Maritz: VMware's Virtual DataCenter OS, VMware View is better next gen operating system than Windows and Hyper-V

In a direct stab at his old employer, VMware CEO Paul Maritz launched today the next generation OS: the virtual datacenter operating system from VMware.

Forget about Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V. VMware's future 'Virtual Datacenter OS' is a set of services that will allow customers to "pool all types of hardware resources - servers, storage and network – into an aggregated on-premise cloud – and, when needed, safely federate workloads to external clouds for additional compute capacity, "according to a release issued today at VMworld.

Of course, VMware's next generation OS is just a blueprint and a roadmap of features and capabilities and products VMware is working on for its customers. It did not appear that any of the major promised vservices (as described below) are coming soon. It is important to note, however, that Maritz chose to use the words 'operating system' as a way to dismantle Microsoft's Hyper-V pitch, which asserts that the Windows server comes with the recently released Hyper-V virtualization services for free, a part of the traditional operating system.

VMware is trying to impress upon its customers and other that its more mature virtualization platform is increasingly evolving into an operating system, and one that is far more adept at handling data center operations, cloud computing and service provider needs than the Windows server with Hyper-V.

This is what the press release states:

"Unlike a traditional OS, which is optimized for a single server and supports only those applications written to its interfaces, the VDC-OS serves as the OS for the entire datacenter and supports the full diversity of any application written to any OS, from legacy Windows applications to modern distributed applications that run in mixed operating system environments."

During his keynote, Maritz, a former longtime exec at Microsoft who left the company in 2000, let it be known that the future extended set of services -- Application vServices (including fault tolerance and data recovery), Cloud vServices, Infrastructure vServices and Management vServices -- will blow traditional platforms out of the water and turn any corporate infrastructure into a bona fide service provider.

"Our IT customers will be more "cloud like" in terms of their internal operations and behave more like a cloud operation or hosting provider, Maritz told many gathered for the VMworld speech, which was webcast on Tuesday from VMworld. "They will use their infrastructure more efficiently and provision their applications more flexibly. We will allow you to federate with the external clouds and stop the 'desktop dilemma" with support for both thin client and thick client technologies, he said.

Among the new application vServices: VMsafe, for security; the vApp solution for creating self managing VMs, and vStudio tool for creating virtual appliances. VMware also committed to supporting very large virtual machines with up to 8 virtual CPUs and 256 GB of RAM and VMDirectpath, which offers enhanced network and storage I/O performance.

VMware also promises a set of infrastructure services including vStorage Thin Provisioning and vStorage Linked Clones , which reportedly allows users to reduce storage use by as much as 50 percent. The slated vNetwork Distributed Switch, which enables a sort of network vMotion, ultimately enables delivery of  cluster wide virtual networking services.

The new vManagement services coming down the pike will include, according to the press release:  vCenter ConfigControl extends policy-based change and configuration management with automated enforcement across every aspect of the VDC-OS • vCenter CapacityIQ continuously analyzes and plans capacity to ensure optimal sizing of virtual machines, resource pools and the entire datacenters • vCenter Chargeback enables automated tracking of costs and chargeback to the business enabling IT to function as a utility with true visibility into operating costs • vCenter Orchestrator enables the development of customized workflows that automate operational tasks through a simple drag and drop interface, without the need for scripting • vCenter AppSpeed automatically ensures application performance levels. It monitors end user response time for applications, correlates these response times with different elements in the infrastructure, and triggers remedial actions to alleviate bottlenecks.

These new management products complement vCenter Server – the central management console for the Virtual Datacenter OS, VMware Lifecycle Manager for automated provisioning, Lab Manager for application development and Stage Manager for application deployment.

Maritz also announced VMware's new vClient Inititiative, which goes far beyond the VDI platform of today. To be developed under the VMWare View brand, the set of new client technologies will support VDI and synthesize both thin client and thick client protocols to create more "unified" client experience for customers, Maritz said.