On the first day of the annual conference in Austin, Texas, Dell has introduced its latest attempt at converged infrastructure – the PowerEdge FX2.

This server system squeezes up to eight modules into a 2U enclosure. Customers can mix and match compute, storage and networking hardware, with all of the management handled by integrated Dell software.

This approach allows organizations to tailor their infrastructure to fit particular workloads, and scale up in small increments.

The company will release the chassis, one storage and one compute module by December, with another four modules expected in the first half of 2015.

Like Lego
PowerEdge FX2 is Dell’s attempt to design a single platform that would be equally useful for traditional IT workloads and innovative ‘New IT’ projects. The modules share power, cooling, networking and management components, can be replaced quickly and don’t break the bank.

So far, the choice of CPUs is limited to Intel. Dell has been discussing microservers based on ARM chips and even launched a proof-of-concept in February, but any actual products are yet to materialize.

PowerEdge FX2 modules can feature either Atom SoCs or 2-socket and 4-socket Xeon CPUs, including members of the recently launched E5-2600 v3 family. Despite its reliance on x86 architecture, Dell still manages to fit up to 40 individual 2-socket servers into a 10U rack.

Here’s the list of the actual modules, in the order they will appear on sale:
 

• FM120x4: Half-width, four Intel Atom C2000 SoCs, up to eight 1.8” SSDs, eight DIMM slots.
   
• FC630: Half-width, half-height, two Intel Xeon E5-2600 v3 CPUs, up to eight 1.8” SSDs, up to two PCIe SSDs, 24 DIMM slots and support for SanDisk DAS Cache.
   
• FD332: Half-width, up to four Intel Xeon CPUs, up to sixteen 2.5" SFF drives, RAID controller, 48 DIMM slots, four PCIe expansion slots, support for SanDisk DAS Cache.
   
• FC430: Quarter-width, half-height, two Intel Xeon E5-2600 v3 CPUs, two 1.6” SSDs, eight DIMM slots, support for SanDisk DAS Cache.
   
• FC830: Half-height, four Intel Xeon CPUs, up to sixteen 1.6” SSDs, two SNAs, 48 DIMM slots and support for SanDisk DAS Cache.
   
• FN IOA: The only networking module on the list with eight internal 10Gbps ports and a choice of SFP+, 10GBASE-T or Fibre Channel external ports.
   

Dell says the platform is aimed at a wide variety of customers, from SMBs on tight budgets to hyperscale data center operators. It hopes PowerEdge FX2 will eliminate the need for ‘forklift upgrades’ that simultaneously replace bulk of the infrastructure.

“Despite claims to the contrary, mostly by vendors of proprietary servers, Dell's new FX architecture clearly shows that x86 system innovation is alive and well,” said Charles King, ‘Dell Watcher’ and principal analyst at Pund-IT.

“The company's efforts also prove how being a disruptive force doesn't require ‘thinking outside of the box.’ In the case of the FX architecture, Dell has succeeded by rethinking the box itself.”

The PowerEdge FX2 chassis and initial modules (FC630, FM120x4) will be available in December 2014. Additional modules including the FD332, FN IOA, FC430 and FC830 will be available in the first half of 2015.