Abstract: Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed for managing cloud applications. An example apparatus includes a monitor to determine current states of virtual machines, a cloud manager to communicate with a hybrid cloud infrastructure, a healer to: compare the current states of the virtual machines to target states to determine a value of the difference, and in response to determining that the difference indicates that there are not enough healthy virtual machines to meet the target states, instructing the cloud manager to add virtual machines based on the value of the difference.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed. An example apparatus includes a requirement translator to map a requirement to a hardware resource to execute an application in a workload domain, a cost calculator to calculate a cost for the hardware resource based on a demand for the hardware resource, an option generator to determine whether the cost exceeds a cost budget, and a resource allocator to add the hardware resource to the workload domain when the cost does not exceed the cost budget.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus to provision a workload in a virtual server rack deployment are disclosed. An example method includes determining, via a first resource manager executing on a processor, parameters of a request for allocating resources of a virtual server rack for performing a workload, determining logical computing resources to be utilized for performing the workload based on the parameters, determining first physical computing resources installed in a first physical rack and second physical computing resources installed in a second physical rack included in the virtual server rack to perform the determined logical computing resources, and instructing a first centralized manager of virtual hosts to provision the first physical computing resources into the logical computing resources to allocate the logical computing resources for performing the workload.

Abstract: An example method to install a hardware management system on a management switch includes in response to a power-on event of a management switch, executing a boot loader on the management switch to boot an operating system on the management switch. The example method also includes obtaining from a virtual imaging appliance in communication with the management switch a uniform resource locator of a network-accessible location of installer software to install the hardware management system. The virtual imaging appliance is to configure a physical rack of hardware for use as a virtual server rack. The hardware management system is to manage the hardware for use in the virtual server rack.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for rack deployments for virtual computing environments are disclosed. An example method includes retrieving, from a repository remote from a system integrator, a software image to be deployed on a processing unit installed in a server rack, in response to receiving a dynamic host configuration protocol request from a processing unit at a virtual imaging appliance, detecting the processing unit and transmitting a network address to the processing unit to be utilized by the processing unit, transmitting the software image from the virtual imaging appliance to the network address assigned to the processing unit, and transmitting a hardware management system software image from the virtual imaging appliance to a network switch installed in the server rack to cause a hardware management system to be installed in the server rack.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture are disclosed to retire hosts in virtual server rack deployments for virtual computing environments. An example method includes determining, via a processor, a workload associated with a physical host in a virtualized rack in response to a request to retire the physical host, the workload implemented by a virtual computing environment including the virtualized rack. The example method also includes determining, via the processor, a projected impact of retiring the physical host on the workload. The example method also includes presenting information representative of the projected impact.

Abstract: An example method includes configuring a network to facilitate communications between a first virtual resource manager (VRM) in a first physical rack and a second VRM in a second physical rack. The first VRM manages first physical resources in the first physical rack. The second VRM manages second physical resources in the second physical rack. A primary election process determines one of the first or second VRMs to operate as a primary VRM for a virtual server rack. The virtual server rack is based on the first physical resources and the second physical resources. When the first VRM is the elected primary VRM, the first VRM is registered as the primary VRM. When the first VRM is not the elected primary VRM, the first VRM is registered as a secondary VRM, and a watch object is created to monitor for a failure or unavailability of the primary VRM.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus to transfer physical hardware resources between virtual rack domains in a virtualized server rack are disclosed. An example method includes determining, using a processor, a subset of candidate hosts that includes a host capacity that meets a first threshold, the candidate hosts belonging to a first virtual rack domain; determining, using the processor, whether the first virtual rack domain will meet an operating requirement of the first virtual rack domain if the subset of the candidate hosts is removed from the first virtual rack domain; and when the first virtual rack domain will meet the operating requirement if the subset of the candidate hosts is removed from the first virtual rack domain, transferring the subset of the candidate hosts from the first virtual rack domain to a second virtual rack domain.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus to manage workload domains in virtual server racks are disclosed.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus to deploy workload domains in virtual server racks are disclosed. An example apparatus includes a policy manager to determine an availability option and a performance option of the workload domain based on a domain type and determine capacity options based on a user selection of the availability option and a user selection of the performance option by a first user, a deployment manager to identify first ones of a plurality of computing resources to form a placement solution for the workload domain based on the user selection of the availability and performance options, and based on a user selection of one of the determined capacity options by the first user, the plurality of computing resources stored in a resource database accessible by the first user and a second user, and a resource manager to reserve the first ones of the plurality of computing resources to deploy the workload domain for the first user.

