Microsoft MVP

Microsoft began recognizing “the best and brightest from technology communities around the world” with their Most Valuable Professional (MVP) award way back in the days of CompuServe. This program serves two purposes: It recognizes those who have contributed to the Microsoft community over the previous year, and bring them in contact with the company in the coming year.

Many outside the program believe that Microsoft MVPs get special access, privileges, and information about upcoming products, but this is not true. At least in my area of File System Storage, very little is shared about upcoming products or technology that is still in the lab.

Instead, the MVP allows Microsoft product managers to directly interact with a group of people who are very interested in their particular area of the company. Probably the highest profile interaction occurs during the annual MVP Summit in Redmond, WA, where MVPs prowl the campus and attend meeting after meeting discussing various products and technologies with Microsoft employees.

I first received the Microsoft MVP award in 2008, after a series of articles I wrote focusing on various aspects of Microsoft’s storage technology development. In the years previous, as a writer for Storage Magazine, a speaker at Storage Decisions, and other venues, I had extolled the virtues of the Microsoft iSCSI initiator, the VSS system, the MPIO driver, and the volume manager for Windows. I also suggested a number of improvements to the systems, and the Microsoft product group reached out with the MVP award to continue this dialogue.

In the years since, I have had many wonderful interactions with Microsoft product managers. But I have remained critical of the company in many areas, especially when they fall short of the goal. I am disappointed to see little development of Fibre Channel and FCoE support in Microsoft Windows, and the cancellation of Windows home server with its clever post-RAID storage layer. I would like to see Microsoft match VMware’s incredible pace of development, and feel that Hyper-V is at risk of losing the hypervisor war. And I am skeptical about many of Microsoft’s other facets, from Windows Phone to Bing.

Happily, none of this criticism has caused strife in my relationship with Redmond. To their credit, Microsoft employees seem genuinely interested in improving their products and doing the right thing in terms of product and technology decisions. They didn’t even mind (too much) when I showed up on campus with my iPhone and MacBook Pro!

VMware vExpert

The VMware vExpert award is obviously patterned on the Microsoft MVP program, but VMware deserves credit for going in their own direction. vExperts are not expected to be supreme vessels of product and technical knowledge, but are instead recognized for contributing to the greater good of the virtualization community.

VMware vExperts are occasionally briefed on forthcoming product announcements or given access to beta software for review and feedback. VMware encourages active dialogue between vExperts, the virtualization community, and VMware employees. The atmosphere is one of open communication and assistance, and there is no clubby “we’re better than them” feeling. This is a good thing, since many non-vExperts communicate and contribute at a high-level!

It seems that VMware is still figuring out how to deal with, and benefit from, the vExpert community. The program is developing nicely, and I expect it to continue to improve in the coming year. Although it has been around much longer, the Microsoft MVP program is similarly in a constant state of flux, with malcontents and fan boys both inside and outside the company and program. I guess this is just how programs like this operate!

Community Support

I began my career as a systems administrator, before switching to consulting and now mainly writing and speaking on technical topics for living. Although both the VMware and Microsoft award recognize my contribution to the community, the truth is that I could not make any contribution without the community supporting me in return. In fact, none of my vaunted contributions come from me alone.

One reason that I’m willing to speak at events like Storage Decisions and my Storage for Virtual Environments seminar series is the incredible amount of information that comes back to me from the audience. I like to joke that I will repackage any feedback as my own thoughts in the future, but this isn’t all that far from the truth. Every time an active discussion starts at these events, I am learning just as much as the audience members. And I do, in fact, incorporate this sort of feedback into future events and publications.

If I have a talent worth recognizing, it is my compulsion to collect and share information about technical topics. When I discover a new area of technology, I love to go out and collect information and try to translate that into educational materials for others. This constantly happens when I am preparing seminar presentations, technical articles, and even blog posts. And I suppose this is the real reason that Microsoft and VMware are recognizing me.

