Abiquo to become the bridge between Amazon and VMware with v2.6 release

Cloud management software provider, Abiquo, has released v2.6 of its award winning cloud management platform – a single platform for service providers and enterprises to manage and control their entire private, public and hybrid cloud infrastructure.

The new release now allows service providers and enterprises to integrate and manage public cloud service Amazon EC2 with their existing cloud infrastructure from a single interface layer and console. Microsoft Hyper-V 2012 and Oracle hypervisors are also supported within the new release, along with support for NFS managed storage solutions.

Other features include:
· Enhanced APIs: it’s now quicker and easier for service providers and enterprises to develop new cloud services and integrate them into their existing cloud offerings
· Simplified multiple backup: a consistent, simple interface is now provided for users to set multiple backup schedules and stay informed on backup status – no matter what the underlying technology
· Simplified workflow: business administrators can now remain in control of resources they consume, whether public or private. This can also be integrated to existing business workflow systems and email approval processes
Ultimately, service providers and enterprises using Abiquo v2.6 can finally take advantage of public cloud offerings, whilst benefitting from the control of their existing on-premise solutions.

A clear vision and direction
Abiquo has made solid progress during the last two quarters. It announced a new round of investment in April 2013, adding Oxford Capital Partners to its existing investors. It has also just appointed a new CEO – entrepreneur and former NTRglobal and Solsoft Chairman and CEO, Gilles Samoun.
Newly appointed Samoun comments: “With v2.6, Abiquo will become the bridge between Amazon and VMware; between the public and private cloud. We now enable customers to move to one and provision the other, allowing them to utilise both Amazon and VMware seamlessly through one console and single interface.

“We have all seen the way that the market is evolving and Amazon not only holds the lion’s share of the enterprise market but wants to increase it by challenging VMware. So, now we enable Abiquo users to utilise both VMware and Amazon seamlessly and with ease.”

With the recent appointment of Gilles to the company, Colin Watts, Investment Director at Oxford Capital Partners comments: “Gilles is more attuned with the needs of a start-up company and is an industry veteran. He is the best person to move Abiquo forward in this new stage of its growth. He has some provocative ideas and we believe in his vision for the company.”

Along with Gilles’s vision for the company, another key appointment is that of Ian Finlay as VP of Products. Formerly Group Chief Information Officer at Claranet – an award-winning Abiquo customer and Western Europe’s largest independent Managed Services provider, Ian brings a unique insight to Abiquo having successfully implemented and benefitted from its cloud management platform whilst at Claranet.

Sharing Gilles sentiments Ian adds: “Abiquo 2.6 delivers new opportunities for service providers to create new service offerings. Our integration with Amazon AWS lets service providers embrace commodity cloud services, whilst adding value with their hosted solutions and existing management services. For large enterprises, the ability to manage resources on multiple on-premise systems and Amazon through one interface provides security, control and insight across a complex infrastructure landscape.”

Looking to the future Ian states: "Our roadmap is clearly focussed on helping service providers create easy to deploy, easy to manage and easy to sell cloud solutions; embracing the commodity cloud services their customers demand rather than having to compete with them. For large enterprises, having one point to integrate with back-office systems makes Abiquo a compelling choice for a cloud management platform”