Arthur Cole: Is IT Really Ready for Unification?

It’s hard not to be impressed by all the unified computing platforms hitting the channel from Cisco, Dell and others. After all, these are mammoth feats of engineering incorporating the latest technological advances that, in one move, provide a full data center infrastructure that instantly becomes the envy of the neighborhood.

And yet, I can’t help but think that these platforms could prove to be a tough sell, at least in the near term, and could find themselves swimming against some pretty tough currents in the IT industry.

First the news: Cisco Systems announced a series of major enhancements to its Data Center 3.0 portfolio this week aimed at ramping up the capabilities of its Unified Computing System in the drive to unite processing, networking, storage and virtualization into a single, cohesive system. The package includes new two- and four-socket servers featuring the Intel Xeon 5600 and 7500 processors, as well as a new pair of Nexus 10 GbE fabric switches, all governed by a new management stack that aims to more closely align data loads with available resources to help conserve energy.

more of the IT Business Edge Post from Arthur Cole

Alex Carroll

Managing Member at Lifeline Data Centers

Alex, co-owner, is responsible for all real estate, construction and mission critical facilities: hardened buildings, power systems, cooling systems, fire suppression, and environmentals. Alex also manages relationships with the telecommunications providers and has an extensive background in IT infrastructure support, database administration and software design and development. Alex architected Lifeline’s proprietary GRCA system and is hands-on every day in the data center.