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Pirate Bay ditches servers and switches to the cloud

October 18, 2012 | Author: admin

Looking for new ways to avoid raids and the seizure of its information-full servers, the file-sharing service moves all of its content to the cloud.

In the midst of threats of a possible police raid, the Pirate Bay decided to armor itself and become literally raid-proof. It's ditched its servers and moved to several cloud-hosting providers in different countries around the world.

"Slowly and steadily we are getting rid of our earthly form and ascending into the next stage, the cloud," the Pirate Bay wrote in a blog post. "Our data flows around in thousands of clouds, in deeply encrypted forms, ready to be used when necessary. Earth bound nodes that transform the data are as deeply encrypted and reboot into a deadlock if not used for 8 hours."

Switching to the cloud makes sense for the file hosting service -- it cuts down on resources and should reduce the site's downtown for users, according to TorrentFreak. Additionally, the data should be more secure since it's not being hosted in just one place.

"Moving to the cloud lets TPB move from country to country, crossing borders seamlessly without downtime," the Pirate Bay told TorrentFreak. "All the servers don't even have to be hosted with the same provider, or even on the same continent."

The file-sharing service has taken several steps to buffer itself against a possible shut down by the authorities. It first got rid of trackers, then it tossed its torrents in February and started using magnet links, and now it's servers are gone.

"All attempts to attack The Pirate Bay from now on is an attack on everything and nothing," it said in the blog post. "The site that you're at will still be here, for as long as we want it to. Only in a higher form of being. A reality to us. A ghost to those who wish to harm us."

Since March, the Swedish authorities have taken down one of the site's kingpins in a high-profile arrest and extradition from Cambodia to Sweden. Gottfried Svartholm Warg, who is one of the co-founders of the file-sharing service, is now being tried on charges of hacking tax records in Sweden.

The Swedish authorities have become increasingly more serious about clamping down on sites that deal in copyright infringement. Earlier this month, they raided Web host PRQ and seized a handful of servers for Web sites that allegedly partook in illegal file sharing. The Pirate Bay used to be hosted by PRQ but no longer uses this provider.

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Microsoft Acquires Leader In Cloud-integrated Storage

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

October 17, 2012

Michael Harper for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

Everyone is moving to the cloud these days, and Microsoft is no exception. Of course, theyve been in the cloud for some time now with their Azure infrastructure, but yesterday the Redmond company took their offerings one step further, opening up opportunities for a new kind of customer. In addition to offering a cloud-based platform with Azure, Microsoft now plans to persuade large enterprises to store their data in the cloud, thanks to their latest acquisition: StorSimple.

Microsoft announced the deal yesterday without disclosing any financial details, saying they wanted to help customers more efficiently embrace hybrid cloud computing.

Customers faced with explosive growth in data are looking to the cloud to help them store, manage and archive that data, explained Michael Park, corporate vice president of servers and tools at Microsoft in the press release.

But, to be effective, cloud storage needs to integrate with ITs current investments. StorSimples approach helps customers seamlessly integrate on-premises storage with cloud storage through intelligent automation and management.

The 3-year old StorSimple began shipping their racks to customers this spring. StorSimples approach to cloud storage is a simple one. Customers buy the racks and backup all of their data to them, leaving the primary copy onsite. These racks then automatically archive the data and send a copy to the cloud, not only creating a redundant backup but also moving this backup offsite. Therefore, in the case of disaster, its very likely a company will still have complete access to their data.

Mike Volpi, an investor with Index Ventures, has been working as an advisor to StorSimple since the beginning. He explains StorSimples operation to Venture Beat this way: The StorSimple device sits in between the cloud storage infrastructure and its applications, and makes it look like they are talking to a local disk.

While in the cloud, StorSimple works with several other cloud-based services, such as Amazon, Google, Rackspace and even Microsofts Azure. According to StorSimple, bringing their technology and hardware to Microsofts team made sense, considering their customers choices in cloud services.

