Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Subscribe
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Subscribe
    Home IT Management
    • IT Management

    New Breed of Blade Servers Comes of Age

    Written by

    Jeff Burt
    Published February 17, 2003
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      A new wave of blade servers from several top-tier companies will include attributes more commonly associated with full-size servers, such as streamlined manageability.

      NEC Solutions America Inc., RLX Technologies Inc. and IBM are each readying new blade, or ultradense, servers that offer such high-end capabilities as fault tolerance, system management and storage, respectively.

      The moves, along with the form factors existing attributes, such as modularity, make the systems even more desirable for some users.

      “If we start adding a lot of subscribers now, we have to buy a whole new server,” said Dan Carney, senior director of operations at Wildfire Communications Inc., which sells voice-activated communications products and services. “But with blades, all I have to do is buy another blade. The modularity of the blade is what Im looking forward to.”

      Wildfire, of Waltham, Mass., runs NECs existing Express5800/320La line of fault-tolerant, full-size servers but is considering the Boxboro, Mass., companys forthcoming blade, the Express5800/320Lb.

      At the core of the systems fault tolerance capabilities is an identical backup of every component within the same blade. And unlike most blade systems, in which the blades stand vertically side by side, the 320Lb will use the traditional 1U (1.75-inch) horizontal form factor, according to NEC officials. Each chassis will house six blades, including two processor modules that will house one or two Intel Corp. 2.4GHz Xeon chips.

      NEC rolled out the 320Lb blades in Japan last month and is launching them in the United States next month.

      Like Wildfire, Persist Technologies Inc. is looking to blades to provide high availability to its applications. Using its own management software, Persist mirrors each of the one-processor RLX blades it uses so that if one fails, another can step up and perform the task, said Gary Lyng, vice president for product management and alliances for the Pleasanton, Calif., company. The failed blade can then be replaced without interrupting the service.

      “We develop a blade-box environment without one single point of failure and [with] fault tolerance,” Lyng said.

      RLX, of The Woodlands, Texas, is keying off the concept of ease of management with a new overarching strategy called ActiveIT, which comprises blades, tools for clustering, blade management and provisioning, and professional services.

      RLXs new dual-processor ServerBlade 2800i/3000i is equipped with Intel Xeon processors that run at 2.8GHz and 3GHz. It can run either Red Hat Inc.s Red Hat Linux 7.3 or Microsoft Corp.s Windows 2000. A new 6U (10.5-inch) chassis can hold up to 10 blades. Each blade also features an LCD that indicates whether there is a problem.

      In addition, IBM, of Armonk, N.Y., last week announced it is extending the reach of its BladeCenter servers by offering embedded storage area network and Fibre Channel connectivity in them. The move will ease the physical management of the boxes by reducing the amount of cabling required.

      Component makers are also beginning to create products specifically for blades. Intel, at its Intel Developer Forum in San Jose, Calif., this week, will give details on Deerfield, its 64-bit Itanium processor for blades.

      Sources familiar with the Santa Clara, Calif., companys plans said Deerfield will consume at least half of the 130 watts of power that the current Itanium 2 chip uses. Deerfield is due in the second half of the year.

      Jeff Burt
      Jeff Burt
      Jeffrey Burt has been with eWEEK since 2000, covering an array of areas that includes servers, networking, PCs, processors, converged infrastructure, unified communications and the Internet of things.

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.