Dell PowerEdge R-Series Reviews

The primary use case involves running virtualization workloads mostly. Additionally, we have high-performance workloads and have built a dedicated solution for them using PowerEdge Servers.

The PowerEdge Servers have helped reduce unplanned production downtime by approximately ten percent. The use of the app OpenManage Console has made tasks easier, allowing IT staff to focus on other responsibilities, thus positively impacting overall flexibility and business operations.

The ease of management and automation possibilities are the most valuable features offered by Dell PowerEdge Servers.

One issue is the limited CPU options on the servers compared to the vendor, Intel. Dell offers fewer CPU options than available, which is a bit limiting and could be improved.

I have been using Dell rack servers for four years.

Overall, the servers are reliable, although we have experienced some issues. However, they have been mostly reliable, and we have not considered switching.

It was quite easy to scale our Dell infrastructure as our needs grew, improving our operations positively.

I haven't had much contact with Dell customer support, but I would rate their professional support probably an eight.

Positive

Previously, we evaluated HP servers. We chose Dell PowerEdge Servers due to their ease of management.

The initial setup was very good. We have automated almost everything, right from installation to management.

We did not use Dell Deployment Services for deployment and did it in-house.

The biggest return on investment comes from the ease of management and automation possibilities.

Before choosing Dell PowerEdge Servers, we evaluated HP servers.

Currently, it's mostly used for VMware-based virtual machines. That's the main use case. 90% of this product is used for VMware. 

The servers just work. They don't let us down. We like the reliability combined with management. The price is good too.

If you have to replace parts, Dell was one of the first companies to make a system where you could click out one thing and just plug in another one. HP and IBM did not allow for that. You always needed to use a screwdriver. And I wasn't allowed to have one. With Dell, on the servers, you always had the option to swap out boards very easily, and that was great. Now, other companies do that, too. However, Dell was one of the first to offer that option. 

In terms of energy consumption, it depends. If there are a lot of calculations, then you use a lot of power. If you need less, then you use less power. When we deliver it to customers, the power used is based on their power consumption. I'm not selecting servers based on power consumption. I base the choice on procedures and quality. 

It's able to handle the evolving needs of high-performance workloads. We don't have any issues with it. If you make a good design and select the right sizing, you don't have any issues. 

You select the server based on the product. It could be an option to remove discs and just have a virtual option. If you remove the room you need for discs, you could make it smaller. It would take up less room that way.

I've been using the solution since 1999. It's been about 24 years. 

Dell's support is very good. They are changing some things within the organization. I have my doubts that where they are going is the way to go. However, the Dell Server side in terms of customer support, is still very good. 

Positive

We only use Dell PowerEdge. We've seen some HP servers in the field. However, we have only used Dell for 20 years. It's always working, and it's always good service. The price is good too. 

The deployment is easy. A basic installation might take 15 to 20 minutes. 

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten. 

We build cloud stacks on our Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers.

In order to achieve a greater degree of autonomy and self-sufficiency in our IT infrastructure, we opted to embark on the implementation of private cloud solutions. This strategic decision led us to adopt Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers as the foundation of our private cloud environment, thereby mitigating our previous over-reliance on publicly accessible cloud services.

Our procurement of Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers was conducted through Dell itself, acting in its capacity as a service provider. This decision was influenced, to a certain extent, by the inherent proclivity towards recommending Dell products within the Dell ecosystem. Ultimately, the design we adopted adhered to the standardized guidelines established by Dell, ensuring seamless integration and compatibility within our existing infrastructure.

Given our tendency towards aggregated configurations, we are fortunate to be largely immune to periods of inactivity. However, it's important to note that this high uptime is not solely attributable to the physical infrastructure. From a hardware perspective, I can confidently report an absence of recurring malfunctions across all functional domains. This testifies to the remarkable stability exhibited by the PowerEdge Rack Servers.

The OpenManage console is an inescapably necessary tool for large-scale environments. It provides all the capabilities it's intended to, like seamlessly applying firmware updates through OME and handling other tasks with ease. It consistently functions exceptionally well, and I sincerely hope it continues to do so in the future. Frankly, the thought of meandering through the data center and manually adjusting everything is enough to make anyone shudder. Thankfully, OpenManage has been a true game-changer in that regard. It's quantifiably increased the productivity of our IT staff by eliminating the need for tedious manual processes.