Stephen’s Stance

I sincerely appreciate receiving these awards, and thank Microsoft and VMware for their faith in me. I also sincerely appreciate the contribution and feedback I get from the technical community around me, and thank you just as much for these awards. I would not have received them without the readers of my blog, the attendees at my seminars, and the vast community that I interact with on a daily basis. Thank you!

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2011. | I’m a Microsoft MVP and VMware vExpert for 2011!
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Personal, Virtual Storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

Now for some highlights from the week:

• My writing:
  • I wrote another post for Network Computing: Storage Capacity Still Drives Accessibility
  • I picked up a new 2011 MacBook Pro last Thursday, and took it along to Redmond. You might want to read my MacBook Pro review series:
    • 2011 MacBook Pro Review: Introduction
    • Decision Point: Comparing the 2011 MacBook Pro Models
    • Benchmarking the 2011 13″ Core i5 MacBook Pro
  • I had some time on the plane, so wrote up some things I’ve been meaning to get out:
    • How Google and Dropbox Revolutionized My Laptop Migration
    • Keep Multiple Macs in Sync with Dropbox
  • Some good deals popped up this week, too: Great Deals on iPads (for now) and Get a Cradlepoint PHS300 Portable 3G WiFi Router For Just $79!
  • This week marks my first Storage for Virtual Environments seminar, so I kicked it off with Introducing Storage for Virtual Environments (From My Seminar)
• Other great stuff:
  • Terry Slattery is perhaps the most-famous CCIE, and we were lucky to have him join us at Networking Field Day in September. But he wanted to talk about Infoblox & NetMRI at Tech Field Day from last month! He also wrote about IPv6 Economics – Why Move To IPv6?
  • Another great post from Tech Field Day comes from Matthew Norwood, who will also be joining us in two weeks at Wireless Field Day: HP Networking – The Vision(As I Understand It)
  • Last week saw the unveiling of the iPad 2: I don’t often share John Gruber’s writing, but I loved The Chair, and also really enjoyed MG Siegler’s piece, An iPad Lover’s (Initial) Thoughts On iPad 2
  • Some interesting tech notes out of Redmond:
    • Using Hyper-V with large sector drives on Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2
    • An update that improves the compatibility of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 with Advanced Format Disks is available
    • File Server improvements from Windows Server 2003 to Windows Server 2008 R2. 8 items for 8 years…
  • A great Greg Schulz post on bit-level encoding: From bits to bytes: Decoding Encoding
  • Nigel Poulton is always worth reading, but his take on Storage Benchmarking and Formula 1 is especially rewarding
  • Nerd Vittles didn’t like the Motorola Xoom: A Disappointing Introduction to Android 3.0
  • Another great enterprise networking piece by Greg Ferro: Diverging Ethernet Switch Markets
  • Who’d have thought it? Exploring the Limits of Datacenter Temprature
  • Some great information on the next Mac OS: iOS on the Desktop: Hands-On With the OS X 10.7 Lion Preview
  • Bill Hill put together a great single-piece on Tech Field Day Posts as well as Fixed Block vs Variable Block Deduplication – A Quick Primer

Subscribe to my Google Reader feed or follow me on Twitter to see these in real-time.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2011. | Back From the Pile: Interesting Links, March 4, 2011
This post was categorized as Apple, Enterprise storage, Everything, Personal, Terabyte home, Virtual Storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

VMware vExpert

VMware gives its vExpert award to “individuals who have significantly contributed to the community of VMware users over the past year.” This isn’t a sign of deep secret technical knowledge, only that one is committed to assisting the user community.

I personally don’t know VMware ESX all that well technically speaking. But I do know storage, and I’ve spent a few years trying to figure out the impact of server virtualization on enterprise storage. I’ve even got a section on this blog dedicated to the topic, and I’ve started a blog at VMware’s Communities site as well. I have also been documenting Storage Changes in VMware. I also join the VMware Community Roundtable discussion as often as I can, and presented a series of seminars on the topic of virtual storage in the past. Server virtualization is part of the modern datacenter landscape, and we all would be wise to include that in our gestalt!

