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IBM Blades Cut SMP Down to Size

IBM Corp. will begin shipping four-way server blades in February that will allow consolidation-minded organizations to jam 28 Intel Xeon MP processors into 7U of rack space, the company said this week.

Up to seven of the four-processor blades slide vertically into a 7U IBM eServer BladeCenter chassis. IBM has not yet disclosed the pricing for the individual blades, which are called the IBM eServer BladeCenter HS40. A lower-end model supporting up to two processors, the HS20, starts at $2,780 with a 2.8-GHz Intel Xeon processor.

IBM bills the HS40 as the smallest four-way on the market, and has HP in its crosshairs. Big Blue compares its HS40 blades against an HP four-way blade offering that requires 9U of rack space for two four-processor blades.

Early customers of the HS40 include the Atlanta-based ISP, Interland.

Also on Wednesday, IBM added a new server to its Intel-based server line. The new IBM eServer xSeries 365 is a four-processor Intel Xeon MP server design with a 3U rack profile. With six internal hard disk drives, its internal storage capacity tops out at 876 GB.

The xSeries 365 is available immediately starting at $7,040.

About the Author

Scott Bekker is editor in chief of Redmond Channel Partner magazine.

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