Dell: On-demand Cloud Compute Won't Kill On-Premise Servers

Despite a maturing Cloud sector making the procurement of virtual servers an increasingly attractive alternate to physical ones, Dell has no fears that sales of its mid-range hardware will decline any time soon.

According to Dell's A/NZ managing director, Joe Kremer, Dell's share in the server market had accelerated in recent months despite competitive Cloud offerings. "In the last 12 months, the rate at which we are gaining share has accelerated -- similarly with storage," he claimed. "I think people are going to naturally migrate to value."

Kremer also claimed Dell's strategy was paying dividends against Sun despite its acquisition by Oracle. "If you have a strategy which... tells customers, 'first, throw everything you have in the garbage, then buy everything new but only from me, then buy all this software, and consulting and managed services people and embed them in your organisation, and you can never change, and it is potentially very expensive' then there are only a subset of people who are going to go down that path," he said.

"We have a software stack and toolset which, we think, is best in industry and will quite happily run other people's hardware and manage those environments. If you implement Dell and two years later decide you don't like us anymore, you can change."

Recent data from Gartner would appear to back up Kremer's argument, with the analyst firm finding that in the Asia Pacific, Q3 2010 server sales grew some 25.7 per cent over Q3 2009.

Dell's sales over the same period increased 21 per cent, while share increased against declines in HP and IBM's share. However, Oracle did manage to increase share over the same period by 0.6 per cent and increase sales by 18.8 per cent.

Globally, however, Oracle declined 2.6 per cent in sales and slipped 1.2 per cent in share over the same period. Dell share increased 0.8 per cent and sales increased 25.6 per cent.

Tablet PCs won't cannibalise desktops and laptops

Commenting on the potential of tablet PCs equipped with add-on keyboards to be an attractive alternative to desktop PCs and laptops, Kremer said the company

"I always worry, but I worry about lots of other things that might or could happen," he said. "If someone needs to do a lot of data input, more often than not, it is just a little easier with a laptop or a desktop and a substantial screen. I carry a Streak [tablet], but when I have to do a lot of email or open attachments it is just easier to use [a laptop or PC].

"I don't think everyone will rush of [and standardise on tablet PCs]. I think there are some security questions that people have, and as you see more devices from Dell which fit into our eco-system, which have broad tech support or pro support offerings I think we will continue to be successful."

Despite this, Kremer said it was possible that refresh cycles in three years' time could see organisations standardising on iPads or Android-based tablet PCs in the place of laptops or desktops.

"I think it's a possibility, but thin client is a possibility and other virtualised implementations of a thin client are a possibility... that said, we are continuing to gain share in the desktop and laptop client space."

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Okta's Service Offers Single Sign-on for All Cloud Apps

While using cloud-based applications solves some problems for IT administrators, it also creates new ones, including how to handle user identity management.

Startup Okta, led by the former head of Salesforce.com's engineering group, says it has the solution. For six months it has been quietly offering a hosted identity management service for companies to manage their cloud services, and it is now formally launching the company.

Two early customers include Pandora and Enterasys. Pandora runs almost 30 cloud applications, and users were continually forgetting passwords or URLs and turning to IT for support, said Todd McKinnon, CEO of Okta.

Enterasys has more than 1,000 employees using around 20 software-as-a-service apps. Before Salesforce.com referred it to Okta, Enterasys did some internal custom development to try to connect the hosted services to Windows Active Directory as a way to make it easier for users to access the services.

"It was maybe a bit unstable at times," admitted Ben Doyle, director of IT applications for Enterasys.

Plus, the system needed frequent maintenance to keep up with updates from the hosted services, McKinnon said.

Okta is now serving both Pandora and Enterasys as well as others with its hosted offering that integrates all the SaaS services a company uses with Active Directory. Employees visit a home page that looks like an internally branded site and sign in using their existing Windows password. From there, they can access any of the hosted services.

The service offers IT administrators user management tools as well as information about use of the services. From the administrator console, an IT manager can give individual employees rights to access hosted services. Currently, administrators can choose from around 200 SaaS applications that are integrated into Okta. McKinnon said Okta plans to constantly add new applications.

Enterasys has asked Okta to add support for applications and Okta has been able to turn around and provide it quickly, Doyle said. Usually Okta has had the integration available for testing within a couple of days with full production availability in a week or two, he said.