I believe VMware is recognizing this attempted contribution with the vExpert award. Put simply, I see the value in server virtualization and want to help the storage world integrate in this new space. And I’ll continue to work toward that, regardless of my award status!

Microsoft MVP

I was also notified that my status as a Microsoft MVP in the area of File System Storage has been renewed. I first received this recognition in 2008 (see my post Storage MVP: I Feel Great!) and it was renewed again for 2009 (see Dustin Pedroia And I Have Two Things In Common!). It’s great that I’ll be able to continue my involvement with Microsoft for another year!

Again, this did not come because I have a deep understanding of NTFS, despite the “File System” moniker”. Microsoft recognized me because I spent time helping folks understand the unique world of Windows storage in articles, presentations, and on my blog. I also participated in the improvement of Microsoft’s storage features, giving feedback on the iSCSI initiator, Windows Storage Server, and other storage-related components. Today, I’m pleased to see Microsoft offering solid (though under-rated) support for many enterprise technologies. They lead the way in some areas (e.g. VSS) and lag in others (e.g. FCoE). But on the whole, Microsoft is a good storage citizen.

The MVP award includes access to product managers, other MVPs, and software (in the form of a TechNet subscription) but little else. Although we do have an NDA (the only one I’ll sign – see 5 Tips To Avoid Violating NDAs), we don’t get much insider or advance information. It’s really about engagement, and I appreciate that.

Stephen’s Stance

I’m just really honored to be considered for both of these awards. Although some call me an expert, I wouldn’t go that far. I’m more interested in sharing knowledge, helping others where I can and seeking assistance in return. Being a vExpert and MVP helps me do that, and I thank VMware and Microsoft for the opportunity.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2010. | Recognition: VMware vExpert and Microsoft MVP for 2010
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Everything, Personal, Virtual Storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

Note: I am a Microsoft MVP in the area of File System Storage and will be on the Redmond campus all week as part of their Global Summit for MVPs. I am not a Microsoft apologist or sycophant and have been both harshly critical when the company deserved it and full of praise at other times. Mostly I just focus on the value of enterprise information technology and try to give all companies and products equal skepticism.

Run Versus Change

Large businesses tend to group projects into two categories:

1. Run the Business projects focus on maintaining the status quo, keeping the money flowing in, and satisfying the demands of existing customers.
2. Change the Business projects are far trickier, attempting to innovate and add new products or services to keep up with the competition.

This methodology has come about through years of experience balancing efforts that either upset the apple cart or let the apples rot. Look at the history of business and you will find that most successful businesses strike a balance between run and change. Those businesses that have failed have done so because they did not strike this balance, either ignoring their current needs in an attempt at reinvention or stifling change in the name of risk management.

One of the criticisms leveled against the American automakers is that they focused too heavily on serving core markets and too little on innovating into new ones. Thus, the average age of Cadillac, Buick, and Lincoln drivers shot upward and no young person would be seen in one of their cars; Dodge, Ford, and Chevrolet derived nearly all of their profit from massive pickup trucks and stopped developing more economical cars; all of the Big Three relied too long on still-profitable older designs while their competitors developed newer, better-performing ones. In short, the American auto industry nearly collapsed because they put all their energies into running the business and very little into changing it.

High tech businesses often have the opposite focus. Companies like Yahoo and AOL allowed successful existing businesses to wither while they tried unsuccessfully to expand into new markets and take on new competitors. Yahoo Mail accounted for more than one third of that company’s traffic last year and remained the dominant webmail platform even after half a decade of challenge from Gmail and more from Microsoft Hotmail. But Yahoo spent that time thrusting this way and that into every conceivable business with little success. One can see the same pattern at eBay, Motorola, 3COM and many others.

