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HP BladeSystem Matrix Infrastructure


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Delivered out of the box as a pre-integrated platform, the BladeSystem Matrix creates pools of server, network, and storage capacity to be dynamically provisioned to run your applications on up to 1000 physical or virtual servers; all managed as one environment. Ideal for simplifying consolidation initiatives, high availability protection and rapid deployment to production environments, the BladeSystem Matrix unites the tools, processes and architecture of your physical and virtual worlds to speed time to service delivery without chaos, take costs out today and keep them out tomorrow.

Ideal environment

Ideal for...

Optimized, continuous consolidation
  • Unified tools to freely move and balance workloads across physical and virtual servers
  • Built-in capacity planning for all servers and Smart Solver technology gives best-fit advice for utilization of capacity
  • Accelerate and standardize your process for migration from rack servers to blades
  • Provide affordable N+M high availability and disaster recovery-ready protection to all applications
Implementing internal cloud hosting or shared services models
  • Enforce your best-practice architectural designs and processes
  • Simplify service and application delivery to lines of business
  • Free time for consultation to the business versus focus on infrastructure integration and maintenance
Outsource service providers
  • Provide streamlined service delivery with self-service portals for dedicated customers
  • Improve forecasting and capacity planning to your customers
  • Expand with virtualization infrastructure and cloud-like solutions

Below are some of the questions we thought you might have.  If not, try our technical forums to get more specifics from our technical experts in our technology forum, or sign up to connect with members of the global BladeSystem community

Questions
General
1. What is HP BladeSystem Matrix, and who is it for?
2. What is in BladeSystem Matrix? Are there any new or unique technologies in BladeSystem Matrix that I can’t already buy from HP?
3. What are the supported components?
4. What is the buying and implementing experience for BladeSystem Matrix? What should I expect?
5. Is BladeSystem Matrix available for HP Integrity blades?
Ordering
1. How do I order BladeSystem Matrix?
2. What is included in BladeSystem Matrix, and what are the compatible options?
3. What is a central management server (CMS) and how do I order one with the Starter Kit?
4. Do you offer special lease options, pay as you grow, or instant capacity programs?
5. I already have a Fibre channel SAN array. Do I have to buy the StorageWorks EVA4400 array option that is recommended for the BladeSystem Matrix infrastructure?
Services
1. What is the Starter Kit implementation service? Who performs this service?
2. What is the warranty on BladeSystem Matrix?

Answers
General
Q1. What is HP BladeSystem Matrix, and who is it for?
A1.

BladeSystem Matrix is a packaged data center infrastructure with server blade, storage, and network connectivity and resources. It provides a simple and straightforward way to buy and manage data center resources.
HP BladeSystem Matrix is ideal for:

  • Optimized, continuous consolidation -- built-in capacity planning and unlimited migrations for all servers and Smart Solver technology gives best-fit advice for utilization of capacity; accelerate and standardize your process for migration from rack servers to blades
  • Implementing data center transformation, internal cloud or shared services models -- enforce your best-practice architectural designs and processes; and simplify service and application delivery to lines of business with self-service portal
  • Outsource service providers – provide streamlined service delivery with self-service portals for dedicated customers; improve forecasting and capacity planning to your customers
Q2. What is in BladeSystem Matrix? Are there any new or unique technologies in BladeSystem Matrix that I can’t already buy from HP?
A2.

BladeSystem Matrix converges proven technologies such as BladeSystem, Virtual Connect, Insight software, StorageWorks, and ProCurve networking products.

What BladeSystem Matrix does uniquely is converge these capabilities together in powerfully integrated infrastructure with factory and implementation services. Matrix efficiently delivers standardized yet flexible infrastructure in ‘building blocks’. Additionally, BladeSystem Matrix is much more efficient to buy than individual components and at least 22% faster to implement.
Q3. What are the supported components?
A3. See the BladeSystem Matrix Compatibility Chart here.
Q4. What is the buying and implementing experience for BladeSystem Matrix? What should I expect?
A4. BladeSystem Matrix is a fully integrated infrastructure that will be delivered and implemented in your environment with a single complete service. The estimated delivery and fulfillment time is about 3-4 weeks for an implementation of a basic single rack full of resources. The order process is simple and straightforward, and the step by step details can be found in the QuickSpecs at this website.
Q5. Is BladeSystem Matrix available for HP Integrity blades?
A5. Yes, users can add Integrity BL870c and BL860c blades to a BladeSystem Matrix environment although the management software licenses vary compared to ProLiant blades. For HP-UX users, we have simplified the ordering process with powerful operating environment (OE) packages to maximize virtualization and availability. This allows customer to take advantage of the reliability they have come to depend on while maximizing their resources.
Ordering
Q1. How do I order BladeSystem Matrix?
A1. Ordering BladeSystem Matrix involves first ordering a Starter Kit, which (as the name implies) includes everything to get started with a fully functioning environment. It includes a fully-redundant c7000 enclosure, Virtual Connect, Insight software licenses, an implementation service, and other options including a StorageWorks EVA4400 array. At the time of ordering your Starter Kit or at anytime later, you can add more infrastructure and capacity to your Matrix environment by buying one or more Expansion Kits. See the QuickSpecs at this webiste for step by step ordering guidelines for the Starter and Expansion Kits.
Q2. What is included in BladeSystem Matrix, and what are the compatible options?
A2. See the QuickSpecs at http://www.hp.com/go/matrix and BladeSystem Matrix Compatibility Chart.
Q3. What is a central management server (CMS) and how do I order one with the Starter Kit?
A3. If you order a Starter Kit, a specially configured ProLiant BL460c G6 is available (and defaulted in most ordering systems) to function as your Microsoft Windows-based CMS, or management software host. If you prefer another server to host your CMS, the 460c G6 can be de-selected and replaced with another ProLiant server, or removed entirely from the order. A CMS server host must be provided, though, and it must meet the requirements as detailed here.
Q4. Do you offer special lease options, pay as you grow, or instant capacity programs?
A4. Yes, through our worldwide HP Financial Services we offer 0% lease options as well as pay as you grow programs to ease the upfront investment costs. In the U.S., we offer the ProLiant Instant Capacity (iCAP) program for enabling you to have infrastructure and blades on standby at your site, and to pay for those resources only when you bring them online.
Q5. I already have a Fibre channel SAN array. Do I have to buy the StorageWorks EVA4400 array option that is recommended for the BladeSystem Matrix infrastructure??
A5. As long as your existing FC SAN array is certified and supported with HP BladeSystem c-Class and Virtual Connect (see this website), HP BladeSystem Matrix will also work with it. The FC SAN should be configured for boot from SAN. If you purchase the EVA4400 with your Matrix order, we will optimize its configuration for boot from SAN and even pre-provision LUNs per your requirements.
Services
Q1. What is the Starter Kit implementation service? Who performs this service?
A1.

