The Register has a technical analysis of the IBM iDataPlex Server and why they think it is a remarkable system.

IBM shakes up the server game with lean, cool iDataPlex

Freaking rivals 10,000 units at a time

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By Ashlee Vance in Santa Clara → More by this author

Published Wednesday 23rd April 2008 15:08 GMT

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It is with some measure of awe that we introduce you to IBM's iDataPlex server.

The system itself is quite remarkable. IBM has reworked its approach to rack servers allowing it to place twice as many systems in a single cabinet. This attack centers on delivering the most horsepower possible in a given area while also reducing power consumption. IBM hopes the iDataPlex unit will attract today's service providers buying thousands and tens of thousands of servers and also big businesses such as oil and gas firms and media companies that will also possibly pursue a grid-ish data center computing model pioneered to some degree by Google.

But the really awe inspiring bit of iDataPlex comes from the fact that IBM is willing to go after this market at all and that it did so without screwing up the hardware design. That's not at all to say that IBM lacks engineering know how. Obviously, that's not the case. Rather, it's that IBM has a tendency to try and cram higher-end technology into simple designs, eroding their initial magic.

And gets compared to containers and competitors.

If iDataPlex lives up to its billing, then IBM will certainly appear to have caught the likes of Sun, HP and Dell off guard.

To its credit, Sun pushed the container model early, and IBM admitted that customers are demanding these types of boxes. Sun also has very compact, memory-rich designs, but we've yet to see something that equates to iDataPlex. Meanwhile, Dell will sell you a bespoke motherboard with low-power chips and memory but certainly not a double-stuffed, double-rack. And, over at HP, we find the company concentrating on improving data center design through various cooling systems but not really shipping any of this new service provider-friendly gear. (As we understand it, HP has partnered with Rackable on a number of deals in the past.)

We're still not convinced about the long-term prospects of these vendors beating each other up for lower and lower margins as the data center build out continues. The prize for winning this contest seems to just be a gutted business unless you can convince these customers to shell out for software and services. Sadly for the vendors, most of the customers seem happy to do a lot of open source work on their own.

But the journey to guttation should be an interesting one, and iDataPlex has set us on our way. For that, we'll forgive IBM for the product's name

WSJ has an article on IBM's new iDataPlex line of servers which target the Green Data Center space.

International Business Machines Corp. announced Wednesday a new type of computer designed for the giant data centers operated by so-called Web 2.0 companies, such as Internet-search and email providers.

IBM's iDataPlex line is intended for companies that buy vertical racks containing dozens of servers based on Intel Corp. microprocessors. IBM said the product, due for sale next month, is aimed at fewer than 1,000 customers world-wide. Jim Gargan, a vice president for IBM's enterprise systems group, said the company hopes some customers will buy systems costing "north of $20 million."

IBM is entering a fast-growing market with somewhat limited competition. Some large users, such as Google Inc., design their own computer systems using parts from Intel. A few small companies, including Rackable Systems Inc., of Fremont, Calif., provide specialized systems for the market.

"There's a small group of customers but staggering volumes of servers," said Jed Scaramella, an analyst from International Data Corp., of Framingham, Mass. He predicted many of those companies will be eager to evaluate IBM's products. Dan Olds, an analyst with Gabriel Consulting in Beaverton, Ore., said, "It's a game changer in the market they're going after" because of the number of servers IBM has crammed into a small space.

When you deploy this many servers you better be Green.

IBM said its hardware design reduces the cost per server by about 20% to 25%. More importantly, it said, it crams 138% more servers into the same floor space and requires 40% less power to run. It can be outfitted with a water-cooled wall so it doesn't need air conditioning.

How big is the market for Green Data Center Servers? Big enough for IBM with customer references from Yahoo, Tencent QQ, Merrill Lynch, Texas Tech University, and IBM chose the Web 2.0 conference to announce their new product line. I was given the late opportunity to lead a Green IT discussion at Web2.0 Expo, but had a conflict, and it would be have nice to see first hand the crowd traffic and reaction to IBM's iDataPlex.

For more news on IBMs iDataplex go to http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=iDataPlex.

And, the Container idea comes up again.

