HP and VMWare have disclosed their plans to collaborate once again for a product integration that involves customizing HP’s TippingPoint Intrusion Prevention System products with VMWare’s vCloud Director packages. As reported by both companies, this integration will allow help improve extend security management and automate “the processes of scanning, identifying threats and blocking attacks” across physical and virtual IT stacks.

“Building upon HP’s global strategic alliance with VMware, this expanded relationship is designed to deliver additional innovative security technology for a converged infrastructure,” said Alan Kessler, general manager of HP’s security products organization, in a statement on Tuesday. “With the growth of virtualisation and cloud computing, security requirements have never been more complex and critical to our clients.”

While Tippingpoint IPS is based on an application-specific integrated circuit (Asic)-based security system that helps block malicious traffic, VMWare’s vCloud Director tool for building multi-tenant private clouds by running a virtual datacentre on top of pooled hardware infrastructure. Although both companies are working in collaboration from the last eight years for product integration, this will one will be for marketing the “HP TippingPoint IPS vController and VMware vShield solution” that combines HP’s TippingPoint virtualization security vController with VMware’s vShield App and Edge protection.

Taking a look at some other developments from HP, we heard about acquisition of Vertica, the electronics giant for an undisclosed amount. This acquisition can result in its enhanced data optimization offerings portfolio with real-time, large-scale analytics. Vertica’s Analytics Platform is Groupon’s platform of choice for analyzing customer data and scaling business intelligence. And as Analytics is becoming a big industry, it will give huge benefits to HP who is working hard to shift its product lineup around increased production and webOS.

The deal is expected to close in second quarter of this year and as soon as it is done, Vertica products will be available through HP sales and service channels.

Besides, the company is also looking to manage the construction phase of its clients’ data center projects and hence generate revenue from this division. HP is already offering consulting services to its customers and selling design and post-construction services, but now trying to give complete “end-to-end” data center services business too. According to the company, its end-to-end management approach will incur lower cost for project completion.

“Typically, when you do a project in a turnkey fashion, you save up to one-quarter to 30 percent of the budget for that facility,” Rick Einhorn, worldwide director for HP’s Critical Facilities Services group, said. “Part of that is through significantly reducing the schedule. You can compress a lot of the work that’s done in design and construction … start construction sooner rather than later, and get your facility to market sooner. HP hopes to take a bigger ‘share of wallet’ from data center construction projects. The new service will also tighten its relationships with customers, which could give it a better chance of being chosen to supply the IT gear inside the facility.”