HPE Synergy- Six Years of Innovation

It has been a while since we talked about the Hewlett Packard Enterprise Synergy platform.  It is hard to believe it was announced in 2015 and is already 6 years old.  This platform was definitely built with the future in mind.  It was designed from the ground up to support future technologies and communications bandwidth.  Server hardware has taken a back seat to the conversations around Cloud, Hybrid Cloud, HyperConverged, Security, Ransomware and Anything as a Service.

Since 2015, the Compute Modules have migrated from the Gen9, to the Gen10 and now the Gen10 Plus. We still have a lot of conversations around hardware in the data center.  The goal around the Synergy platform is to provide a “cloud-like” (on demand resources) experience in your data center.

 

Cloud-Like Experience

The HPE Synergy platform is defined as a composable, software-defined infrastructure that allows you to provide that cloud-like experience.  This platform enables you to compose fluid pools of resources (physical or virtual compute, storage, and fabric) to meet the requirements of your workload.  This can be done using the unified API to simplify and automate deployments.  Using this API, you can provision the required resources with a single line of code.

The design of the Synergy platform allows you to manage one infrastructure that can quickly scale and reduce complexity in your environment.  This infrastructure will support current- and next-gen apps, each with vastly diverse infrastructure requirements and service-level objectives.  The applications can run on physical hardware, virtual hardware or containers, all in the same frame.

 

Industry Leading Security

As will all HPE Servers, the Gen10 and Gen10 Plus has provided industry leading security.  They have designed and implemented an enhanced, holistic, 360-degree view to security that begins in the manufacturing supply chain and concludes with a safeguarded, end-of-life decommissioning.

This all starts with the Silicon root of trust that is built into all Gen10 and Gen10 Plus servers. The Silicon Root of Trust from Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has been designated a 2019 Cyber Catalyst cybersecurity solution. It protects against firmware attacks, detects compromised firmware or malware, and helps to rapidly recover the server in the event of an attack.  This starts with the HPE developed and proprietary iLO 5 management.  The iLO 5 ensures all firmware and the BIOS have the proper signature before it allows the machine to power on.

This level of security protects all firmware and BIOS through a key programmed into chip silicon at a TAA compliant chip production facility.  It also integrates security with HPE Secure Start and Secure Boot to protect all BIOS, firmware, SPS, IE and boot sequence. The recovery process automatically quarantines compromised BIOS and firmware, then re-flashes with a known good image.

 

Budget Savings

With composable compute delivered as an on-premises cloud service, you’ll gain agility and avoid costly manual configuration and management of compute resources. When coupled with HPE GreenLake, you will have a powerful, software-defined, composable compute infrastructure that composes physical and virtual compute, storage, and fabric pools into any configuration for any application.  If you choose the pay-per-use model for on-premises compute assets, it will enable you to align IT spend with actual usage. You only pay for what you use above a reserve.  This model will provide you with near-real-time visibility into your usage data, and you can set budgets, create reports, and build rules-based insights.

 

 

What’s New in HPE Synergy?

So what’s new in HPE Synergy? The latest compute modules announced is the HPE Synergy 480 Gen10 Plus. This new compute module is an all-new design around Intel 3^rd Generation Xeon Scalable Processors. It can provide up to a 40% increase in performance over earlier processor generations.  This performance gain is achieved with improvements to the product line design around the processor, memory, storage, and boot options.

The HPE Synergy 480 Gen10 Plus compute module delivers the performance, efficiency, and flexibility of a 2-socket server to support the most workloads.  The Gen10 Plus provides more cores for a new level of workload performance and expanding ESXi VMs, expanded the memory DIMM socket count to 16 slots per socket, with 8 channels @ 3200 MT/S increased speed.  The new Gen10 Plus has also expanded the capacity and persistence of the Intel Optane 200 memory support.

There are many additional upgrades and improvements to the Synergy Frame, more information can be found at HPE Synergy Composable Software Defined Infrastructure Platform | HPE. 

Contact Zunesis today to find out more about HPE Synergy.

Synergy is the interaction or cooperation of two or more organizations, substances, or
other agents to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects.

 

 

HPE Synergy

 

 

HPE Synergy is a composable infrastructure which treats computing, storage, and devices as resources that can be pooled together and used as needed. An organization has the ability to adjust the infrastructure depending on what workloads are required at the time. This allows for an organization to optimize IT performance and improve agility.

 

 

The best definition I found for Composable Infrastructure is the following:

 

 

Compose your infrastructure for any workload.

 

 

Some History

 

 

HPE started shipping the Synergy Platform during the first half of 2016, over 3 years ago. It is hard to believe this platform has been around for 3 years already.

 

 

In general, the Synergy platform provides options in compute, storage and networking.  It offers a single management interface and unified API to simplify and automate operational complexities. It helps to increase operational response to new demands.

 

 

Composer and Image Streamer Management

 

 

Using the Composer and Image Streamer management, an organization has the software-defined intelligence to rapidly configure systems to meet the requirements and needs of the organization. Using HPE composer’s integrated software-defined intelligence, you are able to accelerate operations using a single interface.

 

 

Synergy Image Streamer enables true stateless computing for quick deployments and updates. This is a new approach to deployment and updates for composable infrastructure. This management appliance works with HPE Synergy Composer for fast software-defined control over physical compute modules with operating system provisioning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Synergy platform provides a fully programmable interface that allows organizations to take full advantage of potential vendor partnerships for open-source automation.  Tools such as Chef, Docker, and OpenStack also work with the Synergy Platform. Using these tools an organization is able to seamlessly integrate multiple management tools, perform automation and future-proof the data center.

