The VMware VMmark web site was recently updated to show Dell’s PowerEdge M910 blade server in the #1 slot (for blades) in the 16 core space. I think the PowerEdge M910 is very intriguing, so I thought I’d spend some time highlighting the features. Continue reading
Tag Archives: blade server
(UPDATED) 4TB SAN, 3 ESX Hosts for only $32,000? YES, It’s Real!
(Updated 7/27/2010 – 11 am EST – added info on power and tower options)
When you think about blade servers, you probably think, “they are too expensive.” When you think about doing a VMware project, you probably think, “my servers are too old” or “I can’t afford new servers.” For $8 per GB, you can have blade servers preloaded with VMware ESXi 4.1 AND 4TB of storage! Want to know how? Keep reading. Continue reading
What Does it Take to Design an HP Blade Server?
What’s the process to design an HP blade server? Find out on my interview with Gary Thome, Chief Blade Architect for HP. Thanks to the friends at SDR News, I was able to talk with Gary at the HP Tech Forum last month in Las Vegas. In the video below, Gary discusses the steps it takes for HP to design the next generation blade and he discusses the latest blade servers announced at the HP Technology Forum. Continue reading
New BL465c G7 and BL685c G7 (New Features)
Along with the Intel blade server announcements, Tuesday HP also announced two new AMD based blades, the BL465c G7 and BL685G7. Although originally viewed as a refresh of their existing AMD blade servers, while at the HP Tech Forum in Las Vegas, I found there were a few interesting facts. Let’s take a look. Continue reading
Mark Potter Reveals New HP BladeSystem Products – 6/21/2010 (#hptf)
At the 2010 HP Tech Forum press release on Monday, June 21, 2010, new HP BladeSystem products were announced. In the following video, Mark Potter, Vice President of HP Industry Standard Servers, reveals the newest HP BladeSystem products.
(UPDATED) FIRST LOOK: HP's New Blade Servers and Converged Switch
(Updated 6/22/2010, 1:00 a.m. Pacific, with updated BL620 image and 2nd Switch pic)
As expected, HP announced today new blade servers to their BladeSystem lineup as well as a new converged switch for their chassis. Everyone expected updates to the BL460 and BL490, the BL2x220c and even the BL680 blade servers, but the BL620 G7 blade server was a surprise (at least to me.) Before I highlight the announcements, I have to preface this by saying I don’t have a lot of technical information yet. I attended the press conference at HP Tech Forum 2010 in Las Vegas, but I didn’t get the press kit in advance. I’ll update this post with links to the Spec Sheets as they become available. Continue reading
Shared I/O – The Future of Blade Servers?
Last week, Blade.org invited me to their 3rd Annual Technology Symposium – an online event with speakers from APC, Blade Network Technologies, Emulex, IBM, NetApp, Qlogic and Virtensys. Blade.org is a collaborative organization and developer community focused on accelerating the development and adoption of open blade server platforms. This year’s Symposium focused on “the dynamic data center of the future”. While there were many interesting topics (check out the replay here), the one that appealed to me most was “Shared I/O” by Alex Nicolson, VP and CTO of Emulex. Let me explain why. Continue reading
Dell Announces New Blade Servers: M710HD and M610x
Dell announced today two new additions to their blade server family – the PowerEdge 11G M710HD and the M610x. The two new servers are just a part of Dell’s “Blade 3.0 Launch” – a campaign highlighting Dell’s ongoing effort to become the leader in blade server technology. Over the next several months, Dell will be making changes in their chassis infrastructure introducing more efficient power supplies and fans that will require Continue reading
(UPDATED) Best Blade Server for VMware Is…
(Updated to include links to results)
I’ve had a few questions lately about “the best” blade server to use for virtualization – specifically VMware virtualization. While the obvious answer is “it depends”, I thought it would be an interesting approach to identify the blade servers that ranked in the top 5 in VMware’s VMmark benchmark. Before I begin, let me explain what the VMmark testing is about. Continue reading
(UPDATED) IDC Q1 2010 Report: Blade Servers Growing, With #1 Market Share Going To…
NOTE: IDC revised their report on May 28, 2010. This post now includes those changes.
IDC reported on May 28, 2010 that worldwide server sales for Q1 2010 factory revenues increased 4.6 4.7% year over year to $10.4 billion in the first quarter of 2010 (1Q10). They also reported the blade server market accelerated and continued its sharp growth in the quarter with factory revenue increasing 37.1% 37.2% year over year, with shipment growth increasing by 20.8% compared to 1Q09. According to IDC, nearly 90% of all blade revenue is driven by x86 systems, a segment in which blades now represent 18.8% of all x86 server revenue. Continue reading