It’s been 10 years since the first VCE Vblock debuted, the result of innovative collaboration between VMware, Cisco and EMC Corporation that launched the world’s first fully integrated converged infrastructure system.
In the world of IT infrastructure, it was a groundbreaking first, and it quickly evolved to become one of easiest ways for organizations to deploy a mission-critical cloud within a hybrid cloud strategy.
After more than 4,500 installations, which if stacked up would nearly reach Mt. Everest’s peak, the steady beat of innovation continues for the best-selling Certified Reference Systems & Integrated Infrastruture portfolio in the industry. According to IDC, the portfolio is ranked #1 with 46% revenue share[i]. Today, I’m happy to share some exciting new updates to VxBlock, that in the words of a customer gives them “a 10-year step forward”, demonstrating once again that our innovation engine never sleeps and strives for continued excellence for the benefit of our loyal customers.
There is a lot of value in building your data center from best-of-breed modular components, especially when those components are from Dell – but our customers have also found a massive benefit moving their core operations to a converged infrastructure platform like the VxBlock 1000.
Dell VxBlock enables us to take an almost 10-year step forward in technology with a single purchase.
— Ryan Deppe, Network Operations Supervisor, Cianbro Corporation
The Beat of Innovation Goes On: What’s New in VxBlock 1000
The genius of the VxBlock 1000 CI architecture and its advantages over previous CI generations is its much higher scalability, broader choice of components for consolidating mixed workloads and the flexibility to incorporate new technology while protecting previous investments in the system. All of this comes in a lifecycle-assured, cloud operations experience to help unburden IT.
Our latest VxBlock 1000 enhancements broaden these choices even further, with additions of new Dell storage and data protection platforms, Cisco UCS servers and deeper support for the latest components in the VMware vRealize Suite 2018. New VxBlock features announced today now allow our customers to:
- Deliver cloud operations faster and more efficiently with new validated support for:
- VxBlock Central Orchestration workflows with VMware vRealize Orchestrator version 7.5
- VxBlock Central Operations analytics with VMware vRealize Operations version 7.0
- VMware vSphere 6.7 virtualization platform
- Consolidate and protect high-value, mission-critical workloads with new storage and data protection options built for efficient backup, archiving and cloud tiering, featuring:
- Dell Unity Hybrid Flash (Models 300, 400, 500 and 600)
- Dell Data Domain with high availability (Models 6800, 9300 and 9800)
- Optimize high-value enterprise workloads with the added scale and performance provided by new server and networking options from our long-time partner Cisco:
- Cisco UCS 6454 Fabric Interconnect (Gen 4)
- Cisco UCS C480, extending the range of Cisco M5 rack servers available in VxBlock 1000
With the VxBlock 1000, we now have the ability to mix and match technologies within that frame and the trust that Dell will upgrade all those components in a seamless manner, so IT professionals can focus on what’s really important to our business’ mission.
— John Grieco CTO, University of Vermont Health Network
The Beat of Innovation Goes On: Ready Stack Joins the Dell CI Portfolio
Today, Dell continues to expand converged infrastructure to meet the diverse needs, practices, and cultures of IT organizations. Joining VxBlock 1000 in our converged infrastructure lineup is Dell Ready Stack, a portfolio of validated designs for those who seek to build their own infrastructure solutions. With sizing, design and deployment resources, Ready Stack enables customers and channel partners to build their own converged infrastructure, with flexibility of component choice and expert guidance, all from a single trusted vendor – Dell.
And today we’re announcing the expansion of the Dell Ready Stack validated design portfolio to include:
- VMware-based IaaS on Dell PowerEdge MX servers and Dell PowerMax storage
- VMware vSphere on Dell PowerEdge 14th generation servers and Dell Unity storage
- Microsoft Hyper-V on Dell PowerEdge 14th generation servers and Dell Unity storage
- Build your own design using any combination of Dell’s #1 server and storage platforms, as well as open networking and data protection options
- New digital library of Ready Stack resources available at Dell.com
One size doesn’t fit all, and Ready Stack is another way to help unburden IT so they can focus more on what matters most to their business: innovation, new applications and new services.
Stay tuned for more innovation, as we continue to offer IT organizations greater speed and agility to deploy infrastructure for high-value apps that matter, ensure that those apps are running on the most optimal and secure infrastructure, and assure greater efficiency in day-to-day IT operations, management and maintenance.
You can learn more about VxBlock 1000 here and Ready Stack here.
[i] IDC Worldwide Quarterly Converged Systems Tracker, Dec. 18, 2018. Dell 46% share in Certified Reference Systems + Integrated Systems.
