Virtualization Advances Take Center Stage at VMworld 2007

This year's VMworld conference gave more than 10,800 attendees a glimpse into the future of virtualization as VMware and its partners unveiled the newest technologies, products and best practices for deploying virtualization solutions. Read below to find out fun facts about VMworld 2007 and to get highlights from the keynote addresses, breakout sessions, Solutions Exchange and other conference activities.

VMworld 2007 Factoids

One way to describe VMworld 2007 is "bigger, better, more" -- here are a few fun facts and statistics from VMworld that reflect the frenzy of activity during this year's conference:

• A total of 4 hours were spent in General Session for keynote addresses
• Attendees participated in 2,500 hours of breakout sessions and 80 hours of hands on-labs
• The Solutions Exchange was open for a record 19.5 hours
• More than 175 illustrations were drawn on Chalk Wall by renowned artist Brian Rea
• 26,000 lunches were served to conference attendees
• 33 major announcements were made by VMware partners
• 126 articles were written about the conference, making this the most talked-about VMworld yet.

Keynote Addresses

Diane Greene, President and CEO of VMware, gave the opening keynote address for VMworld 2007, unveiling a host of next-generation products including VMware ESX Server 3i, VMware Site Recovery Manager and VMware Virtual Desktop Manager.

VMworld 2007 general session also included keynotes from Hector de J. Ruiz, Chairman and CEO of AMD; John T. Chambers, Chairman and CEO of Cisco; and Patrick Gelsinger, Senior VP and General Manager of the Digital Enterprise Group for Intel. In addition, there was a panel keynote on “Reducing the Energy Footprint of Data Centers” moderated by Quentin Hardy, Silicon Valley Bureau Chief of Forbes Magazine.

Last but not least, Mendel Rosenblum, Chief Scientist and Co-Founder, VMware, Inc. wowed the crowd with an in-depth demonstration of the latest technology advancements from VMware, such as “Virtual Machine Streaming”, which enables virtual machines to be downloaded in a streaming format, and “Continuous Availability”, where a single virtual machine can run in multiple places at the same time.

VMworld 2007 attendees who missed any of the VMworld keynotes can access online Webcasts of all General Session content.

Breakout Sessions & Hands-On Labs

VMworld 2007 featured more than 250 breakout sessions to participate in, and topics included everything from business discussions for decision makers to deep-dive technical sessions for advanced users. Many attendees also participated in more than 100 hands-on labs, which provided practical, hands-on experience with virtualization products and solutions.

VMworld attendees can get content from this year’s conference, including all the breakout presentations and multimedia recordings of each session, as well as lab manuals and supporting multimedia recordings, by accessing the VMworld Content Catalog.

Solutions Exchange

The Solutions Exchange at VMworld 2007 featured 147 industry-leading sponsors and exhibitors showcasing the latest products and services in the virtualization ecosystem. The VMware booth provided an interactive centerpiece for the Solutions Exchange floor, with Super Demos of VMware technology and a Genius Bar where experts were on hand to answer the most challenging questions.

Tell Us What Rocked Your World at VMworld 2007

How would you capture all the excitement and inspiration of VMworld 2007? Send us your 1-2 minute video on how this year’s conference rocked your world. You’ve got until October 14 to enter your video and get a shot at winning the Grand Prize: a fully loaded Alienware Gaming Laptop. Visit the VMworld Video Contest page to enter. The winner will be announced in late October.

Save the Date: VMworld 2008

VMworld Europe 2008 - February 26-28 - Cannes, France
Don’t miss the first VMworld Europe — where thousands of your peers, technology providers and industry experts from around the world will gather from February 26-28 in Cannes, France to experience the latest and greatest in virtualization technology and business solutions.

VMworld 2008 - September 16-18 - Las Vegas
VMworld is the leading annual industry conference on virtualization, attended by IT professionals and executives, technology providers, industry experts, researchers, press and analysts from around the world. VMworld 2008 is expected to draw more than 12,000 attendees. Don’t miss it!