Microsoft’s Balance

It would have been very easy for Microsoft to fall into this trap over the last decade, and indeed they have often made this sort of change-over-run move. Consider the massive money Microsoft invested or wasted (depending on your perspective) on unprofitable and perhaps even quixotic mobile, online, and gaming properties: If a constant stream of revenue from Windows, Server and Tools, and Office was not available to balance this, Microsoft would have had a shareholder revolt on their hands. As I mentioned last week, Google is in a similar position, deriving nearly all of their revenue from advertising even as they try and fail to innovate in other areas.

Silicon Alley Insider's Dan Frommer and Kamelia Angelova presented this chart of Microsoft's profits on Feb 10, 2010

One school of thought is that Microsoft has simply milked the Windows and Office cash cows rather than innovating, but others might criticize the company for trying to establish a presence in too many areas instead of focusing on their core products. The fact that these two opposite viewpoints are widespread indicates a third option: Microsoft is trying to balance innovation and consistency both inside and outside their core areas of competence.

Consider Office, Server, and Windows: The combined effect of Microsoft’s monopoly power and sheer inertia would not keep the company dominant in these two areas forever if they did not keep innovating. There have been many points over the last 20 years where Microsoft has been vulnerable on the desktop. The 32-bit transition from Windows 95 to Windows XP was long and painful, and Microsoft is repeating this with Windows 7. The company must innovate to the very core of the operating system to make these transitions, though most of these improvements go unnoticed. Monopoly or not, I cannot comprehend a successful Microsoft desktop strategy if “Windows 2010″ was a simple evolution of Windows 95.

But Windows Server’s storage components are the core of my expertise, and Microsoft deserves much credit for innovation here. The creativity and originality of Windows Server storage features is lost on most, but that doesn’t mean they are any less innovative. I’ve written about the iSCSI initiator, MPIO, and VSS before, but there is much more than that. The peer-to-peer system used in BranchCache is startlingly creative, for example, but the pundits probably never heard of it. Under-the-covers innovation to support and continue a company’s success deserves credit, too.

Even Microsoft’s “branching out” activities are starting to see some success. Bing is much more impressive than many (including me) would have guessed, and users are beginning to notice. And the Xbox gaming platform, which has finally begun turning a profit, is a dominant player in that market. Indeed, many young people know Microsoft more as a gaming company than anything else.

Applauding Innovation

This kind of success in a new area is not unprecedented, but many companies have failed the test. In 1960, General Motors introduced one of the most innovative automobile platforms in history to take the small-car market head on. Every one of the so-called “Y-body” cars featured innovative features and industry firsts, from the Corvair’s rear-mounted aluminum flat-6 engine to Oldsmobile’s first production use of a turbocharger. Amazingly, most of these innovations flopped, and GM’s replacements were much more conventional. Innovation does not always succeed, especially when applied to a new market, so one should especially applaud when it does.

So is Microsoft innovative? Although the company has a reputation for bullying, monopolizing, and destroying competitors with “me too” offerings, a deeper look reveals true creativity both in core and speculative products. A massive company like Microsoft must be of two minds: Focused on continuing their core business while branching out into new areas. Success in either of these endeavors demands innovation, and Microsoft has undoubtedly succeeded.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2010. | Microsoft’s Overlooked Innovation
This post was categorized as Computer History, Features, Personal. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

I'm a Microsoft MVP!

The news just came in from Redmond: I’m a Microsoft MVP again for 2009! I felt great last year, when I received the award for the first time, but this is even better since I now really understand what it’s all about and how I can use it to help the enterprise storage community!

Reading this blog, one might think that I’m some kind of Apple fanboy. Read some of my Windows storage posts and you might think I was a Microsoft apologist. Talk to me for ten minutes and you’ll see that I’m a long-time UNIX nerd. Or maybe I’m an EMC bigot. Or Sun. Or NetApp.

