Discover what’s new with HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0 with UEFI Secure Boot mixed-cluster firmware upgrades plus Gen11 hardware updates to drive enhanced security and management. – By Shwetha Varsha, Senior Technical Marketing Engineer, HPE
It’s been a landmark year for HPE SimpliVity as we continue to innovate in the hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) space. We began with the integration of HPE
To close out the year, HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0 is now available. HPE SimpliVity 5.1.0U1 and earlier releases laid the groundwork for this most recent release, which improves the security, management, and operation of your HPE SimpliVity environments.
Let's review the new features in HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0.
HPE SimpliVity lifecycle management
Streamlined hub-and-spoke deployments
Recognizing the prevalence of Remote Office/Branch Office (ROBO) deployments, HPE SimpliVity Deployment Manager has been augmented to optimize deployment for hub-and-spoke architectures.
- Pre-validation checks are now limited to hub nodes, eliminating redundant network connectivity tests across all clusters in the federation.
- Deployment times are significantly reduced for spoke clusters or when scaling existing spoke clusters in large hub and spoke federations.
This makes managing and expanding large, distributed infrastructures more efficient and less time-consuming.
HPE SimpliVity Upgrade Manager enhancements
The HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0 Upgrade Manager allows for mixed-platform cluster firmware upgrades in a single workflow. With 5.1.0U1, you could mix HPE SimpliVity Gen11 and Gen10 (and above) nodes in the same cluster but had to perform the firmware upgrades for these hosts separately, which precludes the one-click upgrade feature at the cluster and federation level
Feautres with cluster-level firmware upgrades in 5.2.0 include:
- Upgrades in clusters with both Gen10 and Gen11 nodes are supported with both firmware versions being listed in the same iteration.
- Only applicable firmware versions for selected nodes/clusters are displayed.
- The automation skips nodes where the firmware is not applicable.
This simplifies the management of mixed-platform clusters to ensure operational consistency across environments.
Expanded compatibility: ESXi and vCSA
This release includes support for the latest VMware versions, including:
- Support for vCSA (vCenter Server) 8.0 Update 3c
- ESXi 8.0 Update 3b for upgrade bundles and deployment from factory
The HPE SimpliVity interop catalogue and HPE SimpliVity upgrade planner are updated to reflect this support, ensuring seamless deployments and upgrades for customers adopting the latest VMware updates.
HPE Welcome Center update
For new deployments, you can onboard clusters using the Welcome Center from HPE GreenLake which now supports HPE SimpliVity Gen11 platforms.
Raising the bar on security with UEFI Secure Boot
HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0 enhances security with UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) Secure Boot for ESXi hosts. This ensures that only trusted and signed code executes during the boot process, protecting systems against malicious software and ransomware attacks.
Here's how it works:
- Verification through digital signatures – During boot, the system's UEFI firmware checks the digital signature of each component against trusted certificates embedded in the BIOS. If a mismatch is found, the component is not executed.
- Root of trust via VMware public key – The HPE SimpliVity bootloader includes a VMware public key to verify the kernel signature and a small secure boot verifier for VMware Installation Bundles (VIBs).
- execInstalledOnly option – This advanced ESXi boot option guarantees that only binaries packaged and signed as part of a VIB can be executed, further strengthening security.
With UEFI Secure Boot and the execInstalledOnly option enabled, HPE SimpliVity systems gain another robust layer of defence against ransomware attacks.
Check out the HPE SimpliVity security guide for more details, requirements and best practices.
Note: All systems ship with Secure Boot disabled by default. Customers are recommended to enable it post-deployment for enhanced protection.
Proactive monitoring: BIOS Attribute HealthCheck
HPE SimpliVity introduces a new feature to monitor BIOS attribute configurations. Recommended values for select BIOS attributes are provided to optimize performance and changes to these attributes by customers may lead to suboptimal performance.
A plugin integrated into the BIOS HealthCheck framework performs monthly checks and runs on host reboots:
- If BIOS attributes deviate from recommended values, an alarm is raised in vCenter®.
- Once attributes are restored to recommended values, the plugin clears the alarm on the next host reboot.
This proactive approach ensures you can maintain peak performance without the need for manual, error-prone verification.'
