CDW White Paper Sample

Whereas a regular rack-mount server is equipped with a power cable, network cable and other components, a blade server has many of these components stripped away and an enclosure typically holds multiple servers. It also contains the systems to manage power, cooling, networking and the various interconnects required to operate a large group of servers.

Blade servers are most commonly used for web hosting and high-performance clusters, though these systems are steadily moving into the mainstream of IT. Because individual blades are hot-swappable, they’re extremely flexible.

What’s more, as they become more powerful, organizations -- including online retailers, healthcare providers, global manufacturers and financial institutions -- are turning to blades to tackle larger and more diverse computing challenges.