Compaq Preps Caching Server
Appliance will store frequently accessed Web sites, reducing
load on main servers
By Mary Hayes
ompaq is preparing to ship an Internet
caching server in July--the first offering in
the company's new line of server appliances
optimized to perform a single function.
The Compaq TaskSmart C-series caching
server stores Web sites frequently accessed
by a company's users. It's designed to reduce
loads on primary Web servers and networks
while providing users with faster Web access.
The server will run Novell's recently released
Internet caching software.
Compaq says the caching server and
forthcoming products in the TaskSmart line
are ideal for providing users at remote sites
with Web access. The systems will require
little setup; all software will be preinstalled,
and no on-site IT administration will be
necessary. Compaq says a non-IT user can
have the systems ready to run in less than 30 minutes; IT
administrators can set up the servers via remote-management
software. The vendor is also aiming the TaskSmart line at Internet
service providers.
Compaq says it will ship a file server appliance later this year, and
is also considering E-mail and security server appliances. John
Young, Compaq's director of appliance servers, says the
TaskSmart systems will start at less than $10,000.
Though Compaq's server appliances will be based on
industry-standard technologies such as Intel chips, analysts say it
will likely require substantial IT work to redeploy these devices for
another function at a later date. But Young says by eliminating
components that aren't required to perform a particular function,
server appliances gain an advantage. "These servers will be even
more reliable than general-purpose servers, because they'll have
fewer moving parts," Young says.
Compaq is also ramping up its services organization to support the
TaskSmart line: Customers can call Compaq for all hardware and
software service. For example, Compaq is training its service
employees on the Novell caching software. "By providing one-stop
service, Compaq shows it has thought this concept through to the
full extent," says Dataquest analyst James Staten.
Other companies, such as Dell Computer and Hewlett-Packard, are
also entering the server-appliance market. Staten predicts that
vendors who work through resellers and integrators will initially have
the most success, because of the up-front contact required to
educate customers about this new type of product.
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