The core strength of Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers lies in their expansive connectivity and seamless integration with other offerings within the Dell product ecosystem. This synergistic relationship is exemplified by the successful interoperability between PowerEdge servers and backup solutions like Data Domain or PowerScale, further enhanced by the native integration of S3 functionality within the German market. This well-orchestrated interplay of components fosters an exceptionally efficient and cohesive IT environment.

I would advocate for Dell to incorporate by default a greater number of network interface cards that boast enhanced network connectivity within their PowerEdge Rack Servers. In older models, for instance, Melanox adapters remain a necessity, and they have sporadically caused complications. It would be fantastic if Dell could incorporate them by default, precluding the requirement for supplementary adapters.

I have been using Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for five years.

I have no complaints about the stability of our Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers. They perform well, are powerful, and experience few failures.

Dell PowerEdge rack servers offer easy scalability, as evidenced by our continued expansion.

I've been consistently struck by the profound depth of knowledge exhibited by both the general representatives and the specialized cohorts within Dell's technical support team. Their remarkable facility for resolving any issue I presented with impressive celerity truly showcased their exceptional level of operational effectiveness.

Of course, unforeseen predicaments occasionally arise, but the team always responds with remarkable adaptability and graciousness. While some processes may necessitate a protracted timeframe for completion, I believe this stems more from the underlying organizational structure than any individual shortcomings. The on-site personnel were consistently exceedingly capable and demonstrably swift in their actions.

Positive

In a previous engagement, I had the opportunity to collaborate with a client whose IT infrastructure was predominantly comprised of Fujitsu servers. However, our current clients have already established a longstanding partnership with Dell for their hardware requirements.

We meticulously constructed the comprehensive foundation for a cloud service, laying each digital brick-and-mortar. Although the initial deployment presented a labyrinthine challenge, we were able to navigate its intricacies with measured steps. As anyone who has embarked on such an endeavor knows, erecting a full-fledged infrastructure, be it geographically dispersed for enhanced resilience or traditionally redundant for local fault tolerance, is no simple feat. It demands constant vigilance and adept stewardship to ensure its smooth operation.

We constructed the comprehensive network infrastructure, weaving the intricate cabling throughout the designated pathways. With resolute focus, we configured and installed the potent server hardware, ensuring its seamless integration. And most notably, we adeptly orchestrated the deployment of the robust cloud stack, paving the way for unparalleled scalability and agility. 

The cost structure associated with Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers aligns closely with the prevailing norms established within the information technology hardware sector. In other words, the prices for these servers are neither exceptionally expensive nor significantly cheaper than comparable offerings from other major manufacturers.

I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers a nine out of ten.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers demonstrably excel in fulfilling their designated function, even when configured in various arrangements. While it is certainly prudent to maintain vigilance regarding forthcoming advancements in the technological landscape, it is undeniable that these servers are already eminently well-matched to their intended applications.

The flexibility that customers experience comes primarily from the cloud stack we deploy on the servers.

Foreign Language:(German)

Bietet gute Leistung, umfassende Konnektivität und nahtlose Integration

Was ist unser Hauptanwendungsfall?

Um ein höheres Maß an Autonomie und Unabhängigkeit in unserer IT-Infrastruktur zu erreichen, haben wir uns für die Implementierung von Private-Cloud-Lösungen entschieden. Diese strategische Entscheidung führte dazu, dass wir Dell PowerEdge Rack Server als Grundlage unserer privaten Cloud-Umgebung einsetzten und damit unsere frühere übermäßige Abhängigkeit von öffentlich zugänglichen Cloud-Diensten reduzierten.

Wie hat es meiner Organisation geholfen?

Wir haben Dell PowerEdge Rack Server über Dell selbst in seiner Eigenschaft als Dienstleistungsanbieter bezogen. Diese Entscheidung wurde bis zu einem gewissen Punkt durch die inhärente Neigung zur Empfehlung von Dell-Produkten innerhalb des Dell-Ökosystems beeinflusst. Letztendlich haben wir uns für ein Design entschieden, das den standardisierten Richtlinien von Dell entspricht und eine nahtlose Integration und Kompatibilität mit unserer bestehenden Infrastruktur gewährleistet.

