Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
such as servers that support up to four or more physical CPUs and 512 GB of RAM? Or would
smaller servers, such as servers that support dual physical CPUs and 64 GB of RAM, be a better
choice? There is a point of diminishing returns when it comes to adding more physical CPUs
and more RAM to a server. Once you pass that point, the servers get more expensive to acquire
and support, but the number of VMs the servers can host doesn't increase enough to offset the
increase in cost. The challenge, therefore, is i nding server models that provide enough expan-
sion for growth and then i tting them with the right amount of resources to meet your needs.
Fortunately, a deeper look into the server models available from a specii c vendor, such as HP,
reveals server models of all types and sizes (see Figure 2.1), including the following:
Figure 2.1
Servers on the HCG
come in various
sizes and models.
Half-height C-class blades, such as the BL460c and BL465c
◆
◆
Full-height C-class blades, such as the BL685c
Dual-socket 1U servers, such as the DL360
◆
Dual-socket 2U servers, such as the DL380 and the DL385
◆
Quad-socket 4U servers, such as the DL580 and DL585
◆
You'll note that Figure 2.1 doesn't show vSphere 5.5 in the list; at the time of this writing,
VMware's HCG hadn't yet been updated to include information on vSphere 5.5. However, once
VMware updates its HCG to include vSphere 5.5 and vendors complete their testing, you'll be
able to easily view compatibility with vSphere 5.5 using VMware's online HCG. Servers are
added to the HCG as they are certii ed, not just at major vSphere releases.
Which server is the right server? The answer to that question depends on many factors.
The number of CPU cores is often used as a determining factor, but you should also consider
the total number of RAM slots. A higher number of RAM slots means that you can use lower-
cost, lower-density RAM modules and still reach high memory coni gurations. You should
also consider server expansion options, such as the number of available Peripheral Component