Most StorSimple customers are mainstream IT organizations that have chosen Windows Azure as their primary cloud. We are excited to continue to work with Microsoft and bring the combined benefits of StorSimple and Windows Azure to customers around the world, said Ursheet Parikh, co-founder and CEO, StorSimple in the press release.

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Citrix and NetApp Collaborate to Simplify Cloud Storage

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

BARCELONA, SPAIN--(Marketwire - Oct 17, 2012) - Today at Citrix Synergy, Citrix and NetApp announced an extension of their current collaboration aimed at accelerating the adoption of enterprise cloud deployments. Together, Citrix and NetApp will provide a fully integrated cloud orchestration and storage solution that will address storage automation, resource allocation, and virtual machine backup and recovery. The move greatly simplifies cloud storage deployment for the companies' mutual customers and will result in faster transitions to private and hybrid clouds.

Over the past few years, cloud computing has evolved from a simple public compute utility model that addressed the needs of individual developers to one that has fundamentally shifted how enterprises deliver, manage, and consume IT services throughout their organizations.

Today, product integrations with NetApp storage enable Citrix CloudPlatform to discover and seamlessly incorporate NetApp storage as primary and secondary storage. Moving forward, collaboration between the two companies will build on this existing success with a focus on combining NetApp unified storage solutions and Data ONTAP, the world's number one storage operating system, with both Citrix CloudPlatform and the Apache CloudStack project, providing users with a cloud-ready storage environment that will optimize storage utilization, simplify maintenance, and accelerate the transition to an agile data infrastructure.

Key Highlights These integrations between Citrix and NetApp technology will focus on the following capabilities:

Current Customers Using NetApp Storage on CloudPlatform Jrgen Heinrich, Managing Director, Kommunale Informationsverarbeitung Baden-Franken (KIVBF) "As an IT services provider for more than 600 cities and counties in southwestern Germany, we are transforming the way local governments provide services to citizens by working with Citrix and its partners to develop 'trusted cloud,' an award-winning cloud solution for the public sector. Using Citrix cloud solutions to build a standardized cloud architecture and self-service portal, we made it simple to provision desktops and applications using the cloud to 40,000 public sector users literally 'out of the socket.' We also implemented NetApp storage into our solution architecture due to its storage power, ease of integration, and interoperability with Citrix solutions."

Cyrano Rizzo, Manager of IT Infrastructure, University of So Paulo "As the largest public university in Brazil, USP attracts students and researchers worldwide. The university decided moving to the cloud was the best decision to rein in disparate data centers, reduce redundancy, centralize data and applications, and provide users with self-service access. Because of their proven integration, the university selected Citrix CloudPlatform as the foundation for CloudUSP and NetApp for both primary and secondary storage."

Supporting Quotes

Sameer Dholokia, Vice President and General Manager, Cloud Platforms Group, Citrix "NetApp supporting Cloud Platform powered by Apache CloudStack is an excellent proof point that this open source software project is offering customers the collaborative-based process they need. We are excited to learn that NetApp will integrate its storage solutions with Apache CloudStack and Citrix CloudPlatform, and we look forward to the opportunities this will offer our joint customers."

Patrick Rogers, Vice President, Data Center Platforms, NetApp "The Citrix Cloud Platform powered by Apache CloudStack provides our mutual enterprise customers worldwide with a simple, easy-to-deploy architecture for transitioning from current IT infrastructure silos to private and hybrid clouds. The platform continues to gain momentum, and NetApp looks forward to working with Citrix on integration work that helps accelerate the transition to a shared, agile data infrastructure."

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5 Cloud Business Benefits

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

One of the benefits of cloud computing is increased efficiency; services are rapidly deployed and ready for use in a matter of minutes versus the weeks or months it traditionally takes. But there is more to cloud computing than just getting your compute resources, storage capacity or application as a service within minutes. Based on personal experience with cloud consumers, here are the top five business benefits beyond efficiency.