Dank unserer Tendenz zu aggregierten Konfigurationen sind wir glücklicherweise weitgehend gegen Phasen der Inaktivität geschützt. Es ist jedoch wichtig zu erwähnen, dass diese hohe Betriebszeit nicht nur auf die physische Infrastruktur zurückzuführen ist. Aus der Sicht der Hardware kann ich mit Gewissheit sagen, dass es in allen Funktionsbereichen keine wiederkehrenden Ausfälle gibt. Dies zeugt von der bemerkenswerten Stabilität der PowerEdge Rack Server.

Die OpenManage-Konsole ist ein unverzichtbares Tool für groß angelegte Umgebungen. Sie bietet alle Funktionen, für die sie gedacht ist, wie z. B. die nahtlose Anwendung von Firmware-Updates über OME und die einfache Durchführung anderer Aufgaben. Es funktioniert durchweg außergewöhnlich gut, und ich hoffe wirklich, dass dies auch in Zukunft der Fall sein wird. Ehrlich gesagt, der Gedanke, sich durch das Rechenzentrum zu schlängeln und alles manuell einzustellen, lässt jeden erschaudern. Zum Glück ist OpenManage in dieser Hinsicht ein echter Fortschritt. Es hat die Produktivität unserer IT-Mitarbeiter quantitativ erhöht, indem es mühsame manuelle Prozesse überflüssig gemacht hat.

Was ist am wertvollsten?

Die Hauptstärke der Dell PowerEdge Rack Server liegt in ihrer umfassenden Anschlussfähigkeit und nahtlosen Integration mit anderen Angeboten innerhalb des Dell Produkt-Ökosystems. Ein Beispiel für diese synergetische Beziehung ist die erfolgreiche Interoperabilität zwischen PowerEdge-Servern und Backup-Lösungen wie Data Domain oder PowerScale, die durch die native Integration der S3-Funktionalität auf dem deutschen Markt noch verstärkt wird. Dieses gut koordinierte Zusammenspiel der Komponenten fördert eine außergewöhnlich effiziente und kohärente IT-Umgebung.

Was muss verbessert werden?

Ich möchte mich dafür einsetzen, dass Dell in seine PowerEdge-Rack-Server standardmäßig eine größere Anzahl von Netzwerkschnittstellenkarten mit verbesserter Netzwerkkonnektivität einbaut. Bei älteren Modellen beispielsweise sind Melanox-Adapter nach wie vor erforderlich, und sie haben gelegentlich zu Komplikationen geführt. Es wäre fantastisch, wenn Dell diese standardmäßig einbauen könnte, so dass keine zusätzlichen Adapter mehr erforderlich wären.

Wie lange nutze ich die Lösung schon?

Ich arbeite seit fünf Jahren mit Dell PowerEdge Rack-Servern.

Was halte ich von der Stabilität der Lösung?

Ich habe keine Beschwerden über die Stabilität unserer Dell PowerEdge Rack Server. Sie sind leistungsstark und haben nur wenige Ausfälle.

Was denke ich über die Skalierbarkeit der Lösung?

Dell PowerEdge-Rackserver bieten eine einfache Skalierbarkeit, was unsere kontinuierliche Weiterentwicklung beweist.

Wie sind Kundenservice und Support?

Ich war immer wieder beeindruckt von den umfangreichen Kenntnissen, die sowohl die allgemeinen Vertreter als auch die spezialisierten Mitarbeiter des technischen Support-Teams von Dell an den Tag legten. Ihre bemerkenswerte Fähigkeit, jedes von mir vorgetragene Problem mit beeindruckender Schnelligkeit zu lösen, zeigt wirklich ihr außergewöhnliches Niveau an operativer Effizienz.

Natürlich kommt es gelegentlich zu unvorhergesehenen Schwierigkeiten, aber das Team reagiert stets mit bemerkenswerter Anpassungsfähigkeit und Freundlichkeit. Auch wenn einige Prozesse einen längeren Zeitrahmen für die Fertigstellung erfordern, glaube ich, dass dies eher auf die zugrundeliegende Organisationsstruktur als auf individuelle Unzulänglichkeiten zurückzuführen ist. Die Mitarbeiter vor Ort waren durchweg äußerst kompetent und handelten nachweislich schnell.