The truth is I’m not really an anything fanboy: I’m a fan of what works. Mac OS X has become my default desktop OS because it works for me, especially its UNIX underpinnings. Windows Server has awesome storage features. EMC and NetApp make some good storage kit. So do Sun and HDS. See the trend here?

I’m neither a Microsoft apologist or hater. They do some good stuff and they do some bad stuff. I’ll go out of my way to evalgelize the good (the iSCSI initiator, MPIO, VSS, PowerShell, FSRM, Windows Server and Storage Server 2008 R2) and I’ll let other people argue about the rest. And Microsoft folks are apparently wise enough to look past the MacBook and iPhone while I’m on campus!

So I sincerely thank Microsoft for the second MVP award. The access it has given me over the last year has been a huge help to me professionally and to those I work with. I look forward to another productive year!

PS: If you didn’t know, Dustin Pedroia is the best all around baseball player out there. He gives his all for my beloved Red Sox every day, and got his own MVP award last year as thanks!

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2009. | Dustin Pedroia And I Have Two Things In Common!
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Personal. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

Windows 7 RC literally hit home for me today. Seriously! Eight DVD copies of Windows 7 RC (32-bit) arrived in a FedEx from One Microsoft Way!

Microsoft just let loose a Release Candidate for Windows 7, the operating system that will bring peace, love, and joy to PC users everywhere and finally stop folks from switching to Macs instead of using Vista. Maybe.

So today I find myself in possession of eight DVD copies of Windows 7 RC (32-bit – boo!) for some reason. Maybe they sent them to all TechNet subscribers. Maybe all Microsoft MVPs got them. Regardless of the reason, I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do with them all. I already downloaded the DVD from TechNet after all!

Although perhaps not everything it’s been built up to be, Windows 7 is a seriously worthy upgrade from Vista. I’ve already switched my laptop to Windows 7 RC and am happy to report that it boots much faster, runs solidly, and thrashes less than it used to. It’s especially nice in virtual machines – Windows 7 in VMware Fusion and VirtualBox on my Mac is like night and day compared to Vista. It even runs great with only 512 MB of RAM, something Vista just can not do except in Basic guise.

I’m not using the OS too heavily (all my day-to-day work is done in Mac OS X) but I do want to point out some seriously nice features in Windows 7. These are also present in Windows Server 2008 R2, an operating system I’m much more interested in since I actually use it in production!

• DirectAccess and BranchCache are very cool additions. DA punches through firewalls like a VPN, but there’s no VPN client involved! It’s all based on standard Internet protocols like IPv6 and IPsec, kinda like Back To My Mac. BranchCache is also very nifty, creating a peer-to-peer or server-based distributed cache of a remote SMB file server. I’ve been playing with this and will report more on it eventually!
• BitLocker To Go applies Microsoft’s solid disk encryption technology to USB drives. It works. And Windows 7 now tries to help keep you from losing your keys, something I seriously need help with!
• PowerShell is spreading throughout the Windows and non-Windows world, and I’m loving it!
• VHD files are now first-class storage devices, and can be managed (and even booted from) just like any other drive. Sweet!
• Windows 7 also includes the new iSCSI initiator with QuickConnect. I’ll be covering this more soon!

So Windows 7 ought to keep some of the PC masses away from the Apple store. But I really didn’t need 8 copies of the DVD… What do you all suggest I do with them?

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2009. | Windows 7 Is Here! In My Hands! But Why 8 DVDs?
This post was categorized as Apple, Enterprise storage, Personal, Terabyte home. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

One of the great things about being a Microsoft MVP is the access I get to Microsoft software and staff. As I mentioned in my post about the 10 cool storage features from the 2009 Microsoft MVP Summit, I was able to preview a lot of what Microsoft is doing with their Server software and storage features. And the best part is that the Microsoft product teams are keenly interested in our feedback and suggestions. I’m told, for example, that the awesome iSCSI Quick Connect feature in the new Windows iSCSI initiator software was developed based on my feedback!

