EMC Introduces VSPEX Proven Infrastructure

First To Offer Customers Complete Spectrum Of Choice When Moving To Cloud Computing

Simple, Efficient, Flexible Reference Architectures Designed with Brocade, Cisco, Citrix, Intel, Microsoft, and VMware. Proven By EMC. Delivered Exclusively By EMC Velocity Partners.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – April 16, 2012. EMC (NYSE:EMC) today announced EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructure – a simple, efficient, and flexible reference architecture comprised of EMC’s award-winning storage systems and next-generation backup products, along with best-of-breed virtualization, server, and network technology from EMC alliance partners Brocade, Cisco, Citrix, Intel, Microsoft, and VMware.

The fourteen initial VSPEX configurations represent the most popular use cases for customers moving to cloud computing. These use cases are focused on enabling customers to accelerate deployment of private cloud and end user computing environments. For private cloud deployments customers have the option of running VMware vSphere 5.0 or Microsoft Windows Hyper-V from 50-250 virtual machines and for end-user computing deployments customers can choose between VMware View and Citrix XenDesktop® from 50 to 2000 virtual desktops. Full details are available on emc.com. Additional VSPEX configurations will be made available based on partner demand.

VSPEX Proven Infrastructure is now available to partners in the EMC Velocity™ partner program. For the first time partners can fully leverage the EMC brand and industrial design in delivering VSPEX solutions to their customers. In addition EMC is providing VSPEX labs for partners to test, validate and demonstrate new VSPEX solutions.

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To attend the live webcast of the 1:00 p.m. ET launch event being held today in San Francisco, CA hosted by EMC and partner executives click here.

EMC VSPEX Customer Benefits

 VSPEX Is Simple – VSPEX Proven Infrastructures deliver predictable performance that significantly reduces the planning, sizing and configuration burdens of adopting private cloud or end-user computing environments. In addition, EMC’s validation of the VSPEX configuration greatly reduces deployment time. Finally, tight alignment with Windows Server Hyper-V and VMware vSphere cloud infrastructure provide customers a single point of management using System Center for Microsoft cloud and VMware vCenter™ Operations Management Suite for private cloud deployments.

 VSPEX Is Efficient – Built on EMC’s award-winning VNX™ and VNXe™ unified storage systems and Avamar® and Data Domain® next-generation backup products, VSPEX provides customers with unmatched levels of efficiency. Leveraging technologies such as data deduplication, compression and Fully Automated Storage Tiering (FAST), customers can expect to significantly lower operational costs. By integrating these technologies tightly with the hypervisor and end-user computing environments, customers can also benefit from simpler administration and lower management costs.

 VSPEX Is Flexible – VSPEX allows customers to combine their choice of industry-leading server, network, and virtualization technologies into a proven infrastructure validated by EMC and built on a highly flexible EMC storage and backup infrastructure. Additionally, the customer’s channel partner of choice – who understands the specific customer’s requirements – can customize VSPEX to meet their needs.

EMC VSPEX Channel Partner Benefits

 Increased Market Opportunity – With VSPEX, channel partners can now sell complete, highly-flexible solutions to their customers, resulting in a higher attach rate of components, and a bigger sale. VSPEX allows partners the option to mix and match server and network components based on customers’ specific infrastructure and application requirements to improve profitability while optimizing the value delivered to the customer.

 Faster Time to Market – VSPEX offers channel partners complete configuration and sizing guidelines for the most common workloads that can reduce the requirements collection phase of the sales cycle. VSPEX adds significant value to the partner’s sales process by reducing integration and validation costs while still getting all the benefits of delivering complete solutions. EMC is enabling its channel partners with training and technical and sales collateral to help the partner quickly bring VSPEX to market. The broad awareness, integration into EMC campaigns and demand generation tools helps partners to generate leads for their VSPEX solutions.

 Partner Branded and Customizable Solution – VSPEX allows partners to brand their VSPEX solution and increase their mindshare in the customer’s environment.

 VSPEX Labs – Partners can leverage EMC’s investment in the new VSPEX Labs to test additional infrastructures in collaboration with EMC and other VSPEX partners.

Channel Partner Quotes

Andrew J. Cocks – Chief Technology Officer, Dimension Data Asia-Pacific

“Dimension Data is fast becoming a leading Cloud Builder and Cloud Operator, and EMC is our strategic partner in both areas. We are absolutely delighted to be EMC’s VSPEX partner across Asia Pacific - This program will enable us to further collaborate and build on our joint expertise and credentials and position us as credible leaders in both virtualisation and cloud computing. We look forward to working closely with EMC in helping our clients accelerate their journey to the cloud and grow our market share in Asia Pacific.”


