Dell boosts enterprise virtualisation portfolio

Dell has introduced a number of business products and services that are designed to bring more efficiency to tasks such as deploying virtualisation or setting up a datacentre.

The new products, announced on Wednesday, include ready-to-use virtualisation systems, and servers and storage products. A consulting service called ProConsult has also been launched.

For virtualisation deployments, Dell announced two pre-configured packages of servers, storage and connection technology: one for datacentres and the other for small and medium-sized businesses. The configurations are designed to simplify the design, procurement and deployment of virtualised infrastructure, Dell said.

Dell also announced three pre-configured packages aimed at simplifying the management of virtualised infrastructure, including tools for migration between physical and virtual systems, as well as for virtual server monitoring.

The company introduced two new storage products, the EqualLogic PS4000 storage array and the PowerVault NX3000 network attached storage device, as well as the PowerEdge T410 and T710 tower servers, and the R410 rack server.

The storage and server products are all designed for small and medium-sized businesses or for branch offices, Dell said. The R410 is also suitable for high-performance computing environments in the public or private sector, Dell said.

Finally, Dell introduced consulting services aimed at helping companies plan and run datacentres.

The services, all under the ProConsult brand, focus on five areas: virtualisation services, datacentre planning and management, disaster recovery, data management and facilities, which examines space, power and cooling issues.

Dell, like other computer makers, has been hit sharply by the economic downturn. In May the company announced a net income of $290m (£180m) for the fiscal first quarter ending 1 May, down 63 percent from the $784m recorded during the same quarter a year ago.