Dell goes networking, acquires Force10

Dell said Wednesday that it will acquire Force10 Networks as it aims to move into networking.

Terms of the deal weren't disclosed. In a statement, Dell said it will wrap Force10's networking gear into its data center portfolio, which features servers, storage and services.

The big picture here is that servers, storage and networking are increasingly being bundled together. And on the networking front, it appears that every hardware vendor is nibbling at Cisco Systems. Cisco entered the server market with its Unified Computing System. HP responded by buying 3Com and hurting Cisco margins. Cisco is cutting costs and jobs to deal with the new market realities. On Tuesday, Intel said it planned to buy Fulcrum Microsystems, a fabless chip company that makes Ethernet fabrics. Now Dell is buying Force10.

Simply put, every tech vendor is looking to create these data center building blocks of storage, servers and networking for cloud computing.

Force10 has almost $200 million in annual revenue. Dell characterized the Force10 purchase in the same mold as Compellent and EqualLogic. The plan is to take the technology and products and move it through Dell's sales channels.