Jay Miley, VP and Managing Director Australia and New Zealand, Ingram Micro

“EMC VSPEX is a very important initiative. It enables customers to choose vendor technologies that best meet their virtualization and cloud needs while delivering surety their chosen solutions will work well together. Our role is to ensure our Reseller Partners and their customers have the freedom to choose from a wide variety of Vendor technologies and can deploy robust, multi-Vendor solutions that deliver to their objectives. We have invested, and continue to invest, in highly qualified people (such as our solutions architect team) and resources (such as our Partner Technology Centre) to help our Reseller Partners to do this. It’s pleasing to see that this initiative is so widely supported. A solid reference architecture, such as EMC VSPEX offers, can only strengthen the ecosystem of Vendor Partners we represent through our Enterprise Technology Group.”


Technology Partner Quotes

Charlie Foo, Senior Director for Partner Business Group, Brocade Asia Pacific

“The new VSPEX solutions represent an excellent option for customers looking to introduce greater levels of productivity and IT efficiency by transitioning to the cloud. Brocade’s cloud-optimized networking technologies provide an ideal foundation for the delivery of highly-scalable, best-in-class VSPEX Proven Infrastructure that enable customers to benefit from the power of virtualization and cloud without introducing IT complexity and vendor lock-in.”


Stanimira Koleva, Managing Director, Partner Business Group, Asia Pacific, Japan and Greater China, Cisco

“Cisco is highly supportive of open architectures in the data center space, offering customers, especially small and medium businesses, choice and variety in their move towards the cloud. Cisco is therefore pleased to be part of EMC’s VSPEX program.”


Cynthia Gallant, Vice President, Channel Strategy and Development at Citrix

“Small and mid-sized businesses desire to take full advantage of the business benefits that desktop virtualization provides. With the new VSPEX Proven Infrastructure, EMC provides modular solutions that deliver greater simplicity and lower risk for these companies. At the same time, we see these pre-validated infrastructure stacks as highly beneficial to our channel partners, enabling them to rapidly deploy virtual desktops for their customers. VSPEX Proven Infrastructure, combined with the industry-leading XenDesktop®, can accelerate the deployment of private clouds for customers. This allows organizations to enable mobile workstyles with anywhere, anytime access to desktops, applications and data, significantly increasing the security of mobile users on multiple device types, and greatly reducing ongoing desktop management requirements.”


Boyd Davis, VP and General Manager of Datacenter Infrastructure Group, Intel Corporation

“Combining the energy efficient performance of the Intel® Xeon® processor with EMC storage technologies enables users to rapidly deploy robust, tested solutions to meet their changing businesses. With the arrival of EMC’s new VSPEX Infrastructure, Intel and EMC continue to deliver scalable solutions that meet our customers’ needs and amplify the benefits of our long standing technology partnership that advances cloud computing.”


Mike Schutz, General Manager, Product Marketing, Windows Server and Virtualization, Microsoft

“VSPEX aligns with Microsoft’s commitment to enabling cloud computing with infrastructure architectures and guidance that build on proven and cost-effective Microsoft technology, including Windows Server, Windows Server Hyper-V, and System Center. Microsoft customers can take advantage of their existing IT infrastructure and knowledge as they move into the private, public, and hybrid cloud. Partners can benefit from the combination of Microsoft and EMC products to expand their businesses and accelerate their customers’ adoption of cloud computing technologies.”


Vicki Batka, Senior Director of Channels & Alliances, Asia Pacific & Japan, VMware

“A VMware online survey of over 600 respondents from partner organizations across Asia Pacific and Japan in February 2012 said they aimed to attract new customers (72%) or develop innovative offering to current customers (77%). The EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructure, together with VMware’s cloud infrastructure suite, provides that innovation and opportunity for our partners, as it delivers a certified & validated solution which lowers risks and enables faster deployment without limiting choice for customers as they accelerate their journey to the cloud. Using VMware cloud infrastructure in EMC VSPEX enables organizations to become more efficient and flexible as their evolving business needs require, providing an opportunity for our mutual channel partners to build solutions, deliver value and expand their roles as trusted technology advisers.”

EMC Executive Quote:

Joergen Jakobsen, Vice President and General Manager, Channels, Asia Pacific & Japan, EMC Corporation

“With VSPEX, EMC is uniquely delivering a complete spectrum of choice for organizations on the journey to cloud computing. We’re empowering our channel partners by providing them the tools to address the fast growing market in virtual infrastructure and private cloud computing. VSPEX will enables our partners to build value and differentiation, and offers a balance of simplicity and flexibility while maximizing efficiency. We are excited to be building VSPEX with industry leaders such as Brocade, Cisco, Citrix, Intel, Microsoft and VMware and delivering it to our customers exclusively through our Velocity channel partners.”