IT managers can also use Okta to easily delete user permissions when employees leave the company or change jobs. That capability was of major interest to Doyle. While his IT department manages most of the cloud services employees use, a couple are administered by different departments. While IT had a process for deleting accounts for employees who left the company, sometimes the administrators in other departments wouldn't do the same. That meant someone who had left the company could have potentially accessed sensitive data, depending on the applications the employee was using.

"That was the real security hole I wanted to plug," Doyle said.

In addition, Okta shows IT administrators if employees are actually using individual services. That can help IT departments keep costs down by eliminating subscriptions for people who aren't using services.

It's a feature Doyle really appreciates. "For me, one of the most important things is managing adoption early in the process," he said. "If you have good visibility into who's logging in and when, it's good data to have but it also gives you the opportunity to reach out to people. If you see a new user log in who hasn't before, you can send an e-mail or pick up the phone and say, 'did it go OK.'"

While some of the hosted applications Enterasys uses offer that kind of user data, some don't. Plus, Okta offers it all from a centralized location. The Okta service also warns IT administrators about potential security issues, such as when someone tries to log in but fails a certain number of times.

Okta is initially focusing on companies with up to around 1,000 employees but expects to grow to accommodate large enterprises, McKinnon said. The service costs US$12 per user per month.

For Doyle, because Okta uses Active Directory, it serves as an important tool to unite cloud-based and on-premise apps. "It makes all of our cloud apps behave the same way as our on-premise apps behave," he said. "We want to get to the point where our users can't tell if they're logging into a cloud app or an on-premise app."

Nancy Gohring covers mobile phones and cloud computing for The IDG News Service. Follow Nancy on Twitter at @idgnancy. Nancy's e-mail address is Nancy_Gohring@idg.com

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Cloud b Sleep Sheep - Four Soothing Sounds From Nature

Soothe your child into a restful, relaxing nap or night of sleep with the Sleep Sheep from Cloud b. This soft and adorable sleep time pal plays calming sounds that help drown out distracting noises and let baby drift into dreams.

Four Soothing Sounds Winner of several industry awards, including the National Parenting Council's Seal of Approval and the iParenting Media Award, the Sleep Sheep is plush and very cuddly, so it immediately gives a restless child something pleasing and calming to hold on to. It also creates a tranquil environment with four soothing sounds, from Mother's heartbeat (a steady thumping) to the gentle rhythms of nature. You and baby will both relax as you listen to the quiet stream, spring showers, swooshing ocean waves and harmonious whale sounds, making the Sleep Sheep a kind of audio pacifier that helps take some of the stress and crankiness out of rest time. Perfect for Naptime Many babies find it hard to settle in their cribs when noises from both inside and outside the house distract and disrupt them. They crave repetitive, comforting rhythms that don't frighten them. The Sleep Sheep creates a kind of white noise that blocks out the other surrounding sounds, so babies can be lulled into sleep. This parents-little-helper also comes with a Velcro tab so you can secure the Sleep Sheep to the outside of a crib. User-Friendly Operation The Sleep Sheep features user-friendly operation that both big and little hands can handle. Select sounds by simply pressing the push button, and then choose the most comfortable volume. For added convenience and to save battery power, the sounds automatically time out after 23 minutes--enough time for baby to fall into a comfortable and restorative sleep. Compact and lightweight, the Sleep Sheep stands 12 inches tall and takes two "AA" batteries (included). The sound box removes if your child simply wants to use the Sleep Sheep as a stuffed toy, and clean-up is a snap--just wipe the surface with soap and water. About Cloud b Cloud b, the baby sleep specialist, was established by two new mothers with the philosophy that every baby deserves a sound night's sleep for healthy development. That's why all of Cloud b's products are developed in consultation with an advisory board of pediatricians and sleep specialists with a single focus: to achieve a better, safer sleep for baby. What's in the Box One Sleep Sheep and two "AA" batteries.

The Sleep Sheep offers: Cuddly plush toy that provides soothing sounds. Built-in Velcro strap for easy attachment to strollers and car seats. Timer shuts off the sound after either 23 or 45 minutes. Shown here together with smaller, on-the-go Sleep Sheep.

Price: $28.00

Click here to buy from Amazon