Dell launches 64-bit ARM microserver 'proof of concept'

Intel alternative launched for test and development as datacentre chip battle heats up

Dell has become the latest hardware giant to offer 64-bit ARM-based microservers - following on from the launch of AMD's Seattle four- and eight-core microprocessors at the Open Compute Summit at the end of January.

"Many believe 64-bit ARM technology has tremendous potential to change the modern datacentre and Dell is helping turn that potential into business reality for our customers," wrote Stephen Rousset, director of datacentre solutions architecture at Dell.

Rousset described the initiative as a "proof-of-concept", which organisations can use for test and development.

"This proof-of-concept is available at the Dell Solutions Centre in Texas and is being rolled out at the centre in Singapore for customers interested in evaluating the technology," wrote Rousset. "Dell is pleased to be collaborating with ARM developers and vendors on future 64-bit designs in order to accelerate the maturation of the ARM ecosystem.

"As the ARM server ecosystem is still developing, our focus has been on enabling developers and customers to create code and test performance with 64-bit ARM microservers in order to foster broad-based adoption."

Full server products running 64-bit ARM - not just from Dell, but from a number of manufacturers - ought to be out by the summer, and will pose a growing challenge to Intel in the data centre.

Intel currently enjoys a 90-95 per cent share of the server market, but AMD general manager Andrew Feldman, a microserver developer with his startup SeaMicro - which AMD purchased - believes that ARM-based products could take as much as 25 per cent of the market by 2019.