The implementation service is a project-managed service that will receive at your site your pre-racked/cabled BladeSystem Matrix infrastructure, and further set up and configure it in terms of networking, storage connectivity, and management software, through to the point of being in full operation and provisioning of your first few managed or target servers. The service will conclude with knowledge transfer and demonstrations.

The Starter Kit service is implemented only by specifically identified, qualified, and experienced delivery specialists from HP and our valued partners.
Q2. What is the warranty on BladeSystem Matrix?
A2. For simplified management and tracking, we offer warranty Care Pack “uplifts” for the entire BladeSystem Matrix solution (all hardware and software components) to bring your warranty and support to 3, 4, or 5 years. If no “uplift” warranty Care Pack is purchased, the hardware and software components in your solution carry the respective standard warranty levels for those components.

The key benefits of Matrix are three-fold.  Less cost to buy from a converged and consolidated infrastructure with virtualized network, storage and compute.  It accelerate delivery of services to your business with template-based provisioning and automation.  It helps you continuously optimize the use of resources with tools like capacity planning and Thermal Logic technologies that apply intelligence to the problem of datacenter power and cooling.

Faster time to service delivery without chaos


Bring predictability to infrastructure service delivery with orchestration that turns best practice design into best practice operations

  • Create a catalog of templates for all your application infrastructures: Remove risk and guesswork related to application infrastructure planning and provisioning based on your defined operational processes
  • Self-service portal for push-button provisioning of infrastructure:  Reduce time to service delivery to line of business from weeks and months to days and hours while enforcing your architectural standards
  • Application mobility for physical and virtual infrastructure: Deliver and affordable N+M failover and disaster recovery protection to your applications
  • Easy to buy building blocks of infrastructure: Simple and predictable standard building blocks of infrastructure means you can scale your environment when needed

Defrag your data center to take cost out today and keep it out tomorrow

Harvest untapped resources, improve utilization of existing capacity and gain a better understanding of ongoing infrastructure costs

  • Consolidate all resources into a single Matrix environment:  Align infrastructure capacity for your applications on the fly, then adapt resources to deliver better costs, availability and quality of service
  • Built-in capacity planning of infrastructure resources: Simplify planning and forecasting with deep insight into compute and storage usage, power, network bandwidth.
  • Just-in-time allocation of resources: Gain fast and accurate recommendations to know where best to host workloads and what to do when complex workloads need to move
  • Converged, virtualized network:  Consolidate network equipment costs 4 to 1 and dynamically allocate network bandwidth where needed most
  • Sophisticated power management: Triple power capacity of your infrastructure with dynamic power capping and capture historical power usage for more accurate planning

A wire-once, pay-as-you-grow infrastructure

Simplify the deployment, integration and expansion of an adaptive infrastructure out of the box.

  • Matrix Starter Kit: Includes all management, networking, implementation services, and infrastructure for up to 16 server blades to work with a supported SAN -- or add the option of a StorageWorks EVA4400 SAN. Ideal for starting your BladeSystem Matrix environment.
  • Easy Matrix Expansion Kits: Add to your Starter Kit environment to scale capacity up to 1000 blades or virtual servers in a single managed domain
  • Factory integration combined with expert end to end implementation services included: Project-managed configuration, implementation and orientation.
  • Flexible, Instant Capacity delivery and financing: Simplifies capacity forecasting and provides just-in-time delivery of ready-to-run infrastructure that you only pay for as you grow with 0% lease, buy-back and trade-in programs available (programs vary by region).
  • Supported by HP Solution Builder partner program: Ensures integration with third-party applications, networks and storage of your preferred partners and brands.

Ease of Integration

Harvest untapped resources, improve utilization of existing capacity and gain a better understanding of ongoing infrastructure costs

  • Consolidate all resources into a single Matrix environment:  Align infrastructure capacity for your applications on the fly, then adapt resources to deliver better costs, availability and quality of service
  • Built-in capacity planning of infrastructure resources: Simplify planning and forecasting with deep insight into compute and storage usage, power, network bandwidth.
  • Just-in-time allocation of resources: Gain fast and accurate recommendations to know where best to host workloads and what to do when complex workloads need to move
  • Converged, virtualized network:  Consolidate network equipment costs 4 to 1 and dynamically allocate network bandwidth where needed most
  • Sophisticated power management: Triple power capacity of your infrastructure with dynamic power capping and capture historical power usage for more accurate planning