Wie bewerten Sie den Kundenservice und -support?

Positiv

Welche anderen Lösungen habe ich bewertet?

Bei einem früheren Auftrag hatte ich die Gelegenheit, mit einem Kunden zusammenzuarbeiten, dessen IT-Infrastruktur überwiegend aus Fujitsu-Servern bestand. Unsere derzeitigen Kunden haben jedoch bereits eine langjährige Partnerschaft mit Dell für ihre Hardwareanforderungen aufgebaut.

Wie war die Ersteinrichtung?

Wir haben das umfassende Fundament für einen Cloud-Service sorgfältig aufgebaut und dabei jeden digitalen Baustein gesetzt. Obwohl die anfängliche Einrichtung eine komplexe Herausforderung darstellte, konnten wir die Schwierigkeiten mit angemessenen Schritten bewältigen. Jeder, der schon einmal ein solches Projekt in Angriff genommen hat, weiß, dass der Aufbau einer vollwertigen Infrastruktur, sei sie nun geografisch verteilt, um die Ausfallsicherheit zu erhöhen, oder traditionell mehrfach vorhanden, um lokale Fehlertoleranz zu gewährleisten, keine einfache Aufgabe ist. Sie erfordert ständige Aufmerksamkeit und eine sorgfältige Verwaltung, um ihren reibungslosen Betrieb zu gewährleisten.

Wir bauten die umfassende Netzwerkinfrastruktur auf und verlegten die komplizierte Verkabelung in den vorgesehenen Pfaden. Wir konfigurierten und installierten die leistungsstarke Server-Hardware und sorgten für ihre nahtlose Integration. Und vor allem haben wir die Bereitstellung des robusten Cloud-Stacks erfolgreich koordiniert und so den Weg für eine beispiellose Skalierbarkeit und Agilität eröffnet.

Welche Erfahrungen habe ich mit den Preisen, den Implementierungskosten und der Lizenzierung gemacht?

Die Preisstruktur von Dell PowerEdge Rack Servern entspricht weitgehend den in der IT-Hardwarebranche vorherrschenden Normen. Mit anderen Worten: Die Preise für diese Server sind weder außergewöhnlich teuer noch wesentlich günstiger als vergleichbare Angebote anderer großer Hersteller.

Welche anderen Ratschläge kann ich geben?

Ich würde die Dell PowerEdge Rack Server mit neun von zehn Punkten bewerten.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Server erfüllen nachweislich die ihnen zugedachte Funktion, auch wenn sie in verschiedenen Kombinationen konfiguriert werden. Auch wenn es sicherlich ratsam ist, künftige Fortschritte in der technologischen Landschaft im Auge zu behalten, ist es unbestreitbar, dass diese Server bereits hervorragend auf die vorgesehenen Anwendungen abgestimmt sind.

Die Flexibilität, die die Kunden erfahren, ergibt sich in erster Linie aus dem Cloud-Stack, den wir auf den Servern einsetzen.

Welches Modell nutzen Sie für die Entwicklung dieser Lösung?

Im Hause.

Mainly, we started using them when we implemented a cyber recovery solution with Data Domain, in which several Dell PowerEdge Rack servers are also involved.

By implementing this solution, we wanted cyber resilience. We wanted a 1/3 copy cyber recovery solution that would prevent us from losing all the data in the event of a cyber attack.

In terms of deployment, we use them on-prem, directly with Dell as our provider.

They provide the cyber resilience that we were looking for. They are working perfectly so far, and we are happy with them.

The PowerEdge Cyber Resilient Architecture approach to security is very good. Overall, Dell's approach to security is pretty good. I like using Dell products because they always have security configuration guides.

In terms of energy consumption, Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers can possibly be improved, but this is what I would say regarding any other type of server.

