Fujitsu zooms with tubby Xeon blade

Muscle mass

By Ashlee Vance in Chicago • Get more from this author

Posted in Servers, 10th March 2004 21:04 GMT

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Fujitsu Computer Systems has rolled out a new rather bulky but powerful blade server in its Primergy product line.

Fujitsu is aiming more at the corporate software market than scientific computing or Web serving - the traditional blade stomping grounds - with the Primergy BX600. The system runs on powerful Xeon processors from Intel, as opposed to lower-powered processors often used in thinner blade servers. Up to 10 server blades can fit in the 7U (19-inch) BX600 chassis.

Fujitsu is describing the BX600 as a midrange blade, which seems fairly accurate given where it sits in the market. HP, for example, has just rolled out a denser product that complements a wide range of low and high power blades. IBM, on the other hand, leans more toward high-end blade computing, using Xeons and less dense builds.

The BX600 can support up to 12GB of memory, two Ultra320 SCSI disks and can be upgraded to support two Fibre Channel interfaces.

Later this year, Fujitsu aims to roll out a four processor blade based on Xeons. Customers will be able to place five of the four-way blades in the 7U chassis.

Pricing for the BX600 starts at $10,300. ®