you get there. Our latest in-depth guide by Ivan Ischenko, a StarWind Pre-Sales Engineer, covers everything from types of hypervisors to real-world deployment tips. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/p5

The Washington County Consolidated Communications Agency (WCCCA), faced slow restoration speeds, limited capacity, and inadequate support with its HPE RDX backup cartridges, jeopardizing the reliability of its 911 emergency services. The agency required an urgent, scalable, and high-performance solution to ensure the reliability of backup and disaster recovery operations. By implementing StarWind Backup Appliance, WCCCA achieves rapid data recovery and eliminates backup bottleneck, thus ensuring its 911 emergency service reliability. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/p2

Proxmox VE 8.4 doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel, but it adds some helpful features for everyday use – all in a free, open-source package. If you're using Proxmox already or thinking about switching from VMware or HyperV, this update is worth checking out in our latest guide by Vladan Seget, a virtualization expert, for StarWind. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/oz

Rocco’s Collision Center, a U.S.-based automotive repair business, had an issue with its infrastructure powered by Scale Computing, which restricted administrative control and required vendor intervention for troubleshooting and advanced management tasks. The company required a solution that would provide both an easy-to-use GUI for infrastructure management and full access to Hyper-V’s advanced tools. By deploying StarWind HCI Appliance (HCA), Rocco’s Collision Center gains full control over its IT infrastructure, eliminates vendor dependency, streamlines operations, and cuts costs by 50%, achieving significant long-term savings and enhanced efficiency. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/ow

RustDesk is the open-source remote desktop app that lets you ditch third-party servers and host your own. With support for Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS, it's a powerful alternative to commercial tools like TeamViewer and AnyDesk – but without the restrictions.
Check out our new article by Vladan Seget, a virtualization expert, for StarWind to learn more about RustDesk features and use cases. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/ot

Choosing the right Azure VM SKU is only half the battle – disk performance plays a crucial role too. Learn from our latest step-by-step guide by Marius Sandbu, a cloud-native and end-user computing expert, for StarWind, which configurations unlock the best IOPS, lowest latency, and smartest caching setups for your infrastructure. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/oq

Cass County Government, a U.S.-based local government institution, faced an aging, end-of-life IT infrastructure with high support costs and insufficient resiliency, making it difficult to sustain its operations effectively. The institution required a hardware-agnostic software platform to upgrade its infrastructure without being tied to expensive, proprietary hardware. By implementing StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN), Cass County Government migrates to an all-NVMe storage solution, doubles its storage capacity, and improves IT infrastructure performance, saving over $100,000 in hardware replacement costs. Read more here: https://starwind.com/s/on