As I note on my Windows Storage Server 2008 preview on Gestalt IT, Microsoft has always kept WSS close to the vest. It’s only available to OEMs, not retail customers, and has never even been shared with TechNet or MSDN subscribers in the past. So I was really pleased when Microsoft gave the File System Storage MVPs access to a beta version of WSS 2008 so we could get a feel for all of the new features. I’ve also had some great conversations this week with the Microsoft product managers responsible for it.

What’s exciting about Windows Storage Server 2008?

1. It includes all of the storage enhancements in Windows Server 2008, including SMB 2.0 for much much faster file servicing over higher-latency links, SMfS, FSRM, enhanced VDS, and failover clustering.
2. WSS is the only way to get access to Microsoft’s iSCSI target software. It’s been improved in many ways from the prior releases, but its support for what Microsoft calls dual-active clustering is probably its most notable feature: You can’t share the same active LUN between cluster members, but each can have its own active LUNs and the can all fail over in the event that one member goes down.
3. The included single-instance storage (SIS) file-based deduplication has been much improved, scaling to 128 volumes per server and millions of files. It’s still not as effective capacity-wise as block-level deduplication (which I’d love to see, hint hint), but the performance is solid enough to use it for primary storage with production applications.
4. Probably the coolest feature exclusive to Windows Storage Server 2008 is its new browser-based remote administration capability. Just point your browser to the Storage Server machine (for example, “http://wss/desktop”) and you’ll get a full ActiveX version of RDP. Don’t use Internet Exploder? Firefox and Linux users will get a Java-based RDP instead! I will cover this feature more in the future, but let’s just say that every operating system should offer this!

Want to try Windows Storage Server for yourself? Breaking from the past, Microsoft will soon (like next week!) allow TechNet subscribers to download the full install. OEMs have a sekrit back-door site to try it out, too.

One more thing… This will be the last release of Windows Storage Server. There won’t even be a special Storage Server version of Server 2008 Service Pack 2! Starting now, Storage Server is just an optional feature of Windows Server. Purchasing and production use will still be limited to storage OEMs, but Microsoft has finally reconciled Storage Server with the rest of the Windows Server world. I imagine that most OEMs will release Service Pack 2 updates for their Storage Server customers shortly, and that future versions of the product will come closer to the base Server versions than WSS 2008. Although I can’t share what I know, I will say that Microsoft is continuing active development on their iSCSI target, single-instance storage, and other Storage Server features. I imagine that Windows Server 2008 R2 will support storage systems in the very near future!

On a personal note, reading A Brief History of Windows Storage Server Releases from the Microsoft Storage Server blog reminded me of the original unveiling of Windows Storage Server at Storage Decisions Chicago in June, 2003. The company loaded us all on one of those lake cruise boats with some celebrity impersonators, chocolate “Oscar”-style statues, an open bar, and a band. Good times ensued!

For more details, check out my Gestalt IT piece, Windows Storage Server-Based Systems Step Into 2008

Microsoft is detailing the new version of Windows Storage Server 2008 in a webcast Thursday at 8 AM Pacific. You should also check out the Microsoft Storage Server blog.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2009. | I Can Finally Talk About Windows Storage Server 2008!
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

Microsoft delivered a solid MVP Summit

Note: Every one of these items has previously been discussed by Microsoft. I can’t yet talk about any other storage features I might have seen…

