Higher stage
Perhaps startups are a landmark phenomenon of modern business, a driving force not only in their “core” industries, but also in complementary markets. Commercial real estate is obliged to them by co-working - offices, hostels, catering enterprises - by hundreds of liters of “American” take-away, and IT - by new compact all-in-one solutions that are inexpensive, efficient and quickly deployed at the same time. A growth sickness comes on startups all at once: it seemed that yesterday enthusiasts only had a couple of more or less productive laptops, and today the task flow, data volume and number of users require you to think seriously about the IT equipment of a young business.
In this case, Dell goes from tasks. Is there a new market? There is a need for small integrated solutions? Get and sign off - Dell PowerEdge VRTX, the first comprehensive server solution for small and medium businesses. By the way, the developers have learned the idea of creating the platform from the users themselves. On the site for the exchange of IdeaStorm ideas, one of them suggested the need to create a new form factor for server racks. It was rightly noted that startups do not always have a separate room for the server, and in common with the workplace room a large server cabinet is simply superfluous. The idea of the user was to create a new standard of the rack platform for small and medium businesses that would suggest more compact dimensions, lower power consumption and a decrease in the level of active cooling - the noise of the fans makes it difficult to concentrate. The user suggested modifying the U-rack standard in a Mini U, which would be at least two times smaller in depth and height. Ideally, servers, switches, routers, UPS, cables, etc. should be placed in such a rack. And, most importantly, the new standard should be open so that equipment manufacturers would be guided by it. So, Dell PowerEdge VRTX was created precisely for these requirements. What is this platform, what are its capabilities, key features and possible areas of application?
The name Dell PowerEdge VRTX is pronounced “ver-tex” and translated from Latin means “highest level”. A loud application is fully justified: such a reputable journal as ITPro does not distribute credits of trust and gives the first place in the Innovations nomination only in the case.
Dell PowerEdge VRTX is a single complete unified platform for solving a wide range of IT-problems. The company's engineers managed to connect computing nodes, storage, switchboard, switching cables and remote monitoring and control system in one simple, effective and versatile solution. This convenient and practical option is suitable for startups, and for remote branches with a good load, which now do not have to find a place for countless racks in a separate office space. Yes, and manage all of this "farm" has become much easier, but more on that later ...
Let's start with the look. Initially, the device comes in a version of the "Tower" and provides for installation in a standard rack. To install the compute nodes directly on the front side of the case, there are four “slots” with the option of installing the hot-swappable Dell PowerEdge M520 or M620 blade servers already on the market. Nearby are hot-swap bays (2.5 "or 3.5" - depending on the choice of the customer) for filling the HDD of the disk subsystem of the platform. Immediately, on the front of the case, you can see the LCD panel for convenient monitoring of key components of the complex, two USB ports of the onboard KVM switch and a tray shared between all the DVD drive servers. If necessary, the front side can be protected with a lid with a lock.
On the back of the case are four hot-plug fan units, chassis control system ports, four power supplies, an eight-port 1 GB switch, and eight external PCIe slots.
About platform components more? "Blades" Dell PowerEdge M520 and M620 are two-socket half-format blade servers that combine high performance and extensive functionality. They are equipped with the latest Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 / 2400 family with support for up to eight cores, allow you to install up to 768 GB of DDR3 RAM with a frequency of up to 1600 MHz (for M620 model) and up to two SATA / SAS hot-swap drives . Both models work with the Intel C600 chipset and support a wide range of mezzanine I / O cards: 1 and 10 GB, FC and InfiniBand. They also support internal SD-cards for the hypervisor and vFlash, which allow you to automate the server configuration, use scripts and operating system images. It is worth noting that the Dell PowerEdge VRTX is guaranteed to support the next, thirteenth generation blade servers - thus, the investment in the platform will be justified for a long time.
A shared storage system managed by a PERC8 RAID controller can include up to 25 disks in the 2.5 ”format. It supports RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6, RAID 10, RAID 50 and RAID 60 arrays. In a configuration with twelve 3.5 ”hard drives, the total disk space can reach 48 TB with support for Live Migration technology in a virtual environment within one chassis. Interestingly, this volume is limited only by the models of the disks on the market, and in the future the maximum size of the file storage can be increased - it all depends on your needs. Further, since the entire system is a single unit, the cost of cables and power to the disk subsystem is very noticeably reduced. All four installed blades have access to storage, with each server accessing its own disk pool. Virtual disks can be assigned to one or several servers at the same time.
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Embedded network ports and standard PCIe slots provide wide connectivity options: the chassis allows you to use three full-size and five low-profile expansion cards, including professional graphics cards — for example, ATI FirePro W7000. For these purposes, additional power cables are provided. Importantly, the slots support hot swap mode.
As standard, the chassis comes with an eight-port 1 Gbps switch with support for Select Network Adapter technology and the ability to aggregate channels up to 8 Gbps, however, it can be optionally replaced with a 1 Gbits transit module.