Business agility

Getting the compute resources you need when you need them tends to shorten IT projects resulting in less FTE to deliver the project and a quicker and more predictive time-to-market. Being able to deliver results faster, cheaper and with more quality might just give your business a competitive edge and make her more nimble on her feet. I have seen a data analytics project being reduced from 4 months to just 3 weeks, reducing the projects time-to-market and overall cost significantly.

New business models

It has become much easier to start business innovation initiatives, often enabled by readily available cloud services. Utilizing or combining these services can result in new and innovative business models, generating new value propositions and resulting in new revenue streams. There are even companies that are building entirely new business models and value propositions solely using cloud services. I see this last category especially in small and medium enterprises, but also think of Spotify, and BitCasa.

Less operational issues

Utilizing standardized services can significantly reduce issues and defects. This increases business continuity and reduce time spent on operational issues, focusing more on the things that matter. Cloud computing allows you to deploy the same service or topology of services repetitively, with the same result every time. This allows organizations to predicatively deploy pre-build server images, application services or entire application landscapes defined using design patterns.

Better use of resources

On the other side of the business agility model, more efficient projects and less operational issues allow your employees to spend their time on other more useful activities that may offer a greater potential value to your business. This benefit is different for every organization and harder to quantify, but people are an organizations biggest asset and this allows you to better utilize this asset.

Another take on better resource usage is based on the fact the principle of economies of scale; cloud service providers, in general, more efficiently utilize physical resources and reduce energy consumption in contract to a traditional IT approach.

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Pano Logic and Alliance InfoSystems Join Forces to Deliver Zero Client Computing

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

REDWOOD CITY, CA--(Marketwire - Oct 17, 2012) - Pano Logic, the leader in zero client desktop virtualization and desktop in the cloud computing, today announced that Alliance InfoSystems, LLC (AIS) of Baltimore, MD, has joined Pano Logic's value-added reseller program for North America. AIS joins a growing network of Pano resellers that assist organizations with radically centralizing desktop computing and slashing their total cost of ownership (TCO) with the Pano System.

AIS partnered with Pano Logic in early spring 2012, and brings to the relationship an important distinction in the state of Maryland. AIS is certified by Maryland Education Enterprise Consortium (MEEC), which provides members opportunities to license the use of education hardware and software along with relevant services including training and interaction. With this certification, AIS can distribute Pano Logic products to the state's public and private K-16+ institutions, public libraries and museums.

"We see our partnership with Pano Logic as a strategic development in our business and to the state of Maryland," Swadesh Guchhait, CEO of AIS, said. "By partnering with manufacturers like Pano Logic, we are meeting the growing demand for cloud and virtualization technologies. Pano Logic best positions our company to meet the needs of the marketplace."

Pano Logic's purpose-built zero client solution for desktop virtualization and cloud computing is sold through strategic channel partners that have core expertise in virtual infrastructure and/or cloud desktop computing. Many have also invested in Pano Logic technical certification and sales training, learning to assess, deploy and optimize Pano Logic across a range of network infrastructures. Partners ensure that Pano Logic pilot programs are deployed successfully and provide the guidance needed to calculate TCO to achieve buy-in within the organization.

"We have already realized the benefits from our partnership with Alliance, both in sales and in expanding our channel of reseller partners," Ethan O'Rafferty, vice president of alliances and channel development, Pano Logic, said. "We believe Alliance will play an important role in transforming the desktop virtualization market and we're happy to have them on board."

Pano Logic's endpoint device, the Pano Zero Client, represents the only true zero client desktop virtualization solution on the market. It is a solid-state device that has no processor, no storage, no memory and no operating system. The Pano Zero Client completely eliminates endpoint support and maintenance, fully enabling the benefits of centralized management of a Windows desktop environment and eliminates endpoint dependence in a cloud environment. The small form factor consumes 97 percent less power than PCs, 50 percent less power than thin clients or other so-called zero clients, and do not store data locally, fully eliminating endpoint security liabilities.