I do not know specifically about Dell's sustainability goals or how PowerEdge can help, but at the level of on-prem servers, it can always be improved by moving towards new virtualization to reduce the impact and perhaps reduce the number of servers.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers have helped to reduce unplanned production downtime. In our case, we have planned a maximum downtime of one week in the event of a cyber attack. These are the ratios we use.

The OpenManage console has affected our IT staff’s productivity. It has helped in a positive way because it is a console that centralizes many things that our staff manages every day. In that sense, it is in a centralized console. It helps a lot.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers have not impacted the overall flexibility of our operations or business. In our case, it is an isolated additional system, so it is not like adding an additional layer to improve the flexibility per se.

There is no specific feature that is more valuable than other servers for us. Because it is part of an overall solution that Dell has offered us, we opted for Dell's PowerEdge servers. Overall, it is a good solution. It works perfectly, especially in terms of availability and reliability, without any type of issue, which is why we are very happy with it.

The cost can be improved. For other use cases, we use Hitachi servers, which are a little cheaper but have similar functionality.

I have been using Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for approximately two years.

So far, we have had no stability problems. They are very stable.

The scalability is very good. We use them in several locations. The main department in which they are used is ours, which is for data protection backup. They are mainly used for a cyber recovery solution.

I would assess their support very positively. I have been working with them for several years, and I am very happy with their support.

Positive

We also use Hitachi. We have not switched. We maintain two brands.

It has simply covered our use case.

They can improve the costs.

We evaluated Veritas. We evaluated Netapp solutions. There were five or six different vendors. We did not see a critical difference. In general, they were similar, but Dell was more present throughout the process.

I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers a nine out of ten.

Foreign Language:(Spanish)

Funciona perfectamente y proporciona la ciberresiliencia y seguridad que necesitamos

¿Durante cuánto tiempo utiliza los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge?

He estado usando servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge durante aproximadamente dos años.

¿Cuál es su principal caso de uso de esta solución? (Incluya detalles sobre su entorno.

Principalmente, comenzamos a utilizarlos cuando implementamos una solución de recuperación cibernética con Data Domain, en la que también están involucrados varios servidores Dell PowerEdge Rack.

Al implementar esta solución, queríamos ciberresiliencia. Queríamos una solución de recuperación cibernética de 1/3 de copia que nos evitara perder todos los datos en caso de un ciberataque.

En términos de implementación, los utilizamos de forma local, directamente con Dell como nuestro proveedor.

Comparta cómo los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge han mejorado su infraestructura de TI. Si no fue así, explique por qué.

Proporcionan la ciberresiliencia que estábamos buscando. Están funcionando perfectamente hasta ahora y estamos contentos con ellos.

El enfoque de seguridad de PowerEdge Cyber Resilient Architecture es muy bueno. En general, el enfoque de seguridad de Dell es bastante bueno. Me gusta usar los productos Dell porque siempre tienen guías de configuración de seguridad.

En términos de consumo de energía, los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge son posiblemente mejorables, pero esto es lo que diría de cualquier otro tipo de servidor.

No sé específicamente cuáles son los objetivos de sostenibilidad de Dell ni cómo puede ayudar PowerEdge, pero a nivel de servidores locales, siempre se puede mejorar avanzando hacia una nueva virtualización para reducir el impacto y quizás reducir la cantidad de servidores.

Los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge han ayudado a reducir el tiempo de inactividad de producción no planificado. En nuestro caso, hemos previsto un tiempo de inactividad máximo de una semana en caso de ciberataque. Estas son las proporciones que utilizamos.

La consola OpenManage ha afectado la productividad de nuestro personal de TI. Ha ayudado de manera positiva porque es una consola que centraliza muchas cosas que nuestro personal maneja día a día. En ese sentido, está en una consola centralizada. Esto ayuda mucho.

Los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge no han afectado la flexibilidad general de nuestras operaciones o negocios. En nuestro caso se trata de un sistema adicional aislado, por lo que no es como añadir una capa adicional para mejorar la flexibilidad de por sí.

¿Qué características le han parecido más valiosas y por qué?

No existe ninguna característica específica que sea más valiosa que otros servidores para nosotros. Debido a que es parte de una solución global que nos ha ofrecido Dell, optamos por los servidores PowerEdge de Dell. En general, es una buena solución. Funciona perfectamente, sobre todo en términos de disponibilidad y fiabilidad, sin ningún tipo de problema, por lo que estamos muy contentos con ella.

