I’ll admit—I’ve been holding off on writing about the latest blade server offerings. I wanted to give all the major server vendors time to announce and start shipping their new models. But now that the dust has settled, I’m genuinely surprised by what I’ve found.

Cisco Unified Compute System (UCS)

Cisco has released two options for the UCS-X modular architecture: the Cisco UCS X210c M8 Compute Node and the Cisco UCS X215c M8 Compute Node.  The Cisco UCS X210c M8 Compute Node is the third generation of compute node to integrate into the Cisco UCS X-Series Modular System.  Up to eight Cisco Compute Hyperconverged Nodes can reside in the 7-Rack-Unit (7RU)
Cisco Compute Hyperconverged 9508 Chassis.

Below are the highlights of each offering.

Here’s a summary of the Cisco UCS X210c M8 features:

• Processor: Supports up to 2 Intel Xeon 6 Scalable CPUs (up to 86 cores and 336MB L3 cache per CPU).
• Memory: Up to 8TB DDR5 (32x 256GB DIMMs), with support for MRDIMMs at up to 8000 MT/s.
• Storage:
  • Up to 9 EDSFF E3.S NVMe drives (via new passthrough mezzanine controller).
  • Up to 6 hot-pluggable 2.5″ SSD/NVMe drives (with RAID or passthrough options).
  • Up to 2 M.2 SATA or NVMe drives for boot/local storage.
• GPU Options:
  • Optional front mezzanine GPU module (supports 2 HHHL GPUs and U.2/U.3 NVMe drives).
  • Optional connection to UCS X440p PCIe Node (supports up to 2 dual-slot or 4 single-slot GPUs).
• Networking (mLOM VICs):
  • VIC 15420: Up to 100 Gbps (2x 25 Gbps per IFM).
  • VIC 15230: Up to 100 Gbps per IFM.
• Optional Mezzanine Cards:
  • VIC 15422: Adds up to 200 Gbps (with X-Fabric).
  • PCIe mezzanine card enables GPU node connectivity via X-Fabric.
• Security: Supports TPM, secure boot FPGA, and ACT2 anti-counterfeit features.

For more information, check out the Cisco UCS X210c M8 Spec Sheet.

Here’s a summary of the Cisco UCS X215c M8 features:

• Processors: Supports up to two AMD EPYC™ 5th Gen CPUs, with up to 160 cores and 384 MB L3 cache per CPU.
• Memory: Up to 6TB DDR5 (6000 or 4800 MT/s), using 24x 256 GB DIMMs.
• Storage:
  • Up to six 2.5″ hot-swappable SSDs/NVMe drives with RAID or passthrough.
  • Up to two M.2 SATA (with RAID) or two M.2 NVMe (passthrough).
• GPU Support: Optional front mezzanine GPU module supporting up to 2x NVMe drives and 2x HHHL GPUs.
• Networking:
  • mLOM slot supports:
    • VIC 15420: up to 100 Gbps unified fabric (2x 50 Gbps).
    • VIC 15230: up to 100 Gbps, with secure boot.
  • Optional mezzanine slot supports:
    • VIC 15422: up to 200 Gbps total with X-Fabric.
    • PCI Mezz Card for connectivity to X440p PCIe Node.
• Security: Optional TPM, secure boot via FPGA, and ACT2 anti-counterfeit measures.

For more information, check out the Cisco UCS X215c M8 Spec Sheet.

HPE Synergy

The HPE Synergy 480 Gen12 Compute Module is the latest offering from HPE delivered in a  two-socket, half-height form factor to support demanding workloads.

Here are the highlights.

• Processor: Supports up to 2 Intel Xeon 6 Scalable CPUs (up to 86 cores and 336MB L3 cache per CPU).
• Memory: Up to 8TB DDR5 (32x 256GB DIMMs)
• Storage:
  • 4 SFF SAS/SATA/NVMe,
  • 8 EDSFF NVMe E3.S Hardware
  • RAID M.2 Boot Option w/ Dual M.2 Boot drive included, or blank no drive cage solutions
• Networking:
  • 3 PCIe 5 mezzanine slots for multiple storage and networking solutions.
• Security: HPE Trusted Platform Module 2.0 and silicon root of trust from HPE

For more information, check out the HPE Synergy 480 Gen12 QuickSpecs.

In a future post, I’ll review the CPU offerings for these 3 new market blade servers.

Kevin Houston is the founder of BladesMadeSimple.com. With over 28 years of experience in the x86 server marketplace Kevin has a vast array of competitive x86 server knowledge and certifications as well as an in-depth understanding of VMware virtualization. He has worked at Dell Technologies since August 2011 and is a Principal Engineer supporting the Northeast Enterprise Region and is also a CTO Ambassador for the Office of the CTO at Dell Technologies. #IWork4Dell

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