To learn more about Alliance InfoSystems and the partnership with Pano Logic, please email sales@panologic.com.

About Pano Logic Inc.

Pano Logic is the leader in Zero Client Desktop Computing.Pano Logic's innovative desktop virtualization(VDI)hardware and software solution-- the Pano System-- redefinesthe delivery and management of end user computing by radically centralizingdesktop management. The Pano Logic zero client VDI platform is a completeend-to-end solution purpose-built for desktop virtualization, simplifying thecomplexity and management of virtual desktops and slashing TCO by as much as 80percent. Pano System for Cloud delivers web-based computing through Google's Chrome browser andeliminates the need for a local operating system and central processing unit. Both platforms utilize the patent-pending Pano Directtechnology, which eliminates the need for costly processing power at theendpoint, making it possible to have an endpoint device that contains NOprocessor, NO operating system, NO memory, NO drivers, NO firmware, NOsoftware, NOR any moving parts, completely eliminating endpoint management andsecurity breaches, while slashing energy consumption by 97 percent as comparedto a PC. The Pano generation of computing, built for virtualization, can plugand play into 99 percent of all hypervisor infrastructures, including VMwareView, Microsoft Hyper-V and Citrix XenDesktop, and interoperate with theirmanagement systems. To learn more, visithttp://www.panologic.com.

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Dell Extends Cloud Client Computing Portfolio with New Solutions Validated by Citrix

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

BARCELONA, Spain--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Dell today is announcing new additions and enhancements to its end-to-end cloud client computing portfolio. The solutions, which are specific to Citrix-based IT environments and now available in the US and Europe, are easy to select, deploy, and support, and deliver a cost effective and highly secure user experience to any device anywhere.

End-to-End Dell Desktop Virtualization Solutions with Citrix Products

Dell is unveiling new vStart for VDI Citrix XenDesktop 5.6 reference architectures today. Available in two configurations, vStart for VDI 50 and vStart for VDI 1000 are pre-engineered, pre-built and pre-integrated converged solutions that include Dell's PowerEdge servers, EqualLogic or Compellent storage, PowerConnect or Force10 networking, Dell Wyse T10, Dell Wyse Xenith Pro and now Dell Wyse Xenith 2 thin- and zero-clients and management plug-ins. These VDI infrastructure solutions leverage XenDesktop and help organizations achieve benefits of desktop virtualization in a rapid, highly secure manner.

Dell is also updating its DVS Simplified Appliance this month to specifically address the cost and complexity challenges of virtual desktop adoption with new flexible server form factors, support for new hypervisors and additional new capabilities including:

In addition, beginning this month, Dell will offer optional Managed Services to organizations using Dell DVS Enterprise based on Citrix XenDesktop, a purpose-built, flexible, and highly scalable VDI architecture. Dell Managed Services enables IT organizations to outsource the management of their virtual desktop system and desktop environment so internal IT resources can focus on strategic projects. These service options include remote monitoring and remediation, 24x7 service desk support and incident management, monthly reporting and subscription billing, image management, and patch management.

Finally, Dell channel partners in the US and Europe now have access to Dells PartnerDirect Desktop Virtualization Solutions Competency and Cloud Client Computing Partner Advisor, via the Dell PartnerDirect Portal, to better serve their customers desktop virtualization needs.

New Cloud Clients with Citrix HDX 3D Support

Dell, the market leader in thin-clients, is announcing new support for Citrix HDX 3D technology for zero- and thin-clients, enabling organizations to virtualize and centrally deliver 3D graphics intensive applications and high performing desktops with like native OS performance. Citrix HDX 3D support is now available on the Dell Wyse Z90D7 and Dell Wyse X90m7 Windows Embedded Standard 7 fixed and mobile thin-clients and the Dell Wyse Xenith 2 zero-client. The Xenith 2 is now shipping and offers outstanding performance, energy efficiency, and security while being 30 percent smaller and boasting greater display capabilities and affordability than its predecessor.