¿En qué áreas se podrían mejorar los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge?

El costo se puede mejorar. Para otros casos de uso, utilizamos servidores Hitachi, que son un poco más baratos pero tienen una funcionalidad similar.

¿Utilizó anteriormente una solución diferente? De ser así, ¿por qué la cambió?

También utilizamos Hitachi. No hemos cambiado. Mantenemos las dos marcas.

Antes de elegir, ¿evaluaste otras opciones? ¿De ser asi, cuales?

Evaluamos Veritas. Evaluamos las soluciones de Netapp. Había cinco o seis proveedores diferentes. No vimos una diferencia crítica. En general fueron similares, pero Dell estuvo más presente en todo el proceso.

¿Qué aconseja a otros sobre el costo de instalación, el precio y/o la licencia?

Se pueden mejorar en cuanto a su precio.

¿Cuáles son sus impresiones sobre la escalabilidad de esta solución?

La escalabilidad es muy buena. Los utilizamos en varios lugares. El departamento principal en el que se utilizan es el nuestro, que es para la copia de seguridad de la protección de datos. Se utilizan principalmente para una solución de recuperación cibernética.

¿Cuáles son sus impresiones sobre la estabilidad de esta solución?

Hasta ahora no hemos tenido problemas. Son muy estables.

¿Has visto el ROI (Retorno de la Inversión)? En caso afirmativo, ¿de qué manera (es decir, métricas/puntos de datos)?

Simplemente ha cubierto nuestros casos de uso.

Cuéntanos tu experiencia con el servicio y soporte al cliente.

Valoro su soporte de forma positiva. Llevo varios años trabajando con ellos y estoy muy contento con su apoyo.

¿Cómo calificaría esta solución en una escala del 1 al 10 en cuanto a servicio y soporte?

8.

En una escala del 1 al 10 (1=peor, 10=mejor), ¿cómo calificaría los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge? Por favor explique por qué.

Calificaría los servidores en rack Dell PowerEdge con un nueve de diez.

We are in the aerospace industry. We use the servers in a security-type production.

It improved our management and the product manager's life. The product is a bit complicated but it does the job.

The lightness, automation, and the automatic process that it performs without too many interventions are good. It's just plug-and-play.

In terms of PowerEdge's cyber-resilient architecture approach to security, since the product is on-prem, it is very protected.

PowerEdge Servers helped to reduce unplanned production downtime because of the configuration of our product, it is active-active. It has 99% high reliability. 

So far, we haven't thought of anything that could be improved in the product.

In terms of energy use, it takes up a lot. I wouldn't say it's economical, compared to other products. It's not as economical as HP. NetApp, for example, is 2800 against 800, and Dell is almost three times more massive.

The product is stable.

Scalability is easy and convenient. The product enables us to be more productive and flexible.

I give the support a 10 out of 10. The people are a 10 but I´ll give the waiting time that it takes to get to the technical support and the people an eight.

Positive

In the past we used other products that were not Dell, they were both very durable. Dell is on another level.

I use Dell's professional services during failures and upgrades mainly. The service is excellent.

I did not deploy the product because the company asked to bring in an external professional service to do the installations. My experience with them was pretty straightforward.

I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers an eight out of ten. 

PowerEdge servers are used in banking, finance, tech, service, and academia, covering the full range of applications.

The biggest value of PowerEdge servers is that Dell is a brand name. I also appreciate the flexibility of the platform. I know how to configure PowerEdge servers and build a solution from scratch. 

Dell could increase the training. My ability to use the product improved vastly once I became more knowledgeable about it. The sales desk and presales service could also improve. 

I have used PowerEdge servers for 10 to 12 years. 

PowerEdge servers are highly stable.

PowerEdge servers scale well. I make tailor-made solutions for my clients, and I can build the capacity as much as they want. If they need storage, I can choose a rack server with a lot of hard drive space or a GPU with a high capacity. 

PowerEdge provides great value and reliability for the price.

I rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers nine out of 10.

