PlateSpin Products - PowerRecon

Standard Features

Remote Data Collection
PowerRecon remotely collects inventory and performance data with no need to physically touch data center servers. PowerRecon's run-once inventory collector gathers comprehensive server inventory data while performance data is collected agentlessly via standard OS instrumentation capabilities.

Rich Data Modeling
Make better consolidation choices based on sophisticated analysis of resources, workloads and utilization trends. Tight integration with VMware VirtualCenter provides greater visibility into your virtual infrastructure, improving data center management and operations.

Custom Report Creation
and Delivery
Define resource and workload parameters and generate custom visual reports to accelerate data center assessments and server consolidations. Quickly identify consolidation candidates based on resource utilization trends and compare workload characteristics before and after consolidation. Scheduled report delivery via email or FTP ensures easy access to remote data and provides up-to-date information for decision making.

Flexible Data Capture and Export
PowerRecon data can be easily exported to a number of formats including HTML, PDF, Word, CSV, Excel or images for flexible report creation. Raw data can be extracted directly from the database and delivered to business intelligence applications for statistical analysis.

Enterprise-Level Scalability
Robust data collection, analysis and planning for all servers in the network puts PowerRecon in a class all its own for large-scale data center consolidation projects. Each instance of PowerRecon can monitor up to 2,000 servers to ensure scalability for the world’s largest data centers. Data can be aggregated from multiple PowerRecon data collectors for centralized data warehousing, analysis and planning or to accommodate larger enterprises.

Multiple-Data Center Support
Distribute PowerRecon to different geographical locations to remotely collect data and schedule updates to a master PowerRecon installation, enabling centralized analysis and planning for initiatives like server or data center consolidation

Flexible Chargeback Reporting
Because virtualization creates a pool of computing resources, it can be difficult to manage and monitor how virtual resources are being used and by whom. PowerRecon allows organizations to effectively allocate and share virtual resources across various business units and departmental owners. PowerRecon’s flexible chargeback reporting capabilities improve virtual infrastructure management and financial accounting by allowing organizations to calculate IT costs based on actual resource usage.

VM Growth Reporting
Run virtual machine growth reports to monitor the proliferation of virtual machines and avoid the administrative headaches associated with virtual infrastructure sprawl.

Planning Module Features

Planning
Automatically generate server consolidation and disaster recovery plans based on detailed workload analysis to ensure the optimal fit between server workloads and virtual resources. The ability to use forecasted data ensures that plans will accommodate future growth.

Workload Analysis
The PowerRecon Planning Module automatically analyzes the five critical dimensions of workload – CPU, disk, memory, network and
time – across thousands of servers simultaneously, providing plans that maximize utilization while minimizing resource contention.

Scenario Modeling
Create custom scenarios with user-defined target server specifications including server templates or existing virtual machine servers to create an optimal consolidation plan.

Power and Cooling Analysis
Compare and contrast potential power and cooling cost savings and ROI derived from different consolidation scenarios. Custom fields allow power and cooling requirements for major hardware platforms to be maintained in a central database, enabling organizations to analyze and cost-justify green computing initiatives.

Time-Based Analysis
Stagger multiple workloads evenly across virtual hosts and account for hourly peaks and valleys inherent in server utilization trends.

Workload and Utilization Forecasting
Predict future workloads and resource utilization based on historical trends to better plan for server consolidation and infrastructure growth, and enable more proactive systems management. Forecasting data on CPU, disk, memory and usage trends is presented in easy-to-read charts, reports and plans.

System Requirements

PowerRecon Server

Minimum Requirements¹

Windows 2000 Server
Windows Server 2003
Pentium 4, 2 GHz, 2 GB RAM, 4 GB Free Disk Space
.NET Framework v2.0 and MDAC v2.6, v2.8

Multiplatform Monitoring

Microsoft Windows

Windows NT 4.0
Windows 2000 Server
Windows 2000 Advanced Server
Windows Server 2003
Windows XP

UNIX*

Sun Solaris 8, 9, 10
(Sparc and x86)
Sun Solaris 7 (Sparc)

Linux

RedHat 7.3, 8.0, 9.0
RedHat Enterprise Linux 2.1 AS/ES,3.0 AS/ES,
4.0 AS/ES and 4.4 AS/ES
Novell SuSE 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 9.0, 9.1, 9.2, 9.3, 10.0, 10.1

Virtual Machines

VMware Infrastructure 3
VMware ESX Server 3, 3.5 and 3i
VMware Server
Microsoft Virtual Server
Virtual Iron
Xen Enterprise

¹ Minimum requirements are based on 1-10 servers. Requirements scale as the number of monitored servers increases.

* UNIX is supported for PowerRecon inventory, data collection and reporting (not consolidation planning).

