Fujitsu adds server to 'zero-watt' hardware portfolio

(Updated July 25, 2010, to add pricing) For smaller companies that are interested in a more energy-efficiency entry level server, Fujitsu has just come out with the Primergy TX100 S2, based on the Intel Xeon processor 3400 series.

The big value proposition for the new hardware is that it draws zero watts during its off state; most other server models draw some sort of residual power even they are supposedly powered down. The server can, however, still be managed in that state and preconfigured to shut off and turn back on during specific timeframes. For those of you who protest that this is too hard on the hardware, the company claims that the server has been validated for 5,000 reboot cycles. That means it could deal with being turned on and off for up to 13 years.

The server is part of the company's Zero-Watt product portfolio, which includes a desktop PC model. Other technical features for the technology include onboard RAID 0/1 and optional RAID 5/6. The system can be expanded up to 16 gigabytes of RAM and it includes 4 PCI/PCIe Gen 2 card slots.

The product is shipping. It has a starting price of $600, which is for the entry-level configuration with a 160-gigabyte hard drive, 1 gigabyte of RAM, a DVD and an entry-level Intel Pentium E5400 processor.