Dell hints at ARM-based servers
updated 05:15 pm EST, Tue February 28, 2012
ARM server in Dell lab for 'over a year'
Speaking at an event in San Francisco, Forrest Norrod, general manager for Dell’s server solutions group hinted at the possiblity that an ARM-based server could be on the horizon. Norrod said Dell has had ARM systems in their lab "over a year," and said adding ARM processors to its lineup might be attractive to customers that with concerns about power consumption. He pointed out that Dell's lifecycle management system is independent of the CPU and fully capable of incorporating ARM processors.
Dell has been repositioning itself to capitalize on the surging data center market. For the last two years, the company has been boosting its networking and data storage lineup. ARM processors are not likely to have a large impact on the complexion of the Dell server lineup anytime soon. ARM processors only handle 32-bits, while most server software is written for the 64-bit x86 architecture that both Intel and AMD can offer.
Norrod estimates ARM's 64-bit server processors won't hit the market for almost two years. But he says it's "reasonable" to expect that there have been conversations between his engineers and the design team based in nearby Austin that is working on Samsung's 64-bit ARM designs. [via Forbes]