Power supplies rated at 1,100 W with hot-swap support operate in automatic mode depending on the current load in 1 + 1, 2 + 1, 3 + 1 and 2 + 2 configurations over a wide voltage range from 100 to 240 V. It is used standard cable means standard wiring is good for you. And what about cooling? The solution here is also very, very advanced: four hot-pluggable fan units and Fresh Air technology known from previous Dell products. What does this mean? It's simple: the acoustic characteristics of the VRTX are “at the office level,” and let it sound too formal, but it is.
The Dell PowerEdge VRTX platform remote control at the hardware level is provided by a CMC Access mezzanine PCie adapter with its own processor and Flash memory. This allows you to access the system in case of any malfunction of the internal nodes and eliminate / localize the problem area remotely. The only requirement is the availability of power and a network cable in the adapter.
Due to the fact that the management of servers, data storage, network equipment and power consumption is combined at one point, the complexity of service in the case of the Dell PowerEdge VRTX is significantly reduced, and without exaggeration, the user-friendly interface reduces almost all possible errors. Dell Open Management Essentials software provides management of the Dell PowerEdge M520 and M620 servers, supports iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller technology, deployment tools (such as making boot images on DVD (SBUU) or USB flash drive (USC), booting with PXE or virtual ISO, Dell detection Auto Discovery (D & H), license installation via RACADM or WSMAN), monitoring and updating tools. GeoView, a convenient geographic view of Dell PowerEdge VRTX systems distributed throughout the world, allows you to quickly and clearly identify remotely distributed systems and track their status as colored icons on a global map. CMC management provides simultaneous updates to up to 36 servers on nine Dell PowerEdge VRTX platforms with a single system reboot.
As a result, we get a unified platform that combines servers, storage, network and monitoring and management systems and works on familiar Dell technologies. Due to simple implementation, saving time and reducing possible errors with a single and simplified management system, capital and operating costs are reduced. The efficiency of the cooling system and low noise and power consumption also add compliments to the VRTX - all this allows you to place the chassis in almost any office space, not necessarily isolated and sharpened for IT. If we add to this a wide choice of applications (virtualization, file server, print server, mail, security, backup, etc.), then the Dell PowerEdge VRTX application area is almost limitless: from small and medium enterprises to remote offices of large companies in any point of the world. And, of course, the very extensive possibilities for customization of the platform allow it to cover in principle any areas of activity, be it government institutions, commercial enterprises, education, medicine, or trade.
The estimated retail price of the Dell PowerEdge VRTX is from 300,000 rubles. depending on the configuration. If you want to learn more about the Dell PowerEdge VRTX, or if you are interested in the conditions of the order, you can write directly to Marat Rakayev at Dell .
In this case, Dell goes from tasks. Is there a new market? There is a need for small integrated solutions? Get and sign off - Dell PowerEdge VRTX, the first comprehensive server solution for small and medium businesses. By the way, the developers have learned the idea of creating the platform from the users themselves. On the site for the exchange of IdeaStorm ideas, one of them suggested the need to create a new form factor for server racks. It was rightly noted that startups do not always have a separate room for the server, and in common with the workplace room a large server cabinet is simply superfluous. The idea of the user was to create a new standard of the rack platform for small and medium businesses that would suggest more compact dimensions, lower power consumption and a decrease in the level of active cooling - the noise of the fans makes it difficult to concentrate. The user suggested modifying the U-rack standard in a Mini U, which would be at least two times smaller in depth and height. Ideally, servers, switches, routers, UPS, cables, etc. should be placed in such a rack. And, most importantly, the new standard should be open so that equipment manufacturers would be guided by it. So, Dell PowerEdge VRTX was created precisely for these requirements. What is this platform, what are its capabilities, key features and possible areas of application?
The name Dell PowerEdge VRTX is pronounced “ver-tex” and translated from Latin means “highest level”. A loud application is fully justified: such a reputable journal as ITPro does not distribute credits of trust and gives the first place in the Innovations nomination only in the case.
Dell PowerEdge VRTX is a single complete unified platform for solving a wide range of IT-problems. The company's engineers managed to connect computing nodes, storage, switchboard, switching cables and remote monitoring and control system in one simple, effective and versatile solution. This convenient and practical option is suitable for startups, and for remote branches with a good load, which now do not have to find a place for countless racks in a separate office space. Yes, and manage all of this "farm" has become much easier, but more on that later ...
Let's start with the look. Initially, the device comes in a version of the "Tower" and provides for installation in a standard rack. To install the compute nodes directly on the front side of the case, there are four “slots” with the option of installing the hot-swappable Dell PowerEdge M520 or M620 blade servers already on the market. Nearby are hot-swap bays (2.5 "or 3.5" - depending on the choice of the customer) for filling the HDD of the disk subsystem of the platform. Immediately, on the front of the case, you can see the LCD panel for convenient monitoring of key components of the complex, two USB ports of the onboard KVM switch and a tray shared between all the DVD drive servers. If necessary, the front side can be protected with a lid with a lock.
