Project Moonshot: 2800 servers in one rack

In November, HP announced a new development program for its server line called Project Moonshot . This is not just a new model or line of servers, and not only the development of the ideology of converged infrastructure. HP says Moonshot can be compared to the opening of another chapter in the evolution of computing.

The program includes three components:

• new ultra-economical servers on low-power processors - first on ARM, and then on Intel Atom, AMD chips and other vendors. Based on these servers, the HP Redstone platform is built , which allows the use of over 2800 servers in one rack;

• HP Discovery Lab Research Labthrough which customers will be able to test solutions for the new platform;

• The HP Pathfinder Partner Ecosystem , created for the development of the Moonshot project. Currently, AMD, ARM Holdings, Calxeda, Canonical, and Red Hat are called HP partners here. Project Moonshot

main goal- Creation of a server platform with practically unlimited and affordable scalability. The name "Project Moonshot" recalls the main achievement of the American space program - flight to the moon. And the ambitions of the creators of the program are appropriate. It is stated that for some types of loads and applications, the savings will be fantastic — systems on the new platform will consume 89% less energy than traditional servers and take up 94% less space, which would mean an average 63% reduction in operating costs!

As a result, the Moonshot program should provide convenient and transparent sharing of network infrastructure, data storage, power and cooling systems in super-scalable environments, including thousands and tens of thousands of computing nodes. Such environments are already in demand in various industries, where there is an avalanche-like growth in the amount of information that needs to be processed in real time - from finance to social networks. The transition of everything and everything to the cloud model is also difficult to imagine without convenient means of scaling.



But when using solutions based on traditional architecture, such scaling still leads to a serious increase in costs. Therefore, HP Redstone is an extension of the ProLiant family of servers with low-cost and energy-efficient processors - with "mobile" ARM and others. At first, chips from Calxeda startups will be used, and later special versions of Intel processors and (according to unofficial data) AMD are expected.

The first information about the Redstone platform looks like this:

• Processors Calxeda EnergyCore ARM Cortex;
• Servers are executed in the form of a board with four nodes;
• Each of the nodes includes a processor, memory and external connections connector of various types, including DAS (Direct Attached Storage);
• Server modules are installed in the HP SL6500 chassis . At the same time, up to 288 servers fit in one chassis, and up to 10 times more in a rack, respectively (2880).

New servers will be available to a limited number of HP customers in the first half of 2012.

Now about the other two components of Project Moonshot. HP Discovery Labs is a dedicated platform provided by HP customers for testing solutions on the Redstone platform. The first lab is due to open in January 2012 in Houston. It is expected that the matter will not be limited to one laboratory, and subsequently sites will be created in Europe and Asia.



As for the HP Pathfinder Program , it is a program designed to engage third-party companies in the development of Project Moonshot. It, in turn, is part of a more general AllianceONE initiative focused on the development of HP's technology partnership with independent manufacturers of software, storage, network and other equipment. Today, AMD, ARM Holdings, Calxeda, Canonical and Red Hat are already participating in the HP Pathfinder Program.

Well, all this is very, very interesting. I would even say exciting. We will all closely monitor the development of the Moonshot program, so stay tuned!