Abstract: Hardware management systems for disaggregated rack architectures in virtual server rack deployments are disclosed herein. An example apparatus to manage disaggregated physical hardware resources in a physical rack includes a hardware management system to discover disaggregated physical hardware resources in the physical rack and generate a listing of the disaggregated physical hardware resources, and a physical resource manager to generate a composed resource based on resources from the listing of the disaggregated physical hardware resources, the hardware management system to manage the composed resource.

Abstract: In one embodiment, the present invention includes a method for obtaining file information regarding a file to be downloaded from a remote location to a computing device, creating at least one empty file in a destination storage based on the file information and communicating block information regarding the empty file to a network interface, and receiving a data packet of the file in the network interface and directly sending a payload of the data packet from the network interface to the destination storage according to the block information, while a host processor of the computing device is in a low power state. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for rack deployments for virtual computing environments are disclosed. An example method includes retrieving, from a repository remote from a system integrator, a software image to be deployed on a processing unit installed in a server rack, in response to receiving a dynamic host configuration protocol request from a processing unit at a virtual imaging appliance, detecting the processing unit and transmitting a network address to the processing unit to be utilized by the processing unit, transmitting the software image from the virtual imaging appliance to the network address assigned to the processing unit, and transmitting a hardware management system software image from the virtual imaging appliance to a network switch installed in the server rack to cause a hardware management system to be installed in the server rack.

Abstract: An example method to install a hardware management system on a management switch includes in response to a power-on event of a management switch, executing a boot loader on the management switch to boot an operating system on the management switch. The example method also includes obtaining from a virtual imaging appliance in communication with the management switch a uniform resource locator of a network-accessible location of installer software to install the hardware management system. The virtual imaging appliance is to configure a physical rack of hardware for use as a virtual server rack. The hardware management system is to manage the hardware for use in the virtual server rack.

Abstract: An example method includes configuring a network to facilitate communications between a first virtual resource manager (VRM) in a first physical rack and a second VRM in a second physical rack. The first VRM manages first physical resources in the first physical rack. The second VRM manages second physical resources in the second physical rack. A primary election process determines one of the first or second VRMs to operate as a primary VRM for a virtual server rack. The virtual server rack is based on the first physical resources and the second physical resources. When the first VRM is the elected primary VRM, the first VRM is registered as the primary VRM. When the first VRM is not the elected primary VRM, the first VRM is registered as a secondary VRM, and a watch object is created to monitor for a failure or unavailability of the primary VRM.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus to provision a workload in a virtual server rack deployment are disclosed. An example method includes determining, via a first resource manager executing on a processor, parameters of a request for allocating resources of a virtual server rack for performing a workload, determining logical computing resources to be utilized for performing the workload based on the parameters, determining first physical computing resources installed in a first physical rack and second physical computing resources installed in a second physical rack included in the virtual server rack to perform the determined logical computing resources, and instructing a first centralized manager of virtual hosts to provision the first physical computing resources into the logical computing resources to allocate the logical computing resources for performing the workload.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus to transfer physical hardware resources between virtual rack domains in a virtualized server rack are disclosed. An example method includes determining, using a processor, a subset of candidate hosts that includes a host capacity that meets a first threshold, the candidate hosts belonging to a first virtual rack domain; determining, using the processor, whether the first virtual rack domain will meet an operating requirement of the first virtual rack domain if the subset of the candidate hosts is removed from the first virtual rack domain; and when the first virtual rack domain will meet the operating requirement if the subset of the candidate hosts is removed from the first virtual rack domain, transferring the subset of the candidate hosts from the first virtual rack domain to a second virtual rack domain.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture are disclosed to retire hosts in virtual server rack deployments for virtual computing environments. An example method includes determining, via a processor, a workload associated with a physical host in a virtualized rack in response to a request to retire the physical host, the workload implemented by a virtual computing environment including the virtualized rack. The example method also includes determining, via the processor, a projected impact of retiring the physical host on the workload. The example method also includes presenting information representative of the projected impact.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for cross validation of data using multiple subsystems are described. According to one embodiment of the invention, a computer comprises a first subsystem and a second subsystem; and a memory, the memory comprising a first memory region and a second memory region, the first memory region being associated with the first subsystem and a second memory region being associated with the second subsystem; upon start up of the computer, the first subsystem to validate the second memory region and the second subsystem to validate the first memory region.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for cross validation of data using multiple subsystems are described. According to one embodiment of the invention, a computer comprises a first subsystem and a second subsystem; and a memory, the memory comprising a first memory region and a second memory region, the first memory region being associated with the first subsystem and a second memory region being associated with the second subsystem; upon start up of the computer, the first subsystem to validate the second memory region and the second subsystem to validate the first memory region.