Dell is looking to make it easier for enterprises to manage and use their Microsoft Windows-based IT assets.
Dell on Feb. 16 rolled out its OpenManage Integration Suite for Microsoft System Center, which is a set of tools designed to help businesses more quickly and securely run their Windows environments.
At the same time, Dell announced that it is bulking up the storage capacity of its PowerEdge R510 server to better support Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 deployments or other applications.
The new OpenManage suite is being given for free to Dell customers running Microsoft System Center, and is aimed at large enterprises, midsize businesses and public organizations.
The new software tools let customers more quickly complete such administrative tasks as bare-metal deployments, server provisioning, and updates to BIOS drives and firmware, according to Dell. Businesses also can more easily schedule routine maintenance jobs and allocate resources to projects.
In a blog post, a Dell employee said a goal of the new offering is to give businesses an “a la carte menu” from which they can choose the tools they need without having to buy products or services they don’t want.
Included in the suite is Dell’s Lifecycle Controller, which is integrated with Microsoft’s System Center Configuration Manager, and Dell’s Server Deployment Pack, both of which enable IT managers to remotely deploy and provision servers, reducing the time and expense surrounding such tasks.
The OpenManage suite lets businesses take better advantage of their Windows-based IT assets, according to Sally Stevens, vice president of platform marketing for Dell.
“This solution gives our customers the tools they need to become more efficient and to achieve exceptional performance from their Microsoft environments,” Stevens said in a statement.
The added storage capacity for the PowerEdge R510 system is another efficiency and low-cost play, according to Dell.
With 24TB of storage, enterprises now have an affordable system that can take advantage of features in Exchange Server 2010, such as support for 10GB mailboxes, reduced disk I/O, greater mobility, and enhanced voice mail and e-mail integration.