The I.B.M. systems will begin shipping next month, and are intended for high-end customers with data centers that have a thousand to tens of thousands of server computers, said James Gargan, the I.B.M. vice president for xSeries computers, which are servers powered by industry-standard microprocessors produced by Intel or A.M.D.

The I.B.M. systems will mostly be made to order for large customers. One offering involves putting 1,500 server computers into a 40-foot truck trailer, ready to plug in from a parking lot, Mr. Gargan said.

In blogging and surfing the net, IBM consistently shows up as an advertiser for Green Data Center. Run a search http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=green+data+center and IBM pops to the top of the advertiser list (not on the sidebar, top of the page). The good thing is I am in the top 10 search results twice for my blog and TechNet article (25,000 pages views, yippee!!!).

WSJ has an article on IBM's new iDataPlex line of servers which target the Green Data Center space.

International Business Machines Corp. announced Wednesday a new type of computer designed for the giant data centers operated by so-called Web 2.0 companies, such as Internet-search and email providers.

IBM's iDataPlex line is intended for companies that buy vertical racks containing dozens of servers based on Intel Corp. microprocessors. IBM said the product, due for sale next month, is aimed at fewer than 1,000 customers world-wide. Jim Gargan, a vice president for IBM's enterprise systems group, said the company hopes some customers will buy systems costing "north of $20 million."

IBM is entering a fast-growing market with somewhat limited competition. Some large users, such as Google Inc., design their own computer systems using parts from Intel. A few small companies, including Rackable Systems Inc., of Fremont, Calif., provide specialized systems for the market.

"There's a small group of customers but staggering volumes of servers," said Jed Scaramella, an analyst from International Data Corp., of Framingham, Mass. He predicted many of those companies will be eager to evaluate IBM's products. Dan Olds, an analyst with Gabriel Consulting in Beaverton, Ore., said, "It's a game changer in the market they're going after" because of the number of servers IBM has crammed into a small space.

When you deploy this many servers you better be Green.

IBM said its hardware design reduces the cost per server by about 20% to 25%. More importantly, it said, it crams 138% more servers into the same floor space and requires 40% less power to run. It can be outfitted with a water-cooled wall so it doesn't need air conditioning.

How big is the market for Green Data Center Servers? Big enough for IBM with customer references from Yahoo, Tencent QQ, Merrill Lynch, Texas Tech University, and IBM chose the Web 2.0 conference to announce their new product line. I was given the late opportunity to lead a Green IT discussion at Web2.0 Expo, but had a conflict, and it would be have nice to see first hand the crowd traffic and reaction to IBM's iDataPlex.

For more news on IBMs iDataplex go to http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=iDataPlex.

And, the Container idea comes up again.

The I.B.M. systems will begin shipping next month, and are intended for high-end customers with data centers that have a thousand to tens of thousands of server computers, said James Gargan, the I.B.M. vice president for xSeries computers, which are servers powered by industry-standard microprocessors produced by Intel or A.M.D.

The I.B.M. systems will mostly be made to order for large customers. One offering involves putting 1,500 server computers into a 40-foot truck trailer, ready to plug in from a parking lot, Mr. Gargan said.

In blogging and surfing the net, IBM consistently shows up as an advertiser for Green Data Center. Run a search http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=green+data+center and IBM pops to the top of the advertiser list (not on the sidebar, top of the page). The good thing is I am in the top 10 search results twice for my blog and TechNet article (25,000 pages views, yippee!!!).

eWeek.com has an article titled How to Be Green in Your Data Center: Four Suggestions, but I would have title How to Green your Data Backup.

There are a lot of ways to save energy in your data center, including virtualization of both your servers and your backup. Andrew Madejczyk, vice president of Global Technology Operations at Sterling Testing Systems, explains this in more detail. Sterling had found itself with a backup solution that was too slow for its virtual environment. Madejczyk shows how that challenge can be made into both a performance and energy-saving opportunity.

Suggestion No. 1: Leverage the Value of a Backup Assessment

Suggestion No. 2: Virtualize Your Backup

Suggestion No. 3: Compress and Deduplicate Data

Suggestion No. 4: Use Thin Provisioning in Your Backup Environment