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VMware is adding support for 64-bit operating systems, such as Sun Microsystems Solaris 10 and Microsofts Windows Vista, to its Lab Manager virtualization testing software.
Version 2.5 of the Palo Alto, Calif., companys software, released July 9, also includes support for iSCSI and NFS (Network File System) storage for keeping virtual machine libraries. Previous versions of Lab Manager supported Fibre Channel SANs (storage area networks).
In 2006, VMware launched the first version of Lab Manager, which was based on technology the company acquired when it bought Akimbi Systems in June of last year.
Lab Manager enables companies to set aside data center resources for application development and testing, which allows for better quality assurance. The software also automates provisioning of these resources and lets IT managers remotely access an enterprises software labs.
In addition to expanded support for storage options, 64-bit operating systems and virtual SMP (symmetric multiprocessing) guest operating systems, Lab Manager 2.5 includes additional management capabilities that allow administrators to set policies for cleaning up and removing unused VMs in a system, which frees up compute resources. The new features also allow managers to better calculate the amount of disk space available.
These updated capabilities are designed to make it easier for managers to control virtual environments; check on compute resources contained in both physical and virtual machines; and offer a better, easier-to-use interface, said James Phillips, senior director of virtual software life-cycle automation solutions for VMware.
“We wanted to build out a set of tools and management capabilities, as a lot of our customers are starting to scale out and find themselves with hundreds of users on just a single server,” Phillips said. “This allows them to keep track of which virtualization environment is in use and which ones they can clean up and move to the storage library.”
In addition to the Lab Manager update, Phillips said two test automation suites—Borland Softwares SilkCentral Test Manager and Genilogixs new beta for Hewlett-Packards Quality Center—will now be integrated with Lab Manager.
Lab Manager 2.5 is available now, priced starting at $15,000. Customers can also purchase a version bundled with VMwares Infrastructure 3 for $35,000, according to company officials.