New blade joins HP portfolio for powering scale-out computing environments

HP today announced the world's first two-in-one server blade, which offers customers with scale-out environments improved data center performance, reduced floor space and lower power usage. Businesses with cloud computing, Web 2.0 and high-performance computing (HPC) deployments have data centers with hundreds to thousands of servers, multi-petabyte levels of storage capacity and massive performance needs. These “scale-out” environments require increased performance, lower energy consumption, improved cooling techniques and a need to maximize existing data center floor space. To address these needs, the HP ProLiant BL2x220c G5 combines two independent servers in a single blade, enabling customers to double compute power and significantly reduce data center space requirements. It delivers 60 percent better performance per watt than similar configurations on the market and minimizes cooling and power costs. HP has created a dedicated set of resources, expertise and development efforts called the “Scalable Computing and Infrastructure” business unit to build solutions designed for scale-out customers. The BL2x220c joins the recently announced HP StorageWorks 9100 Extreme Data Storage System (ExDS9100) in addressing the scale-out market. The ExDS91000 is a highly scalable storage system designed to simplify the management of multiple petabytes of data at an affordable cost, making it ideal for online and digital media businesses. “HP continues to be the best at helping customers of all sizes manage and transform their technology environments to deliver better business outcomes,” said Ann Livermore, executive vice president, Technology Solutions Group, HP. “Customers in Web 2.0, HPC and emerging cloud deployments across many business segments are looking for the competitive advantages that scale-out computing can provide. Through innovations in server density, power efficiency, storage management and data center services, we are committed to being the company that powers scale-out infrastructures.” "As one of Europe’s leading computing centers, NSC can with Neolith, one of the world’s most powerful clusters, deliver high-performance computing power and services for both applied and basic research in a broad range of disciplines," said Bengt Persson, director, National Supercomputer Centre in Linköping, Sweden. "HP’s efficient cluster technology and broad expertise made it possible for NSC to make the big leap from a 1.7 teraflops system to 60 teraflops." HP offers scale-out customers the domain expertise that results from designing and retrofitting more than 30 million square feet of data center floor space and powering 166 of the top 500 supercomputer installations. The new BL2x220c extends HP's proven portfolio of hardware, software and services for the scale-out market. The BL2x220c is the industry’s first server blade to offer more than three times the density of traditional 1U rack-mount servers. Its innovative design specifically addresses the exponential data growth facing companies with cloud computing, Web 2.0 and HPC deployments. Additionally, the new server blade uses HP’s award-winning management and configuration tools, which help drive down costs and mitigate risk. “CESGA partnered with HP to create a massive scale-out data center that is servicing public and private sector institutions throughout Spain and is elevating CESGA as a world-class center for scientific knowledge, research and innovation," explained Javier Garcia Tobio, director, CESGA, the Supercomputing Center of Galicia, Spain. "HP provided the latest technology, running different operating systems and the expertise in data center design, large-scale HPC cluster deployment, and application optimization that is reducing researchers’ time-to-solution and enabling more ambitious scientific research."