Cisco-first 3rd party virtual switch for Vmware:

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VMware will allow 3rd party vendors to develop their virtual switches for ESX Server virtual network, and Cisco is expected to be the first company announcing such product (Virtual Catalyst?).
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The original info and scoop on this story is located here.

Microsoft 26min webcast explanation of Virtualization and licensing:

Read more and see the video here.

New Free ESX Manager 2.1 Tool looks very cool:

This information originally appeared on vmblog.com.

Quoting from that site:

Features:

Virtual Center independent
Keeps track of Virtual Machine Host Registration, Migrations and Status
Manage Virtual Machine Configuration
Display and work in the Virtual Machine Console
Kill Virtual Machine Process (if the VM can't be powered off)
Rename Virtual Disks of registered Virtual Machines
Move Virtual Disks and keep the disk attached to the Virtual Machine
Virtual Machine Registration, Start , Restart , Reset, Power Off, Suspend
Extend Virtual Disks
View-Search-Filter Logfiles on the ESX Host.
Define and save custom SSH commands with Parameter handling
Publish and share custom SSH commands with other ESX Administrators

You can download ESX Manager 2.1, here.

You can also download screenshots and a feature list, here.

Per Vmware testing: 67% more VMs on Intel quad-core CPU than dual-core:

Virtualization.info has info here.

Read the full ariticle from blogs.vmware.com.

How to use Active Directory to identify / track virtual machines:

As organizations become more and more virtual, it is becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate between physical and virtual servers. Some administrators append "_vm" to the host names of each virtual machine. However, many organizations do not prefer this approach, as any name change could impact how users and applications access the VM's data. Changing a server's name after it has been converted to a VM may also impact the server's locally installed applications and services. When administrators rename a server following a physical to virtual (P2V) migration, they often use CNAME records in DNS to ensure name resolution transparency. Still, this approach adds additional complexity to managing server resources. Another way to identify server objects as either physical or virtual is by making use of each computer object's Description attribute in Active Directory. Some organizations already use the Description attribute to identify a computer's location, department, or role. With that in mind, making use of the Description attribute may require you to be concise in how you identify physical or virtual objects.

Continue to the full article here.

Forrester predicts Microsoft will not impact the virtualization market until 2010:

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"In the coming years, VMware will continue to dominate the market for x86 server virtualization, but it face new challenges from Microsoft's Windows Server 2008 and XenSource, according to a new report from Forrester Research.

The July 9 report finds that while Microsoft's soon-to-be-released server product and XenSource's XenEnterprise suite match some of the features found in VMware's products, it will take years for them to dislodge VMware from its spot as the premier provider of virtualization technology. "
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Read the full article at eweek.com.

Microsoft Server 2008 Product Launch will be in 2008:

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Microsoft said it will launch the product, which it has said will be finalized before the end of the year, at an event in Los Angeles on February 27. The company will also launch Visual Studio 2008 and Microsoft SQL Server 2008 at the same event. The company made the announcement at its Worldwide Partner Conference here.
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Read the full article here.

Intel Buys into VMware:

Quoting from vmblog.com:

VMware, Inc., the global leader in software for virtualization solutions today announced that Intel Corporation, through its global investment arm, Intel Capital has agreed to become an investor in VMware. VMware's base virtualization platform virtualizes the Intel architecture. Intel microprocessors comprise the majority of the systems on which VMware's virtualization products are deployed.

Intel Capital will invest $218.5 million in VMware's Class A common stock subject to customary regulatory and other closing conditions including Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) review. At the completion of VMware's planned initial public offering and upon closing of the investment, Intel will own approximately 2.5 percent of VMware's total outstanding common stock (less than one percent of the combined voting power of VMware's outstanding common stock). Pursuant to the investment, an Intel executive is expected to be appointed to the VMware Board of Directors.

Read the Full Story at the source: VMBlog.com

VMworld 2007 Sessions / Content Catalog Now Online:

The VMworld 2007 Content Catalog is now online, listing over 230 breakout sessions across 8 different tracks. This information comes direct from http://www.vmware.com/vmtn.

There are many interesting topics (for a short list see virtualization.info) and it appears we will learn more about Vmware Server 2.0 (perhaps the next evolution for the free Vmware server 1.x product).