Cisco has announced multiple plans that include several new channel programs for its expanding data center partner channel, and the expansion of the Unified Computing System family to include the C-Series Rack-Mount Server. In addition it has added two IT career certifications in Data Center Management in an effort to encourage global partners to speed up market acceptance and growth for virtualized data centers

"Despite the economic downturn, our channel partners share Cisco's (News - Alert) vision and excitement around data center virtualization,” said Edison Peres, senior vice president of Worldwide Channels Go-To-Market Group for Cisco. “Together with our partners, we will lead the market transition toward data center virtualization and unified computing."

The announcements follow closely on the heels of its live broadcast via IPTV streaming, as TMCnet recently reported, regarding experiences during the implementation of the Cisco Unified Computing System as a part of its virtualization strategy. They include topics such as: Unified Computing System: Deployments in both an existing and a new data center; Global Scope: Cisco's strategy to virtualize its own data centers globally; Green and Lean: Environmental sustainability and energy savings; The Bottom Line: Tangible results shared; and, The Future: Where virtualization will take Cisco.

"Virtualization is a proven technology delivering 'more for less' and continues to change the market by helping our customers maximize the utilization of their data center investment,” said Kent MacDonald, vice president of Network Services for Long View Systems and Certified Cisco Partner.

Officials at the Cisco said the channel programs are targeted at helping all partners and related supply chains to gain new revenue streams with a focused unified data center approach. The channel programs included expansion of its existing Value Incentive Program, a new Data Center Channel Solutions Program, an Authorized Partner Program, and to encourage all partners to adopt the Cisco Advanced Data Center Network Infrastructure (DCNI) Specialization program.

"The expansion of the Cisco Data Center Channel Program embraces the innovative Unified Computing architecture to offer us an opportunity to build on our existing end-to-end Data Center practice,” said Bob Olwig, vice president of Corporate Business Development for World Wide Technology (News - Alert), and Certified Cisco Partner.

Company sources say that the expansion of its existing Value Incentive Program (VIP) as a new channel program offers all of Cisco's data center technologies, including unified computing, storage networking, and WAN optimization, besides its existing data center switching offering.

The new Data Center Channel Solutions Program as a new channel program, claim officials, is created to facilitate the speedy sale and implementation of certified and bench-marked IT solutions that incorporate products from industry-leading data center vendors, including EMC, Microsoft, NetApp, Red Hat (News - Alert), and VMware.

The company says its Authorized Partner Program (APP) as a new channel program will allow all Cisco DCNI Specialized Partners to sell the new Unified Computing C-Series Rack-Mount Servers provided they complete the online training and exam from Cisco.

As TMCnet has reported earlier, DCNI specialization from Cisco demonstrate the partner’s:  data center networking capabilities that require advanced product knowledge; ability to deploy solutions over multiple sites and geographies; understanding of complex data center routing and switching, fiber channel, 10GB Ethernet and Cisco’s new unified network Nexus product line; ability to deploy and support scalable and available multi-protocol solutions by either centrally locating or distributing by using traditional IP Networks.

The new Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS) C-Series Rack-Mount Servers, say company officials, are designed to work seamlessly with the UCS blade servers and address the full range of requirements for futuristic data centers. These servers will be available in the fourth quarter of 2009.

"Cisco's comprehensive Unified Computing System architecture allows us to easily offer new form factors that respond quickly to our customers' needs,” said Prem Jain, senior vice president, Server and Access Virtualization business unit for Cisco.

Company officials say that these new servers: are designed to be wired only once during installation and access unified fabric through a low-latency lossless 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps) Ethernet concept; include Cisco’s patented memory extension technology that ramps up addressable memory by more than 2.5 times; supports significantly more virtual machines per server; deliver extensibility to run large memory applications; include Cisco’s virtualized adapter that boosts support for up to 128 Ethernet or Fibre Channel connections; are architected around the Intel (News - Alert) Xeon 5500 series processors that helps processing flexibility as per application demands and intelligently scales up or down energy based on utilization.

“With the UCS C-Series Rack-Mount Servers, we are opening the Unified Computing opportunity to a broader range of our channel partner community while providing our customers a migration path to the unified computing approaches of the future,” said Jain.

“In a rapidly changing data center marketplace, the Unified Computing C-Series Rack-Mount Server will provide us new services opportunities and a unique on-ramp that appeals to a wider range of our customers that are planning to integrate Unified Computing into their existing data centers,” said Olwig.

The company says that the new IT Career Certifications in Data Center Management, and specialized IT certificates in general are becoming critical in the job hunt and appointment scenario. As TMCnet has earlier reported, certificates are slowly but surely becoming the standout differentiator that secures jobs for individuals since companies are more inclined and biased to contract certified individuals, and a recent IDC (News - Alert) report claimed that 66 percent of managers are convinced that Information Technology certificates improve the quality level of service and support to customers and their end users, and 75 percent claim that certifications are critical to team performance.

The new cert programs that Cisco is initiating and strongly recommending are Cisco Data Center Unified Computing Design Specialist and the Cisco Data Center Unified Computing Support Specialist, and are tailored for jobs such as data center architect, data center builder, and data center technical operations professional.

As TMCnet has recently reported, Cisco’s learning@Cisco recently introduced an array of on line games that are designed to test networking professionals by challenging their depth of knowledge, and a series of e-learning tutorials that technically educate potential programmers.