ProLiant BL40p. Hewlett-Packard Co., (800) 888-9909, (650) 857-1501. www.hp.com
HP BL10e
On the low-end from HP is the BL10e 900MHz PIII mobile processor blade, with a single laptop-size 40-GB IDE hard drive on each blade. This line of blade servers is meant for applications that don't need a lot of CPU power or for shops that need a large number of servers or workstations. Of the servers tested, the BL10e was the poorest performer, but that's primarily because it uses the slowest CPU. Unlike the p-series blades, the BL10e blades do not have the option of iLO management. Instead, the chassis carries the iLO functionality. The downside is that remote control of each blade is limited. When running Linux, we could get a console session via iLO; for blades running Windows, HP provides a limited text-based interface for a common set of tasks, such as accessing the process list, Windows services and network configuration.
On the positive side, we could add a KVM to each blade via an adapter that plugs on to the front. The adapter also provides two USB ports. Of course, to make use of the keyboard/mouse in Windows, the adapter must be plugged into the blade before it boots into Windows. We also could use terminal services or software like VNC to remotely administrate the boxes.
ProLiant BL10e. Hewlett-Packard Co., (800) 888-9909, (650) 857-1501. www.hp.com
RLX Technologies' blade line is geared toward the low-end to midrange server line. For companies, say, an ISP, that needs a large number of servers, for Web hosting or network infrastructure (DNS/DHCP) services, RLX has a solution for you.
Discover the benefits of scalable backbone and network services for application and cloud providers.
Network automation is gaining momentum. Here's how you can drive this powerful technology to its full potential.
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
