Computerworld
Quick Menu
Search



Ads by TechWords

See your link here


Subscribe to our e-mail newsletters
For more info on a specific newsletter, click the title. Details will be displayed in a new window.
Hardware
Computerworld Daily News (First Look and Wrap-Up)
Computerworld Blogs Newsletter
The Weekly Top 10
More E-Mail Newsletters 
Computerworld 2007Subscribe to Computerworld
40 years of the most authoritative source of news and information for IT leaders.

Absorbing the PC

Robert L. Mitchell   Today’s Top Stories   or  Other Hardware Stories  
 

Sign up to receive Hardware Resource Alerts

January 23, 2006 (Computerworld) -- Information technology has taken to the idea of server blades. So why not PC blades? The convergence of more efficient architectures with virtualization technologies could make PC blades a more attractive proposition for specific end-user roles, such as in call centers. And more is in store with this technology.
PC blades move the PC hardware into the data center, leaving a thin client on the desktop that essentially functions as an extended keyboard, monitor and mouse. Like server blades, PC blades fit into a chassis that can be centrally managed. But just putting users' PCs in the data center misses the point. "I don't think there needs to be a one-to-one relationship between users and PCs," the CIO at a large insurance company once told me. "Isn't there an enormous amount of processing power that's wasted in that?"
Blade vendors finally have an answer.
Like server blades before them, PC blades are becoming consolidation platforms. For example, ClearCube Technology in Austin offers a management tool for its PC blades called Grid Center that allows up to five users to share a single blade. It also maps users to a pool of PC blade resources that can be dynamically allocated to any user rather than being dedicated to a single user's thin terminal. Meanwhile, Hewlett-Packard is working on technology in its Consolidated Client Infrastructure that will enable administrators to create different tiers of PC blades and provision them based on users' roles.
IBM has taken PC blade virtualization even further. Its Virtual Hosted Client Infrastructure brings the PC blade and server blade functions under a single architectural umbrella. The system enables a thin client to access a PC virtual machine running on a server blade within a BladeCenter chassis. The design uses EMC's VMware and ClearCube's Grid Center to support up to 14 PC sessions per blade. Such consolidation offers much greater efficiencies than just simplifying PC management by centralizing the system hardware. The rigid, "one user to one PC blade" design is disappearing.
It gets better. Today, users attached to a failed ClearCube blade can be quickly moved over to another available blade. The process requires administrator intervention, but ClearCube says it has nearly completed work on an automated fail-over process that avoids interrupting the user session. The next logical step might be to provide tools that let administrators "lift and shift" live user sessions between PC blades for maintenance reasons -- something administrators can do with server blades today using VMware's VMotion.
IBM sees room for further consolidation. Today, a user can be mapped only to the virtual machines that reside on a single blade. By the third quarter,

Continued...
1 | 2 | NEXT  



Print this Story Send Us Feedback E-mail this Story Digg! Digg this Story Slashdot this Story
"In Monday's IT Blogwatch, Richi Jennings watches Apple rumor blogs run at full throttle. Seems as though Steve Jobs will..." Read more...
"Welcome to a special IT Blogwatch EXTRA: as Richi Jennings watches bloggers' reactions to the Russian hackers who claim to..." Read more...
Read more Hardware posts or See all Blogs
Feds considering changes to H-1B application process in wake of report
Exploit code loose for six-month-old Windows bug
With market meltdown, which tech firms become predator or prey?
More top stories...
The Grill: Privacy is a thing of the past, says private investigator
Report: World Bank servers breached repeatedly
Apple asks judge to make iPhone lawsuit moot
Too much junk food, too little exercise and a 24/7 tether to technology? Your body ain't happy, friend. Let us count the pains.
Instruments on the surface of Mars have detected falling snow that is likely evaporating before it reaches the planet.
One positive development stemming from the collapse of Wall Street may be a boost in interest in computer science and IT careers among students who were previously interested in financial services jobs.
Getting new software installed on Linux doesn't have to be hard, but it can differ depending on what you're installing.
Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS.
Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready?
All Zones
Application Performance Zone
Business Continuity Zone
The File Data Management Zone
Security Management Zone
The SAS Zone
Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone
Windows Protection Zone
The Enterprise Search Zone
Software as a Service Zone
The Security Zone

Ads by TechWords

See your link here
Learn-Fast Guide: Get Up to Speed on Green IT

(Source: Computerworld) Whether it's in the front office or the server room, green thinking can save energy, trees and money. From the Editorial Staff at Computerworld, here's the latest thinking on greening your operations.
Download this executive briefing download
Virtualization Everywhere
Download this white paper, free, compliments of Citrix.
(Source: Citrix) Adoption of virtualization is concentrated among large enterprises, while adoption by mid-sized companies has been much slower. For these companies, the cost and complexity of server virtualization solutions has been a barrier.

In this paper, we'll discuss how Citrix XenServer" provides simple, economical server virtualization for any size company. Download now!

Download this white paper go
Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You?
Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You?
Download this webcast, free, compliments of Sterling Commerce
Go to the webcast 
White Papers
Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services.
Business Transaction Management: Facilitating the Management of Virtual Environments
Quick Sizing Guide for SAS Grid Running on HP BladeSystems and EVA Storage
Prudential Financial protects its brand with Symantec Data Loss Prevention solutions
View more whitepapers