Products PlateSpin products allow organizations to adopt, manage and extend their use of server virtualization in the data center. With support for physical and virtual machines, as well as images, our products improve the speed and quality of server consolidation, hardware migration and disaster recovery initiatives.
Products PlateSpin Forge PowerConvert PowerRecon Overview Uses of PowerRecon Features Packaging Options Green Calculator Virtual Infrastructure Edition	PowerRecon Features and Requirements Standard Features Remote Data Collection PowerRecon remotely collects inventory and performance data with no need to physically touch data center servers. PowerRecon's run-once inventory collector gathers comprehensive server inventory data while performance data is collected agentlessly via standard OS instrumentation capabilities. Rich Data Modeling Make better consolidation choices based on sophisticated analysis of resources, workloads and utilization trends. Tight integration with VMware VirtualCenter provides greater visibility into your virtual infrastructure, improving data center management and operations. Custom Report Creation and Delivery Define resource and workload parameters and generate custom visual reports to accelerate data center assessments and server consolidations. Quickly identify consolidation candidates based on resource utilization trends and compare workload characteristics before and after consolidation. Scheduled report delivery via email or FTP ensures easy access to remote data and provides up-to-date information for decision making. Flexible Data Capture and Export PowerRecon data can be easily exported to a number of formats including HTML, PDF, Word, CSV, Excel or images for flexible report creation. Raw data can be extracted directly from the database and delivered to business intelligence applications for statistical analysis. Enterprise-Level Scalability Robust data collection, analysis and planning for all servers in the network puts PowerRecon in a class all its own for large-scale data center consolidation projects. Each instance of PowerRecon can monitor up to 2,000 servers to ensure scalability for the world’s largest data centers. Data can be aggregated from multiple PowerRecon data collectors for centralized data warehousing, analysis and planning or to accommodate larger enterprises. Multiple-Data Center Support Distribute PowerRecon to different geographical locations to remotely collect data and schedule updates to a master PowerRecon installation, enabling centralized analysis and planning for initiatives like server or data center consolidation Flexible Chargeback Reporting Because virtualization creates a pool of computing resources, it can be difficult to manage and monitor how virtual resources are being used and by whom. PowerRecon allows organizations to effectively allocate and share virtual resources across various business units and departmental owners. PowerRecon’s flexible chargeback reporting capabilities improve virtual infrastructure management and financial accounting by allowing organizations to calculate IT costs based on actual resource usage. VM Growth Reporting Run virtual machine growth reports to monitor the proliferation of virtual machines and avoid the administrative headaches associated with virtual infrastructure sprawl. Planning Module Features Planning Automatically generate server consolidation and disaster recovery plans based on detailed workload analysis to ensure the optimal fit between server workloads and virtual resources. The ability to use forecasted data ensures that plans will accommodate future growth. Workload Analysis The PowerRecon Planning Module automatically analyzes the five critical dimensions of workload – CPU, disk, memory, network and time – across thousands of servers simultaneously, providing plans that maximize utilization while minimizing resource contention. Scenario Modeling Create custom scenarios with user-defined target server specifications including server templates or existing virtual machine servers to create an optimal consolidation plan. Power and Cooling Analysis Compare and contrast potential power and cooling cost savings and ROI derived from different consolidation scenarios. Custom fields allow power and cooling requirements for major hardware platforms to be maintained in a central database, enabling organizations to analyze and cost-justify green computing initiatives. Time-Based Analysis Stagger multiple workloads evenly across virtual hosts and account for hourly peaks and valleys inherent in server utilization trends. Workload and Utilization Forecasting Predict future workloads and resource utilization based on historical trends to better plan for server consolidation and infrastructure growth, and enable more proactive systems management. Forecasting data on CPU, disk, memory and usage trends is presented in easy-to-read charts, reports and plans. System Requirements PowerRecon Server Minimum Requirements¹ Windows 2000 Server Windows Server 2003 Pentium 4, 2 GHz, 2 GB RAM, 4 GB Free Disk Space .NET Framework v2.0 and MDAC v2.6, v2.8 Multiplatform Monitoring Microsoft Windows Windows NT 4.0 Windows 2000 Server Windows 2000 Advanced Server Windows Server 2003 Windows XP UNIX* Sun Solaris 8, 9, 10 (Sparc and x86) Sun Solaris 7 (Sparc) Linux RedHat 7.3, 8.0, 9.0 RedHat Enterprise Linux 2.1 AS/ES,3.0 AS/ES, 4.0 AS/ES and 4.4 AS/ES Novell SuSE 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 9.0, 9.1, 9.2, 9.3, 10.0, 10.1 Virtual Machines VMware Infrastructure 3 VMware ESX Server 3, 3.5 and 3i VMware Server Microsoft Virtual Server Virtual Iron Xen Enterprise ¹ Minimum requirements are based on 1-10 servers. Requirements scale as the number of monitored servers increases. * UNIX is supported for PowerRecon inventory, data collection and reporting (not consolidation planning).