Hardware and platform updates
New licensing for HPE SimpliVity 380 and 325 Gen11 platforms
HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 and HPE SimpliVity 325 Gen11, introduced in 5.1.0, now benefit from new licensing updates. We have simplified the process for our field and partners to quote HPE SimpliVity solutions. This includes SKU simplification, supporting newer capacity models without adding more SKUs, and aligning the licensing strategy for both new systems and Storage Expansion licensing.
New Processor support for HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11
HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 now supports the cutting-edge 5th Gen Intel® Xeon® Processors family (Emerald Rapids). Among the highlights is the 64-core Xeon Platinum 8592+, bringing unmatched compute power for resource-intensive applications. These new processors also provide a significant leap in memory performance, supporting DDR5-5600 memory—an upgrade from the DDR5-4800 supported in the predecessor, the 4th Gen Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processor family (Sapphire Rapids).
New storage options for HPE SimpliVity 380 and 325 Gen11
We now have support for 7.68 TB SSDs on Gen11 platforms. This expanded storage capacity provides a higher density option for data-intensive workloads, allowing you to meet growing storage demands efficiently. For this unique deployment scenario, customers can engage their HPE teams for exceptions, ensuring tailored solutions for specific needs.
HPE SimpliVity 325 Gen10 and HPE SimpliVity 2600 Gen10 end of deployment and upgrade support
Starting with HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0, there are important changes to hardware support with HPE SimpliVity 325 Gen10 and HPE SimpliVity 2600 Gen10 no longer being supported as per their lifecycle with HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0 Deployment and Upgrade Manager.
Note: ESXi and firmware upgrades continue to be supported. Please refer to the respective end-of-life announcements of each product for more details.
2024 in review: HPE SimpliVity's year of innovation
HPE SimpliVity 5.2.0 marks the culmination of a year of rapid innovation and enhancements. This latest release showcases advanced security measures, expanded compatibility, and proactive health monitoring, reflecting HPE’s commitment to delivering top-tier HCI solutions.
Our 2024 roadmap addressed the needs of hybrid cloud and edge computing, emphasizing simplicity and scalability. With tighter integration with VMware vSphere, enhanced security postures, and tools to reduce operational complexity, HPE continues to drive innovation.
Key developments this year included support for vSphere 8, HPE GreenLake for Private Cloud Business Edition, Intelligent Workload Optimizer GUI options, along with the discontinuation of vSphere 6.7 support and some platforms. We’ve also introduced the HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 and 325 Gen11 models, a new storage controller, support for different generation mixed clusters, and a number of improvements to the deployment and upgrade processes.
For existing HPE SimpliVity users, version 5.2.0 offers a seamless transition to improved capabilities. For those exploring HCI and looking to upgrade or expand their environment, now is the perfect time to dive in. Stay tuned as we continue to enhance the HCI experience. 2024’s rolling thunder of HPE SimpliVity releases may be closing with 5.2.0, but the journey is far from over.
In other news, we are excited to introduce HPE VM Essentials software announced at HPE Discover this year. HPE's acquisition of Morpheus Data enhances its HPE GreenLake platform by simplifying IT operations. The introduction of HPE VM Essentials marks the first step in leveraging Morpheus across HPE’s portfolio. This solution allows customers to manage virtualized workloads, transition to the HPE VME hypervisor, and streamline VM provisioning.
Key features include the KVM-based HPE VM Essentials hypervisor, which offers enterprise-grade capabilities such as high availability, live migration, distributed workload placement, integrated data protection, and external storage support. Additionally, HPE VM Essentials provides unified management for both HPE VME and VMware environments, enabling flexibility and avoiding vendor lock-in. Users can also convert VMware images to HPE VM Essentials Software.
The solution is currently available as stand-alone software and will soon be integrated into HPE Private Cloud offerings, starting with HPE GreenLake for Private Cloud Business Edition and later HPE SimpliVity.
Ready to learn more?
Check out these blogs:
Enhancing the HCI landscape: HPE SimpliVity 5.1.0U1 and HPE SimpliVity Gen11 platforms
HPE GreenLake for Private Cloud Business Edition with HPE SimpliVity
Optimize, modernize, and simplify hybrid IT with HPE VM Essentials Software
Read:
Analyst report: The economic benefits of HPE Private Cloud Business Edition with HPE SimpliVity for Edge
QuickSpecs: HPE SimpliVity 325 Gen11 / HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11
Meet Shwetha Varsha, Senior Technical Marketing Engineer, HPE
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