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Blade Server Comparison – September 2018

With the recent release of the Dell EMC PowerEdge MX blade servers, I realized it’s been a year since I’ve updated my blade server comparison chart.  Below is an updated chart to help guide you to the best blade server for your project.

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New Study Compares Networking Capabilities of Blade Server Solutions

An independent testing company, Principled Technologies, recently released a study that compared the networking capabilities of Dell EMC PowerEdge MX, HPE Synergy and Cisco UCS using VMware vMotion.  Their findings:

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A Look Under the Covers of the PowerEdge MX7000 Chassis

VMworld 2018 opened with Dell EMC revealing the PowerEdge MX architecture to the public.  The show floor included the full chassis along with a plexiglass version providing a behind the scenes view into the guts of the MX7000 chassis.  I was able to grab a few pictures, but they don’t do it justice.  I encourage you to stop by the Dell EMC booth (next to AMD and in front of the basketball court)…

A First Look at the Dell EMC PowerEdge MX

After teasing the public at Dell Technologies World, Dell EMC has finally released details of its next generation modular architecture – the PowerEdge MX.  This generation of modular has something that gives you investment protection for years to come.  In this post, you’ll get a good overview of Dell EMC’s new blade server architecture, so grab a cup of coffee and enjoy this first look. (more…)

Don’t Move to the Cloud Before You Read This

If you are looking at moving workloads to the cloud – you should stop and read this first.  Deploying an on-premises private cloud built on blade servers could some major time and cost savings.  Of course, there are use cases where public cloud makes sense, and others where having an on-premise solution makes sense.  Here is one of those cases.

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This Server Technology Is a Game Changer so You Better Be Ready

As I’m talking with customers about rack or blade servers, I always start with industry trends.  I make sure they understand the things to be aware of with Intel Xeon SP processors, what’s new with AMD EPYC processors, NVMe drives and I wrap it up discussing Storage Class Memory  If you aren’t familiar with Storage Class Memory, you better start learning about it, because it is a game changer. (m…

Dell EMC Announces New Blade Server Platform

At the General Session of Dell Technologies World in Las Vegas Tuesday, Jeff Clarke stunned the audience by “previewing” Dell EMC’s next generation modular platform. (more…)

I need your help. I try to post something each month to keep the site fresh, but I’m struggling for useable content in this period where no new blade server products are being announced. If you have content or ideas that you’d like to see, please let me know via email, Twitter or comments below.

Thanks for your continued support.

Upgrading Your Blade Servers For Free

No, this isn’t click bait.  You could possibly upgrade your blade servers and it could actually end up saving you money (and theoretically be free.)  Let me explain. (more…)

This week Dell EMC launched a teaser video of the PowerEdge MX.  The video’s intent is to act as a “teaser” for more information that will be rolling out over the next few weeks when it will be announced at Dell EMC World Dell Technologies World  in late April.  Unfortunately I can’t reveal more than the video shows, however if you want to learn more, please reach out to your Dell EMC rep and…

As I mentioned in a previous blog post, the new Intel Xeon SP processor has more cores but it also has more memory channels.  This means you should really consider changing the way you architect your blade servers.

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As I talk with customers, I often run into camps who either love blade servers or they absolutely hate them – and will never use them.  I even hear some people think blade servers are dying off, but I think that is far from the case.  In fact, I believe that blade servers could be the future of the datacenter and here’s why. (more…)

Blade Server Options for VMware vSAN ReadyNode

Last July I wrote a blog article showcasing the limited options listed on VMware’s vSAN ReadyNode listing.  Over the past 14 months, that list has grown so instead of updating that older post, I thought I’d provide a consolidated updated list of vSAN ReadyNode blade servers.

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Blade Server Comparison – September 2017

With the recent release of the Intel Xeon SP CPUs, I realized it’s been a year since I’ve updated my blade server comparison chart.  Below is an updated chart to help guide you to the best blade server for your project.

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Recommended Memory Configurations for Skylake CPUs

The new architecture of the Intel Xeon SP (aka Skylake) CPU includes more memory channels, which is creating some uncertainty on best practices.  In today’s post, I’ll show you the best configurations to consider to help drive high memory performance. (more…)

Cisco Announces New Blade Servers

Cisco announced the UCS B200 M5 and UCS B480 M5 blade servers each supporting the newly announced Intel Xeon Scalable Processor.  Below are the highlights of each model. (more…)

HPE Announces New Blade Servers with Intel Xeon SP Processors

Today HPE released details on their next generation blade servers built on Intel’s Xeon Scalable Processor.  Below are the highlights of each model. (more…)