R&M Data Center Handbook

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As an illustration, the key performance features of the first three models are listed below:
HP ProLiant DL380 IBM System x3950 Dell PowerEdge R710
Construction 2U rack 4U rack 2U rack
Main memory (max.) 144 GByte 64 GByte 144 GByte
Processor
Intel Xeon 5500 series;
Intel Xeon 5600 series
Intel Xeon 7400
Storage (max.) 16 TByte 2.35 TByte 6 TByte
Intel Xeon 5600 series;
Intel Xeon 5500 series
Network ports 4 x Gbit Ethernet 2 x Gbit Ethernet 2 x 10 Gbit Ethernet
Power supply
Pizza Box
2 x 750 watt power
supplies
2 x 1,440 watt power
supplies
2 x 570 watt power
supplies
The term pizza box, when used in a server context, is generally a slang term for server housing types with 19-inch
technology and a single height unit.
Blade Server
Blade systems (blade, blade server, blade center) are one of the most modern server designs and are the fastest
growing segment of the server market.
However, they do not differ from traditional rack servers in terms of operation and the execution of applications.
This makes it relatively easy to use blades for software systems that already exist. The most important selection
criteria for blade servers are the type of application expected to run on the server and the expected workload. In
consideration of their maintainability, provisioning and monitoring, blades on the whole deliver more today than
their 19-inch predecessors, yet are economical when it comes to energy and cooling. For example, a Blade
Center, an IBM term, provides the infrastructure required by the blades connected inside it. In addition to the
power supply, this includes optical drives, network switches, Fibre Channel switches (for the storage connection)
as well as other components.
The advantage of blades lies in their compact design, high power density, scalability and flexibility, a cabling
system that is more straightforward with significantly lower cable expenditure, and quick and easy maintenance. In
addition, only a single keyboard-video-mouse controller (KVM) is required for the rack system.
A flexible system management solution always pays off, especially in the area of server virtualization. Since in this
situation multiple virtual servers are usually being executed on one computer, a server also requires multiple
connections to the network. Otherwise, one must resort to costly processes for address conversion, similar to
what NAT (Network Address Translation) does. In addition, the level of security is increased by separating
networks. Many manufacturers allow up to 24 network connections to be provided for one physical server for this
purpose, without administrators having to change the existing network infrastructure. This simplifies integration of
the blade system into the existing infrastructure.
TecChannel created the following list of the most popular
blade servers from its extensive, detailed product database:
• 1st place: IBM BladeCenter S
• 2nd place: Dell PowerEdge M610
• 3rd place: Fujitsu Primergy BX900
• 4th place: Fujitsu Primergy BX600 S3
• 5th place: Fujitsu Primergy BX400
• 6th place: IBM BladeCenter H
• 7th place: Dell PowerEdge M910
• 8th place: Dell PowerEdge M710
• 9th place: HP ProLiant BL460c
• 10th place: Dell PowerEdge M710HD
IBM BladeCenter S
This list of manufacturers must also be extended by Oracle (Sun Microsystems), Transtec, Cisco with its UCS
systems (Unified Computing System) and other popular manufacturers.
R&M Data Center Handbook V2.0 © 08/2011 Reichle & De-Massari AG Page 81 of 156