Intel Server Products Intended To Ease Migration

In particular, the chip maker took the wraps off its Westville server boards, designed for multiprocessing Xeon systems in high-density solutions.

Three Intel server boards,the SE7500WV2, SE7500CW2 and SHG2,were designed as dual-Xeon boards. The WV2 and CW2 are based on Intel's E7500 chipset, while the SHG2 is based on the ServerWorks GC-LE chipset.

Intel is billing its new products,which number 12 in all,as building blocks targeted at OEMs and systems builders and intended to ease system migration.

In addition, the Intel Server Chassis SR1300 and 2U Intel Server Chassis SR2300 are geared toward high-density, rack-mounted solutions. The company said the boards can be integrated into different server solutions aimed at Internet applications, high-performance clusters, firewalls, streaming media applications and e-mail servers.

The Westville boards, "coupled with high-density chassis in 1U and 2U [form factors, provide performance and I/O density that is really fantastic," said Philip Brace, director of Intel's Enterprise Platform and Services Division. "These platforms have the thermal headroom and thermal capabilities. . . . The key benefit to this, and why we spent so much time on it, is that it helps minimize customer transition time."

Jim Estill, CEO of EMJ Data Systems, Guelph, Ontario, said Intel's strategy of releasing a system-level product lineup makes sense. "Clearly, Intel has an interest in moving people up-market to higher- and higher-end systems," said Estill. "There tend to be higher average selling prices on higher-end systems."

Clearly, Intel is hoping it can begin to move its installed base of servers into higher-end solutions sooner rather than later, said sources.

Earlier this month, the company was forced to tamp down Wall Street revenue and earnings expectations and said sales of lower-end processors were outpacing sales of higher-performing chips.

Aside from the server boards and chassis, Intel released new Intel Server Management Software that it said provides server management on high-performance server boards without the need to install a remote management card.