 

 

 

Infosight and Synergy

 

 

 

HPE has also announced Synergy Support in HPE InfoSight. InfoSight is a cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) management tool that came with the Nimble purchase. HPE has expanded the platform to include HPE Servers including Synergy and Apollo systems.

 

 

 

It includes the Predictive Analytics, Global Learning and the Recommendation Engine. The AI Engine provides data analytics for server security and predictive analytics for parts failure. Future capability will include firmware and driver analytics.

 

 

The Global Learning aspect provides a server wellness dashboard, a global inventory and performance and utilization information. The Recommendation Engine will provide information to eliminate performance bottlenecks on the servers.

 

 

 

Built with the Future in Mind

 

 

 

The Synergy platform is built with the future in mind. From the Management analytics to new compute platforms, to higher power requirements, to increased networking bandwidth, this platform is ready. Architectures are evolving to memory-driven computing, 100Gb networking and non-volatile memory (NVM).

 

 

 

The Synergy frame has been architected to handle these new technologies and more. Each HPE Synergy bay is ready to support future technologies such as Photonics, future CPUs, GPUs and new memory technologies.

 

 

For more information on HPE Synergy, Contact Zunesis today.

The term “Intelligent Edge” is used in many ways, but perhaps the best way to think of it is as a place. The edge is where the action is. It’s a manufacturing floor, a building, a campus, a city, your house, a telecommunications outpost, a sports arena, or in other words, where the “things” are in the Internet of Things (IoT).  IoT data originates remotely, often from equipment at the edge, enabling immediate access to the data and affecting immediate control of “things”

 

The edge is “intelligent” because now there’s technology in these places that’s smart, connected, computational, and controlling.  Crucially, the Intelligent Edge provides analytics capabilities that were formerly confined to on-premises or cloud data centers.

 

The media and telecom industries face growing distribution pressures from increased video resolution, new formats, expanding bandwidth, and the need for better security and reliability. As a result, telecom service providers are placing sophisticated compute and control systems in businesses and homes. These distributed intelligent edges make the services more competitive and improve customer experiences.

 

Seven Reasons To Compute at the Edge

 

Edge computing can yield immediate insights from edge data at relatively low cost. Edge compute can be improved by shifting enterprise-class compute, storage, and management from the data center out to the edge. Organizations can leverage compute at the edge to:

 

1. Minimize Latency: There are many applications that require immediate insight and control. For some mission-critical functions, compute must take place at the edge because any latency is intolerable.
2. Reduce Bandwidth: Sending big data back and forth from things to the cloud, can consume enormous bandwidth. Edge computing is the easiest solution to this problem.
3. Lower Cost: Even if bandwidth is available, it can be costly. Efficiency is an important element of any corporate IoT strategy.
4. Reduce Threats: When you transfer data across the campus, state, country or ocean, it is simply more prone to attacks and breaches. Processing data at the edge can reduce security vulnerabilities.
5. Avoid duplication: If all the data is collected and sent to the cloud, there will likely be some equipment duplication in memory, storage, networking equipment and software. If this duplication is not needed, then the associated increases in capital and operating expenditures are unwarranted.
6. Improve reliability: Even without any nefarious activity from hackers, data can be corrupted on its own. Retries, drops and missed connections will plague edge-to-data-center communications.
7. Maintain Compliance: Laws and corporate policies govern the remote transfer of data.

 

 

HPE Edgeline at the Intelligent Edge

 

The key to HPE’s IoT strategy is edge computing, combining OT and IT into one appliance. In June of 2016, HPE announced the EdgeLine 1000 and EdgeLine 4000 series of devices that allow more processing power to be deployed into the field near these connected devices that generate data.  Both devices accommodate the same M510 or M710x ProLiant cartridges used in HPE’s signature Moonshot Chassis, with room for one cartridge on the Edgeline 1000 appliance and four cartridges on the EL4000.  Both appliances have integrated wireless networking on the system.

 

 

 

 

In Las Vegas, Zunesis recently showcased AI-based image and video analytics applications that run on the Edgeline Devices (in tandem with the customers VMS platform).   The features and use cases are far reaching – just a few key features we showcased:

 

• Immediate identification of key image elements, such as people or an abandoned bag.
• Processing video nearer the point of capture, the camera, eliminating the need to transfer large amounts of video data into the datacenter or cloud, thus reducing bandwidth costs, accelerating reaction time and lowering risk of corruption or espionage.
• Engagement geometry for smart video surveillance that can direct camera viewpoints and aggregate video data of a particular location
• Long videos can be compressed into minutes by superimposing all moving elements over the same unchanging background. The technology is ideal for identifying popular items or routes.

 

Also exciting is HPE’s new Global IoT Innovation Lab – Asia Pacific (APAC), located at HPE’s APAC headquarters in Singapore, one of four globally that offers immersive Edge Experience Zones to demonstrate practical IoT use cases for industries such as oil & gas, manufacturing, engineering, healthcare, retail, smart cities and more.

 

For more details, check out this great article on the new Lab – http://www.techtradeasia.info/2018/02/hpe-opens-singapore-based-global-iot.html.