Businesses are being bombarded with information about the cloud. Nearly every vendor has their own definition for the cloud, the value proposition, the reasons for implementing it—but given all of the challenges IT must deal with, the big question is how? How does IT deploy private clouds while seamlessly integrating with existing infrastructure and continuing to deliver services in a non-disruptive way? Well, the journey to the cloud just got easier. Dell and Microsoft have partnered to deliver cloud solutions to help customers answer the question of “how” and to smooth and accelerate the journey.
Back in July we announced that we would work with Microsoft to develop a Dell-powered Windows Azure platform appliance for enterprise organizations to run in their data centers. This appliance will be a turnkey cloud platform that includes Windows Azure, SQL Azure and a Microsoft-specified configuration optimized to scale out applications and datacenter efficiency across hundreds and even tens-of-thousands of servers.
Today, at Microsoft’s TechEd conference in Berlin, Germany, Dell is announcing the availability of several “turnkey” Hyper-V based private cloud solutions comprised of pre-tested, pre-assembled and fully-supported hardware, software and services enabling customers to easily deploy and manage their cloud infrastructures with confidence.
Dell’s new Business-Ready Configurations (BRC) consist of PowerEdge servers, EqualLogic storage arrays, PowerConnect network switches and management capabilities through Microsoft Systems Center. Through the Hyper-V Cloud Fast Track program, Dell and Microsoft are offering private cloud solutions that deliver a variety of benefits including:
- Faster speed to deploy private cloud infrastructures
- Reduced risk – validated configurations
- Choice and Flexibility – broad offering of hardware and services
These new BRC’s will enable our joint customers to not only plan their cloud strategy but find the most efficient and cost-effective way to accelerate this journey. It also highlights how Dell and Microsoft remain in lock-step together offering open solutions that take all the guess work out of moving to the cloud. By mitigating these risks while improving IT efficiencies and reducing complexity through a best of breed approach, everyone benefits. For more information on Dell’s offerings and participation in the Hyper-V Cloud Fast Track Program, please click here.