IBM Power Systems and HPE Proliant DL are two of the most popular enterprise rack servers in the market, but what do real users think about these solutions? Our user community tells it like it is, so you can learn what they love about these rack servers, and where they see room for improvement.
IBM Power Systems
Our community have contributed 32 user reviews for IBM Power Systems, with 81% of reviewers coming from large enterprise companies. IBM Power Systems receives an overall score of 9.0 from our users, making it the highest ranked rack server.
“I can get more work done with less hardware. The SMT that they've improved has really helped open up boundaries for other applications that can use it. The ones that can't, they're still single-threaded, still waiting on the CPU cycle.”
SeniorEnc592, Senior engineer systems admin at a comms service provider
“It has improved the stability of the Oracle database. We have a big database running in a Power environment and it is more stable than compared to what we are adding.”
Room for improvement
Deepak Kohli, Regional VIP cloud hosting at a tech consulting company:
“I would say that in general we would prefer it if the software was more transparent, in terms of how you are using it.
Right now it depends on the level of the system and how much more you might have to pay for the same software. And being a cloud provider, we get into a lot of situations where our customers might need just a fraction of a processor, but they still have to pay for a bigger portion of the software costs.”
HPE Proliant DL
Our community have contributed 74 user reviews for HPE Proliant DL, with 74% of reviewers coming from large enterprise companies. Proliant DL receives an overall score of 8.4 from our users, and has the most views and comparisons of all the rack servers in the category.
Valuable features
Reviewer294162, Systems Architect at a transportation company
“It was part of a bigger solution, which is VDI. We are able to publish desktops for design engineers whose requirements are continuously changing on a weekly basis.”
ITManage0b69, IT Manager at a manufacturing company
“The most valuable feature is consistency to the cost. We understand what we're going to get, and we also understand the price-point that we're entering into.”
Room for improvement
Reviewer680205, Senior Server Specialist at a energy/utilities company
“What is missing for me is more of the administration site. If you have a cluster of four servers, there's no way to identify if they are all a member of the same cluster.
If there were a way to tag them, then you could specify where they are located within the data center. It would make it easier, because then we could spread them out. We would not have to keep them in the same cabinet in case of a power failure.
I would like to see more ease-of-use, be able to identify everything, and group them together so that we know where they are located.”
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Rack Servers are essential for businesses aiming to optimize their data center infrastructure. Their importance lies in their ability to efficiently manage space, cooling, and power while providing scalability and high performance. Key aspects to look for:
Space efficiency
Scalability
High performance
Improved cooling management
Easy maintenance
Rack Servers offer space efficiency by allowing m...
Rack Servers are essential for businesses aiming to optimize their data center infrastructure. Their importance lies in their ability to efficiently manage space, cooling, and power while providing scalability and high performance. Key aspects to look for:
Space efficiency
Scalability
High performance
Improved cooling management
Easy maintenance
Rack Servers offer space efficiency by allowing multiple servers to be stacked vertically in a single rack, saving precious floor space. This configuration is especially critical for companies with limited physical space or those looking to expand their server capacity without relocating. High-density environments can host numerous servers, decreasing the total number of racks needed. This leads to a reduction in costs associated with infrastructure, such as power consumption and cooling requirements, increasing the importance of selecting the right Rack Server solution.Scalability is another crucial aspect, as businesses can easily add or remove servers from the rack according to their needs, ensuring they are only investing in what they require at any given time. This flexibility supports rapid business growth and adaptation to changing demands. Easy maintenance is also a significant benefit since the standardized form factor of Rack Servers allows for quick servicing and reduced downtime, ensuring consistent business operations. Efficient cooling management is a primary factor for companies aiming for higher performance and reliability, making Rack Servers a fundamental component of modern data centers.
This type of info is just statistics and no one can tell you how often a disaster occurs because there are too many variables in this math besides monitoring and maintenance.
I have seen a fire in the server room and it occurred because of the defective cooling system. Trust me - it costs more to return the place back to the normal operation than a fire suppression system.
As you said it's no...
Senior Network Admin at a educational organization with 501-1,000 employees
Mar 10, 2021
No, i've been working it IT for 20 years and never seen a fire in a server room (yet). However I have seen a flood when there was a particularly heavy rainstorm that flooded the car park and then made its way into the basement of the office block. The rain was so heavy it set all the car alarms off in the car park.
It's like insurance, you hope you never need it. But one day you just might.
System Architect at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
Mar 10, 2021
I have never experienced a fire in a data center but have seen some hazardous server rooms. It basically comes down to insurance and how badly damaged the equipment is and if not you have a redundant/fail-over/disaster recovery solution in place. Fire damage like water damage means game over, you will be looking to replace all IT equipment. Apart from physical damage you must also take downtime into account. So it's weighing up the cost of replacing the data center and downtime versus a fire suppression system. You may find this article interesting:https://www.missioncriticalmag...
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Very interesting comparison from each vendor as well as review scores.