My focus is liquid cooling. We are taking the air-cooled PowerEdge systems and converting them to liquid cooling. That usually involves replacing and doing material compatibility, adjusting the thermal interface materials inside the systems, and adjusting the heat sinks. We turn off the fans and adjust the BIOS systems in some of the subsystems, such as PSUs.

This allows the server that has been designed for air cooling to be submerged in dielectric fluid so that it can now be cooled with dielectric fluid running through the systems. Because of the fact that it is submerged, all the subsystems are being cooled, but instead of air, it is done by fluid. It is far more effective at pulling heat out of the systems, taking that heat out of the unit, and then being able to use that heat for other purposes.

For the larger PowerEdge systems that have GPU integrations in them, we have seen a lot of trends in building those for AI systems. We have seen a generated interest in the PowerEdge system across the board for a majority of industries.

I am quite new to the company, but I see that customers keep asking for these servers. From our side, because of our relationship with Dell, we can take a server and convert it to liquid far quicker than with other partners. That has been a big advantage. The PowerEdge system is good in many aspects. Many times customers just want to deploy these systems, especially given the acceleration that we have seen in the AI industry. People just want to be able to get their systems up and running as quickly as possible, so sometimes, there is an advantage to the lead time of getting these things converted. We have been able to do that quicker through Dell than with other IT vendors. We have relationships with HPE as well as with Lenovo. We are dynamic. We are not tied to any particular vendor, and we can work with all customers to deploy different systems inside their environment for liquid cooling.

From our side, there is always a little bit of a challenge with the footprint. I am in an area where we are submerging these devices in tanks. We are in a situation where some of the server designs are a little bit deep. For example, PowerEdge R760xa has a slightly extended depth. It is not as long as PowerEdge XE9680, but PowerEdge R760xa is a beast in itself. It is influencing the infrastructure designers to change their footprint so that they can incorporate something like this in their AI systems. That is very impressive. This is the thing that so many people are talking about at the moment. We see a lot of potential in a device like this because of the fact that you can load H100 or H200 GPUs with NVLink. It is a complete system for AI training models.

We have our own challenges with firmware, but that is only because we sometimes have to adjust the firmware of things like PSUs. With the firmware that they have by default, there is a fan running inside that. When we run fluid through, we want to adjust the firmware so that the fan is turned off. We usually have to adjust the firmware to a very high version because we do not want someone updating the firmware to the new standard. That is because the moment they do that, the fans will start running again, and all the alarms are going to go off because a bunch of fluids are running through the systems. So, we have our own firmware challenges to work with, but Dell is strong in being able to help us with that information and get the firmware so that we can adjust it. It is not just one vendor who provides the PSUs, and firmware adjustments are far more successful than having to emulate the PSUs, which is something some people have done in the past, but they led to some failures inside the PSUs when they try to convert to liquid cooling.

In terms of energy consumption, because I am on the liquid cooling side of things, we turn the fans off. If we can get a PowerEdge system and convert it to liquid cooling, we can reduce the power consumption of that server by up to 40%. In data center environments, energy consumption is becoming an important ratio to measure when people are building up these large data centers around the world. Currently, in an air-cool system, power usage effectiveness (PUE) is 2.0 or 1.5. When you start to liquidate all these, that dramatically drops to 1.2 or 1 PUE. You can even get less than 1 PUE if you effectively reuse the heat. So, you get more environment-friendly servers. If you are reducing carbon emissions and your power consumption by 20% or 30%, that is incredibly attractive when you are trying to build out new systems. Not only that, with air-cool, to maintain strong air conditioning to keep these things cool, especially something like PowerEdge XE9680, air conditioning has to use up a lot of water, whereas, with immersion, you do not have to use up that water. You are using incredibly small amounts of water to cool. It is even zero in many cases. So, liquid cooling has a huge amount of environmentally friendly advantages, and the fact that we are able to do quite a lot of liquid cooling PowerEdge systems in turn makes PowerEdge a more environmentally friendly option.

Because we are able to change the standard with cooling, it gets purchased in positions where we can run the GPUs at their maximum performance. In fluid systems that we have tested using things like PowerEdge XE9680, we are able to achieve maximum frequency and maximum performance.

