These Best Practices are designed for data center operators and administrators who use PlateSpin Recon to monitor workloads and do consolidation planning based on collected data. The information provided here has been compiled by the PlateSpin support team based on experience with hundreds of Real-Time Consolidation Accelerator users.
Where applicable, guidelines in Best Practices refer to PlateSpin Support Knowledge Base articles. To access the articles, use your PlateSpin download credentials. If you have forgotten your password, you can request a password reminder e-mail at: http://www.platespin.com/downloads/forgotpassword.aspx
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Guideline |
Knowledge Base Article |
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Ensure that servers you plan to monitor are running on platforms and operating systems supported by PlateSpin Recon, and that they meet all software requirements. |
Q20909: Supported platforms for Inventory and Data Collection Q20729: What PlateSpin Recon requires to add a server to its inventory |
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Plan your project and define the following parameters:
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Order the proper PlateSpin Recon licenses based on project parameters defined above. Use the License Entitlement Manager Web portal to view license orders and manage activation codes. |
Q20876: PlateSpin License Entitlement Manager |
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Guideline |
Knowledge Base Article |
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Ensure that the designated PlateSpin Recon Server is compliant with the minimum system requirements. Consider recommended hardware specifications for various project sizes. PlateSpin Recon 3.5 supports up to 2,000 workloads per Server. |
Q20904: System Requirements for PlateSpin Recon Q20887: PlateSpin Recon Installation Best Practices Guide |
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For large-scale projects (2,000 - 10,000 workloads) use multiple PlateSpin Recon collectors. Centralize analysis and planning by automatically and securely synchronizing data from collectors to a secure master instance of PlateSpin Recon. |
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Ensure that the PlateSpin Recon Server has enough disk space for the projected database growth based on the number of workloads you plan to monitor. |
Q20910: How large the PlateSpin Recon Database will grow |
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Set up designated PlateSpin Recon user accounts with administrative rights. |
Q20726: PlateSpin Recon Best Practices for User Accounts |
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When using PostgreSQL*, set it up to allow remote connections (not allowed by default). |
Q20889: Configure PostgreSQL to allow Remote connections |
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To inventory virtual machines hosted by VMware GSX Server, install the VmCOM API on the PlateSpin Recon server (otherwise the VMs will not be visible). |
Q20516: Installing the VMware GSX Server VmCOM API on the PlateSpin Recon server. |
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Guideline |
Knowledge Base Article |
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Use this generic consolidation planning workflow: Step 1: Inventory the servers. Step 2: Monitor the servers and collect data. Step 3: Analyze the collected data and create consolidation projects and scenarios by using PlateSpin Recon charts and the Consolidation Planning Module. When you have finished, consolidate the servers by streaming physical servers into virtual environments by using PlateSpin PowerConvert. |
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For early detection of potential inventory and monitoring issues, use PlateSpin Recon PlateSpin Analyzer to scan your network before starting the inventory. |
Q20825: Using PlateSpin Analyzer and understanding its results. |
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If possible, use Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) 2005 and set up PlateSpin Recon to connect and collect monitoring data directly from it. This feature allows you to reduce your project timeline from weeks to days. |
Q20903: PlateSpin Recon with MOM 2005 |
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Problem |
Knowledge Base Article |
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Issues when attempting to add servers to the PlateSpin Recon Inventory, including the following error messages:
Network Path Not found
Access Denied
The RPC Server is unavailable
Failed. The Network location cannot be reached
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Q20525: Troubleshooting problems when adding servers to the PlateSpin Recon Inventory |
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When using MSDE 2000, PlateSpin Recon stops logging data after a certain period of time. |
Q20556: PlateSpin Recon stopped logging data |
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When attempting to import a machine from a PlateSpin Recon snapshot, the following error is displayed: Cannot import MachineObject 'MACHINE-NAME [MACHINE-NAME]' |
Q20900: Cannot import MachineObject error when importing a machine from a snapshot |