Dells new end-to-end cloud client computing and desktop virtualization solutions, including Imprivata's OneSign No Click Access integrated with Dell Wyse thin- and zero-clients, will be showcased at Citrix Synergy Barcelona starting Oct. 17 in Stand #201.

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AirWatch Receives 2012 Cloud Computing Excellence Award

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

AirWatch, the global leader and innovator in mobile security, Mobile Device Management (MDM), Mobile Application Management (MAM), Mobile Content Management (MCM), Mobile Email Management (MEM) and BYOD management announced that TMC, a global, integrated media company, named AirWatch as a 2012 Cloud Computing Excellence Award winner presented by Cloud Computing Magazine.

The Cloud Computing Excellence Awards recognize companies that have most effectively leveraged cloud computing in their efforts to bring new, differentiated offerings to the market.

AirWatchs cloud deployment delivers the scale to support one device to more than 100,000 devices. With quick deployment and minimal effort, there is no significant investment in technology or installation services required by organizations. Maintenance and upgrades are handled by AirWatch with the ability to easily transfer to on-premise deployment at any time.

AirWatch is proud to be distinguished by Cloud Computing Magazine for our industry-leading cloud deployment platform, says John Marshall, CEO, AirWatch. While providing the same functionality through cloud or on-premise deployments, our solution exceeds the individual security requirements through our world-class redundant data centers. As more companies migrate to our affordable cloud solution, we enjoy knowing we provide the pinnacle of enterprise mobility management.

AirWatch has been recognized for their achievement in bringing innovation and excellence to the market while leveraging the latest technology trends to create an enriched user experience, said Erik Linask, Group Editorial Director, TMC.

AirWatchs cloud deployment provides multiple redundant data centers and best-in-class hardware, including Cisco, F5, EMC and Dell. With high availability and a standard Service-level Agreement (SLA) providing solution uptime greater than 99.9 percent, the AirWatch, Atlanta-based Network Operations Center (NOC) provides comprehensive support around the clock.

AirWatch understands the importance of industry standards and follows best practices, including: ISO 27000-series, Payment Card Industry (PCI), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Standards for Attestation Engagements 16 (SSAE-16). Our certifications demonstrate our commitment to preserving the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data, while also implementing appropriate security measures and monitoring systems.

Recognizing leaders in the advancement of cloud computing, TMC is proud to announce AirWatch as a recipient of the second annual Cloud Computing Excellence Award, said Rich Tehrani, CEO, TMC. AirWatch has demonstrated innovation as well as the ability to improve the cloud.

Winners of the Cloud Computing Excellence Award are published in the October 2012 issue of Cloud Computing Magazine.

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Cloud firm invests in new network

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

17 October 2012 Last updated at 07:01 ET

Cloud computing firm Iomart is to invest millions of pounds in a new optical fibre network for its six UK data centre locations.

The Glasgow-based company said the move meant it would no longer have to rely on routing customers' connectivity via multiple providers.

Geo Networks Ltd will deliver the network under a 10-year agreement.

Iomart said it would significantly boost its current capacity and national reach.

The new fibre network will provide a 1,860km (1,150 miles) "business critical fibre superhighway" linking Iomart's six data centres in London, Glasgow, Manchester, Maidenhead, Nottingham and Leicester.

The company said connectivity between its Glasgow and London data centres would be four times faster than the current industry average.

Chief executive Angus MacSween said: "We are investing millions of pounds over the next decade to give Iomart one of the fastest and most resilient fibre networks of any cloud computing company in the UK.

"Customers on our network will have the fastest connections allowing them to move huge amounts of data at the highest speeds wherever they are located.

"It allows us to take our network right up to our customers' doors which is of huge benefit to organisations wanting secure, private cloud environments."