1. iSCSI Quick Connect – No more fumbling through tabs and popups, just enter an IP address and you’re connected! Yeah, baby!
2. Wire-speed 10 Gb iSCSI – The software iSCSI initiator can saturate a 10 Gb Ethernet link to a NetApp FAS3070; 1,174 megabytes per second
3. BranchCache – Accelerated access for workers in remote offices; it can use peer-to-peer sharing of hashed chunks if a Windows server isn’t available to cache data
4. VSS LUN Resync – The awesome VSS API is extended with the ability to resync a LUN from a snapshot; supports both software and native array capability
5. VSS Express Writer – Now there’s no excuse for applications to not be VSS backup-compatible
6. PowerShell – The very-sweet command line and scripting environment works with many server areas, including some parts of the storage world. Please implement it everywhere, Microsoft!
7. Transparent Caching – Administrators can allow Windows 7 clients to transparently cache file content from SMB servers when links are slow
8. Background file sync – Windows 7 will synchronize offline files in the background
9. Native VHD Support – VDS now supports a virtual drive just like any other – create, expand, compact, etc… And Server Backup stores its data in VHDs too!
10. Windows Home Server Drive Extender – WHS has file-level data protection and flexible disk management – it reminded me of DROBO! Not new, but I hadn’t ever heard about it… Thanks to Donavon and Alex for the info!

“Hate Microsoft” is a popular meme, but it’s misplaced. The Windows Server team, and the storage folks in particular, keep moving the ball forward, and the whole world of IT infrastructure benefits. My laptop may have a fruit on the lid, and my focus may be on three-letter storage and server companies, but Microsoft is a key part of our world, too.

The MVP Summit wasn’t just a great learning opportunity – it was a blast! We’ll see how much of that leaks out, but there might be an incriminating YouTube video of yours truly on stage at the Experience Music Project, Donavon tagging Steve Ballmer for WHS, and a lot of MVPs letting their PC love fly for the camera. There was also a Twitter tribute to Frank McCallister an MVP who passed away shortly before the Summit.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2009. | 10 Cool Storage Features From the 2009 Microsoft MVP Summit
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Everything, Personal, Terabyte home. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

Each year, Microsoft invites all current MVPs to a big shindig in Redmond and Seattle, the MVP Global Summit. It’s a pay-your-own-way kinda thing, though, so I wasn’t sure I could attend. In fact, given the economic climate and pressures from work, I was sure I could not attend.

But things have a way of working out. Through a curious set of circumstances, I will be able to attend two days of the Summit after all!

So next week I will be in Washington State meeting with the gurus behind Windows Server, the most excellent iSCSI initiator and MPIO system, and the rest of the actually quite good stuff to come out of Redmond.

If you’re in Seattle too, drop me a line. Otherwise, let me know if there’s anything I can ask them, or if you want a kewl mouse pad from the company store! And yes, I’m bringing my Mac!

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2009. | Attending Microsoft’s MVP Global Summit
This post was categorized as Personal. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

I just got an email from Microsoft – they’ve given me the MVP award for the area of File System Storage!  Great news – so how do I feel?  Not quite as good as the “Steve” in this video, but pretty good…

So what does this mean?  Am I now a shill, beholden forever to Redmond?  Should I return the Mac? Hardly!

In fact, the program materials all stress that, since we were nominated for what we did in the past, we should go right on doing just what we were doing.  For me, this means remaining non-partisan in the storage wars – I’m on the side of what works and delivers results, not what one vendor or the other decides is best.  Microsoft has done some really great things in the storage arena, and has given much of it away for free, and that’s the simple truth.  If they change their stance, expect me to call them on it, MVP or not.

I believe in maintaining the best possible relationship with everyone in the business, from vendors to analysts, so I can make great things happen for my clients, the end users of technologies.  This award gives me exceptional access to Microsoft resources, and I intend to call on them when my clients need help.  Simply put, being a Microsoft MVP means I can step up the level of service I can deliver.

Only one thing bugs me about this: The name.  Seriously, “MVP”?  I’m not A-Rod!  And “File System Storage”?  I guess they had to tie the award to some product area, so “storage technologies” or “enterprise storage” wouldn’t have worked.  So, yeah baby, I hit home runs with NTFS!

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2008. | Storage MVP: I Feel Great!
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Personal. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.