Dell launches new PowerEdge blade servers
Dell is expected on Monday to add a new series of blade products to its PowerEdge
server line, expanding its presence in a market dominated by rivals IBM and
Hewlett-Packard.
The PowerEdge M-Series of blades includes the fastest-performing and most power-efficient
blade servers the company has, said Mike Roberts, senior product planning manager
for Dell.
The PowerEdge M1000E, a 10U enclosure, will support the new Intel-based PowerEdge
M600 and Advanced Micro Devices-based PowerEdge M605 blade servers, also announced
Monday.
The M1000E enclosure supports a range of network connectivity options, including
modules for Ethernet, Fibre Channel and InfiniBand connectivity. The enclosure
allows customers to upgrade or stack up on network hardware to boost networking
speed.
The PowerEdge M600 blade server is a dual-socket server that supports up to
two quad-core Intel Xeon processors, including processors in the Xeon 5400 series
running at up to 3.16GHz. The dual-socket PowerEdge M605 servers support dual-core
Opteron 2000 series processors running at up to 3GHz. Both blades support Windows
Server 2003 and Linux OSes.
Targeted at data centers, the PowerEdge M1000E enclosure is priced at US$5,999,
and the blades start at $1,849. The products will be available worldwide starting
Monday.
Dell's OpenManage systems management technology, which will be bundled with
the blades, includes energy management tools. Capabilities include real-time
power reporting and the ability to set power usage by blade.
Power efficiency in blade servers is an important consideration for those looking
to upgrade data centers, said Richard Doherty, cofounder and director of Envisioneering
Group. Energy costs have become a big factor in considering hardware for data
centers, and companies are taking a closer look at reducing their carbon footprints,
Doherty said.
"Going greener can be a reason for an upgrade," Doherty said.
The new blade server gives Dell an opportunity to catch up with HP and IBM
blade products, especially in small data centers, Doherty said. Dell's PowerEdge
M-Series will compete with IBM's BladeCenter H and HP's BladeSystem c-Class
blades.
In addition, the new blade servers will need strong management tools in order
to succeed, Doherty said. Dell in the past has announced service and support
initiatives that haven't panned out, and the company's OpenManage system management
tools are not as strong as autonomic computing offerings from HP and IBM, Doherty
said.
System management is a big concern for data centers, and customers are looking
for the ability to manage systems without the need for additional IT engineers,
Doherty said.
IDG News Service
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