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The Pirate Bay ditches its servers, sets sail for the cloud

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

The Pirate Bay's home page announces the site's move to the cloud.

The Pirate Bay is getting rid of its physical servers and exchanging them for virtual machines spread across multiple cloud services. By hosting its infrastructure in multiple data centers and even multiple countries, the widely used torrent site says it will avoid being shut down by authorities targeting BitTorrent sites.

Numerous torrent sites went offline earlier this month after a Swedish police raid of the hosting company PRQ, which was launched by the founders of The Pirate Bay. The Pirate Bay itself wasn't affected by that raid because it had already stopped relying on PRQ for hosting. But it has been the target of raids on previous occasions, and has suffered downtime because of the types of IT hassles that afflict most businesses. Moving to the cloud will help on both counts.

On its Facebook page, The Pirate Bay said "we've gotten rid of the servers," and "We're about to become even more untouchable." In a bit of excited hyperbole, it also said "Our data flows around in thousands of clouds, in deeply encrypted forms, ready to be used when necessary. Earth bound nodes that transform the data are as deeply encrypted and reboot into a deadlock if not used for 8 hours. All attempts to attack The Pirate Bay from now on is an attack on everything and nothing."

A few months ago, The Pirate Bay said it had plans to build aerial server drones using Raspberry Pi computers.In reality, The Pirate Bay switched from its own infrastructure to those of cloud providers yesterday, going through five minutes of downtime while the changeover was made. The new infrastructure is being hosted with "several cloud hosting providers" in two countries, torrent news site TorrentFreak reported today.

If one cloud-provider cuts us off, goes offline or goes bankrupt, we can just buy new virtual servers from the next provider. Then we only have to upload the VM-images and reconfigure the load-balancer to get the site up and running again," a Pirate Bay spokesperson told TorrentFreak.

The Pirate Bay still maintains its own load balancer and transit routers, to hide the location of its cloud providers and encrypt traffic to prevent user data from being exposed, the article states.

"The worst case scenario is that The Pirate Bay loses both its transit router and its load balancer," TorrentFreak writes. "All the important data is backed up externally on VMs that can be reinstalled at cloud hosting providers anywhere in the world.

If the police decide to raid us again there are no servers to take, just a transit router," The Pirate Bay said. "If they follow the trail to the next country and find the load balancer, there is just a disk-less server there. In case they find out where the cloud provider is, all they can get are encrypted disk-images."

A less optimistic viewpoint comes from ExtremeTech, which points out that there are still plausible ways for authorities to take The Pirate Bay offline. "The load balancer will be hosted with a major ISPand its easy enough for the feds to compel an ISP to pull the plug," ExtremeTech wrote, noting that installing a new load balancer isn't cheap or easy.

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The Pirate Bay site moves to the cloud

October 17, 2012 | Author: admin

Published: Oct. 17, 2012 at 3:14 PM

LONDON, Oct. 17 (UPI) -- File-sharing website The Pirate Bay, which started in Sweden, says it has moved its servers to the cloud to block attempts to take it offline or shut it down.

The site, which has come under attack for allegedly encouraging illegal sharing of copyright material, said it would now operate from cloud-hosting providers around the world, the BBC reported Wednesday.

Its new cloud-based servers use the Internet for storage and do not have to be hosted with the same provider, or even on the same continent, making it resistant to efforts to close it down, the site said in a statement.

"All attempts to attack [us] from now on is an attack on everything and nothing," it said.

In 2006, police in Sweden raided the offices of The Pirate Bay, shutting down its servers and taking the site offline.

Since then it has been hosted on servers in several different locations around the world.

"Moving to the cloud lets TPB move from country to country, crossing borders seamlessly without downtime," a Pirate Bay representative told the TorrentFreak website.

"The hosting providers have no idea that they're hosting The Pirate Bay, and even in the event they found out it would be impossible for them to gather data on the users," the representative said.

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