On the back of the case are four hot-plug fan units, chassis control system ports, four power supplies, an eight-port 1 GB switch, and eight external PCIe slots.
About platform components more? "Blades" Dell PowerEdge M520 and M620 are two-socket half-format blade servers that combine high performance and extensive functionality. They are equipped with the latest Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 / 2400 family with support for up to eight cores, allow you to install up to 768 GB of DDR3 RAM with a frequency of up to 1600 MHz (for M620 model) and up to two SATA / SAS hot-swap drives . Both models work with the Intel C600 chipset and support a wide range of mezzanine I / O cards: 1 and 10 GB, FC and InfiniBand. They also support internal SD-cards for the hypervisor and vFlash, which allow you to automate the server configuration, use scripts and operating system images. It is worth noting that the Dell PowerEdge VRTX is guaranteed to support the next, thirteenth generation blade servers - thus, the investment in the platform will be justified for a long time.
A shared storage system managed by a PERC8 RAID controller can include up to 25 disks in the 2.5 ”format. It supports RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6, RAID 10, RAID 50 and RAID 60 arrays. In a configuration with twelve 3.5 ”hard drives, the total disk space can reach 48 TB with support for Live Migration technology in a virtual environment within one chassis. Interestingly, this volume is limited only by the models of the disks on the market, and in the future the maximum size of the file storage can be increased - it all depends on your needs. Further, since the entire system is a single unit, the cost of cables and power to the disk subsystem is very noticeably reduced. All four installed blades have access to storage, with each server accessing its own disk pool. Virtual disks can be assigned to one or several servers at the same time.
')
Embedded network ports and standard PCIe slots provide wide connectivity options: the chassis allows you to use three full-size and five low-profile expansion cards, including professional graphics cards — for example, ATI FirePro W7000. For these purposes, additional power cables are provided. Importantly, the slots support hot swap mode.
As standard, the chassis comes with an eight-port 1 Gbps switch with support for Select Network Adapter technology and the ability to aggregate channels up to 8 Gbps, however, it can be optionally replaced with a 1 Gbits transit module.
Power supplies rated at 1,100 W with hot-swap support operate in automatic mode depending on the current load in 1 + 1, 2 + 1, 3 + 1 and 2 + 2 configurations over a wide voltage range from 100 to 240 V. It is used standard cable means standard wiring is good for you. And what about cooling? The solution here is also very, very advanced: four hot-pluggable fan units and Fresh Air technology known from previous Dell products. What does this mean? It's simple: the acoustic characteristics of the VRTX are “at the office level,” and let it sound too formal, but it is.
The Dell PowerEdge VRTX platform remote control at the hardware level is provided by a CMC Access mezzanine PCie adapter with its own processor and Flash memory. This allows you to access the system in case of any malfunction of the internal nodes and eliminate / localize the problem area remotely. The only requirement is the availability of power and a network cable in the adapter.
Due to the fact that the management of servers, data storage, network equipment and power consumption is combined at one point, the complexity of service in the case of the Dell PowerEdge VRTX is significantly reduced, and without exaggeration, the user-friendly interface reduces almost all possible errors. Dell Open Management Essentials software provides management of the Dell PowerEdge M520 and M620 servers, supports iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller technology, deployment tools (such as making boot images on DVD (SBUU) or USB flash drive (USC), booting with PXE or virtual ISO, Dell detection Auto Discovery (D & H), license installation via RACADM or WSMAN), monitoring and updating tools. GeoView, a convenient geographic view of Dell PowerEdge VRTX systems distributed throughout the world, allows you to quickly and clearly identify remotely distributed systems and track their status as colored icons on a global map. CMC management provides simultaneous updates to up to 36 servers on nine Dell PowerEdge VRTX platforms with a single system reboot.
As a result, we get a unified platform that combines servers, storage, network and monitoring and management systems and works on familiar Dell technologies. Due to simple implementation, saving time and reducing possible errors with a single and simplified management system, capital and operating costs are reduced. The efficiency of the cooling system and low noise and power consumption also add compliments to the VRTX - all this allows you to place the chassis in almost any office space, not necessarily isolated and sharpened for IT. If we add to this a wide choice of applications (virtualization, file server, print server, mail, security, backup, etc.), then the Dell PowerEdge VRTX application area is almost limitless: from small and medium enterprises to remote offices of large companies in any point of the world. And, of course, the very extensive possibilities for customization of the platform allow it to cover in principle any areas of activity, be it government institutions, commercial enterprises, education, medicine, or trade.
The estimated retail price of the Dell PowerEdge VRTX is from 300,000 rubles. depending on the configuration. If you want to learn more about the Dell PowerEdge VRTX, or if you are interested in the conditions of the order, you can write directly to Marat Rakayev at Dell .
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/198824/
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