In my previous post , I talked about Dell’s PowerEdge M-Series and its advantages over HP’s c3000 “Shorty” in terms of power and configuration. As a follow up, thought we could look at an affordability comparison between the two
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In my previous post, I talked about Dell’s PowerEdge M-Series and its advantages over HP’s c3000 “Shorty” in terms of power and configuration. As a follow up, thought we could look at an affordability comparison between the two systems.
One of the funny things about HP’s Shorty, in my opinion, is its cost – and how much, or little, a customer gets for that cost. Our M-Series with six M600 Intel-based servers, including simple and easy to use iSCSI storage, is about $5,400 per server. HP’s Shorty, with six BL460c servers and storage, runs approximately $6,200 per server. (FWIW - the M-Series is redundant fabric capable, Shorty is not.)
The M-Series is also redundant power supply and redundant circuit capable, with many other enterprise-class, business-necessary functionality important regardless of org size – such as remote management via a single CAT5 connection for accessing all the blades in an enclosure, instead of multiple dongles and external switches.
For many 16-blade configurations, the M-Series can run on one 30amp 208v single phase circuit (see the config in Part I), just like your window air conditioning unit and less than your 40amp electric clothes dryer. Since you will only be using 6 servers (in server/storage example above), you’ll save money on your purchase price – more than the electrician will probably charge you to run the 208 circuit. Not having to worry about blowing your circuit and having the ability to get redundant connectivity and redundant power are value adds that are native to the M-Series chassis.
Go to our easy-to-use Dell Datacenter Capacity Planner and configure your Dell Servers (any of them, not just blades) on a single tool. This has easily configurable hardware with usage models and directional guidance on power consumption. (As an FYI: You don’t have to register, give us your email address and opt out of “newsletters” to use it, which is what you have to do with similar tools from some competitors.)
With Dell’s M-Series, you just plug in more servers as your business grows. Or, you can buy another chassis from HP and spend more money you didn’t need to spend, if that is your desire. HP call’s their expansion scheme a “seamless upgrade”, but I wasn’t able to find any the specifics listed on their site. I’d rather have Dell’s M1000e chassis for a lower initial investment price with enterprise class feature/functions built in, and the ability to just plug in another blade server when I need it. No muss, no fuss.
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