Data Center Links: HP, Cisco, Brocade

Here’s our review of some of this week’s noteworthy links for the data center industry:

HP launches ProLiant Gen8 Servers. At an HP event in Beijing, China Wednesday HP unveiled two new HP ProLiant Generation 8 four-socket servers that facilitate customers' move to the cloud. HP ProLiant BL660c and DL560 Gen8 servers reduce the time spent on maintenance tasks through high levels of automation and continuous monitoring of system health. Features of the new servers include the first integration with PCIe 3.0 storage technology, enhanced VM support with a memory design five times as dense than competitive offerings, and up to 50 percent better memory performance. “We needed to modernize our data centers in order to keep up with rapid growth and to ensure continued service to our customers across 140 countries,” said Yu Yuan, product manager, ZTE Corporation—Guangdong NewStart Technology Service Ltd. “We chose the HP ProLiant DL 560 Gen8 server over the competition because it offered increased virtual machine densities to reduce space and cost, while improving performance, which enabled us to develop a platform to build private clouds.”

Cisco acquires ThinkSmart. Cisco (CSCO) announced the acquisition of ThinkSmart Technologies, a network and Wi-Fi location analytics company based in Ireland. ThinkSmart is a software company that delivers location data analysis using Wi-Fi technology. ThinkSmart, initially formed at the Incubation Centre of University College Cork, joins Cisco’s Wireless Networking Group. With the data analysis an organization can collect information on movement within a venue including time of day, traffic patterns and dwell times. Cisco also announced that it has been selected by the National Broadband Network of Australia to provide equipment for its national data connectivity network. Cisco was awarded the contract to supply Multi-Protocol Layer Switching on Cisco routers and firewalls to support NBN Co's National Connectivity Network (NCN) in a deal estimated to be worth up to $38 million over five years.

Brocade selected by PeakColo.  Brocade (BRCD) announced that PeakColo has built its public and private cloud services with the help of Brocade, utilizing an Ethernet fabric built on Brocade VDX switches and VCS Fabric technology.  Using VDX 6720 switches PeakColo was able to reduce its cabling from a mix of 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) and 1 GbE cables, to just two 10 GbE cables. In its core network PeakColo used VDX 6720 switches, with Brocade VCS Fabric technology, which provides an intelligent foundation for building data center Ethernet fabrics and streamlines the transition to virtualization and cloud computing. "We wanted a network infrastructure that could accommodate our explosive growth and ever-increasing client demands, while providing that in a secure, high-performance environment," said John Palley, chief operating officer for PeakColo. "We looked at what we needed to support our business and our clients into the future, and Brocade provided that with minimum disruption and maximum capabilities. Brocade is known for its ability to move high volumes of data in a high-bandwidth, secure environment. This has enabled us to see a return on investment in just 11 months."