The Dell name holds a lot of weight on our position as a partner of Dell's when it comes to liquid cooling the systems. We have a great relationship with Dell, so we are able to exchange information very easily to be able to build these systems for our customers. When it comes to converting one of these to liquid cooling, we need to know a lot of information about the sub-components, the vendors, and the firmware inside PSUs. Without a strong relationship with our IT partner Dell, we would not be able to do that effectively and quickly to meet the lead times of our customers.

Dell PowerEdge systems are very strong or well-rounded systems. A lot of people like the 4th and 5th generation Xeon that has been implemented into PowerEdge. Xeon has a good advantage when it comes to the inputting element of AI systems, and, of course, Intel also has a good name. However, from our position, as a partner and as a systems integrator, the real strength is the relationship that we have with Dell and being able to exchange that information.

I have been a part of my current organization for a few months. I started at the end of last year. I have been acclimatizing to the PowerEdge systems. 

In the metrics that I have worked with, they have been very stable and reliable so far. We have not had cases where we have to go in and do maintenance work on our side of things. Usually, any issues that they have had from a liquid cooling side of things have mostly been down to people not doing the proper practice when it comes to installation. 

A lot of the time, we deal with customers who already have a pre-existing architecture. They perhaps have Cisco systems or HPE systems in their infrastructure. The challenge is to convert them to a new unit. The data center's presentation is such a big element of design. It is good if they stick with the same vendor and have the same relationship, but it is sometimes challenging to have someone change their traditional air-cooled infrastructure systems with the ones from Dell.

I have not heard anything negative about its deployment.

To those who are thinking about liquid cooling, I would strongly recommend it, especially in the EU. It is an environmentally friendly option. It is important to make sure that you have an integrator who understands liquid cooling to a strong degree. It is not something that you can just convert by yourself in the data center. It is something that needs to be done in a lab environment, and it needs to be supported going forward by someone who understands liquid cooling. You need a liquid cooling specialist who is able to assist with that, as well as being able to assist on the services and support side from Dell. We work fluently with Dell in those situations. We found that once the liquid cooling starts running in these systems, if there is going to be a problem, it would have happened in the first few weeks. It is usually down to installation practices, not the systems themselves.

I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers a nine out of ten. It is a very strong solution. 

We typically use them for hosting in a private cloud. We use the 600 and 700 series.

I started using Dell servers when the 4th Gen came out. Currently, we are using 13th, 14th, and 15th Gen servers. Dell servers have grown a lot since the 4th Gen. When I buy Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers, I do not have to worry about them and their stability. There is also ease of deployment. Everything is very easy. Their ship time is also pretty fast.

They have a TPM chip. A lot of our customers who use encryption use that capability, and it just works. There are no issues with it.

We run them in our own data center, and they are fine in terms of energy consumption.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers are very good for handling the evolving needs of high-performance workloads. We were able to use PowerEdge to scale a lot of our compute nodes. A lot of our customers need a lot of high compute, so we are pretty happy with it.

Dell PowerEdge Servers have helped to reduce unplanned production downtime. They are very reliable. We never have any big problems with them. Our production downtime is now two times better than five years ago.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers are easy to use. They are very stable. They are rock solid. I am happy with them.

I do not have any qualms or problems with Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers. However, when it comes to the software, some of their competitors are already feeding a lot of performance and availability data to an online platform. We have not seen that with PowerEdge. If it is there, we have not used it, but it would be nice if all this information is included as a part of PowerEdge. We can then see server performance and availability online. 

It has been a long time. I have used these servers before they were called PowerEdge. 

They are rock solid.

Their scalability is very good. Nowadays, you can put so much infrastructure into 1U or 2U servers, which is very impressive.

They are pretty responsive. I would rate them a nine out of ten.

Positive

We also use a lot of Supermicro servers. Supermicro is very good in terms of customizability. They can also be a lot aggressive in pricing, so we use Supermicro for the low-end servers and high-end servers. We use Dell servers for middle-end servers.

They are pretty easy to deploy.

We have seen an ROI. There is stability, ease of use, and not a lot of problems.

It has generally been very competitive. It is not the best, but it is very competitive.

I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers a nine out of ten. They are very stable. They are very good.