HP ProLiant Servers

ProLiant is currently the main line of servers offered by HP. Originally marketed by Compaq the servers became Hewlett-Packard systems after a merger between Compaq and HP in September 2001. In 2015 Hewlett-Packard split into multiple divisions where their enterprise hardware became HPE (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise). In May 2016 Hewlett Packard Enterprise closed a transaction with Tsinghua Holdings to create “New H3C Group” with the purpose of combining efforts to drive sales in the China enterprise hardware market.

HP ProLiant Density Line (DL) Models & Generations

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The ProLiant DL models are rack-based systems with an aim to be produce the perfect balance of performance, management and energy efficiency. As a general rule the higher the model number in the ProLiant range the higher powered the system is for example, server models from the DL range start with affordable, dense units such as the DL20 or DL120 and range up to the DL580 series made for very intense workloads.

HP ProLiant Modular Line (ML) & MicroServer Models & Generations

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ProLiant ML models are Tower systems produced for remote and branch offices as well as growing businesses. Developed for expandability and adaptability the ProLiant ML range is perfect for developing businesses where their requirements may grow. Favoured for their naturally quieter operating, due to larger fans, ProLiant Tower servers are often featured in offices and homelabs where they rarely produce more noise than a standard workstation.

Part of the HP Tower server range is the HPE Micro Server. These systems are ultra-compact low-cost systems designed for small or home offices and enthusiasts. Offering the user friendly platform ClearOS (optional) HP Micro Servers use an intuitive GUI for your ease of use. Favoured for on-site backups and small RAID arrays MicroServers can provide a simple solution for onsite backup needs.

Blade Line (BL)

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HP ProLiant BL range offers a fully converged infrastructure for medium and enterprise datacentres. BL systems are combined together in a HPE c3000 or c7000 shared chassis providing a truly redundant, energy efficient and cost effective solution for large enterprises and data-centres alike. Featuring 16 half-width, or 8 full-height, blade bays the HP c7000 is favoured for its flexibility allowing for 8 interconnect modules, 2 Onboard Administrator modules, 10 Hot-Swap Redundant fans (model dependant) and 6 single or three phase high efficiency power supplies. The BladeSystem enclosure provides back and forth compatibility accepting both new or old blades allowing for gradual expansion in budget constrained environments.

Scalable Line (SL)

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Ideal for hyper-scale and HPCs the ProLiant SL range prioritises power per 'u' through increased density and shared chassis housing. Through the use of HP Scalable Line systems lower operational costs, increased deployment speed and greater energy efficiency can be achieved. Purpose built for datacentres, systems such as the SL6500 offer true flexibility through a flexible 8 half-width node 4U system.

As demand for hyperscale, hyperconverged and high-performance computing systems increased HPE developed the Apollo series to better fit the needs of these demanding environments. Made to be incredibly scalable, cost effective and powerful the Apollo range perfectly suits demanding applications in professional enterprises.

Further Details

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HP ProLiant Servers follow a model convention to easily separate ranges. 1xx, 2xx, 3xx and 4xx (For example, HP ProLiant BL460c or DL160 G6) series machines are made up of single and dual socket systems, 5xx or 6xx models comprise of quad cpu systems (HP ProLiant DL580 Gen8 or BL680c G6) and 7xx or 9xx are compatible with up to 8x processors.

Further to this convention, HP also segregate processor manufacturers. Systems ending with a 0 (HP ProLiant DL360p or SL230s) use Intel, mainly Xeon, processors and systems ending in a 5 (HP ProLiant BL495c or DL585) use AMD CPUs.

Late in 2014 HP unveiled the Gen9 range featuring DDR4 SmartMemory, better power efficiency and Intel's new Xeon E5-2600 V3/V4 series, boasting a 1.9x performance gain through Intel AVX2. The HPE G9 series offered one of the largest performance jumps in generations using upgraded RAM and processors to hugely increase bandwidth and cores per 'u'.

On July the 14th 2017 HPE announced their next industry leading series of servers, HPE Gen10. With improved security through 'Secure Compute Lifecycle' HP aimed to tackle the growing concern of hardware security with claims to be "the world's most secure industry standard servers". That year in November HPE extended their Gen10 range to include AMD EPYC processors to further economics in server virtulization using EPYC's impressive price v cores archetecture claiming to lower cost per virtual machine (VM) by 50%.