When it comes to Cisco Systems’ server strategy, March 16 is D-Day — or data center day. After months of speculation, the networking giant is expected to unveil its first servers. Cisco partners will surely welcome the news but The VAR Guy wonders: Will customers jump on board?
Speculation about Monday’s announcement has flooded the Web.
According to Forbes:
Cisco is expected to release a new set of products, code-named “California,” that tie together the networking, storage, processing and virtualization of a data center.
Those products include the first server Cisco has ever offered, powered by an Intel Nehalem processor. And they also integrate VMware‘s
(nyse: VMW – news – people ) virtualization software to make applications independent from the servers and storage hardware they run on, as well as a new networking switch that can keep those virtual applications connected to hardware resources even as they’re rearranged, according to the source.
Who’s the Competition?
At first glance, a showdown looms between Cisco and established data center/server providers like IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems and Dell.
But during a dinner with Riverbed Technology last week, The VAR Guy engaged in a lively debate with a TechTarget editor. While our resident blogger insisted Cisco channel partners would embrace the new servers, the TechTarget editor insisted customers would be a hard sell. Hmmm. Fair point. Ultimately, the big question: Can Cisco’s partners overcome customer inertia?
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Cisco, as expected, announced the server effort today as part of a major Unified Computing push. Intel, Microsoft, EMC, VMware and Accenture — just to name a few –joined the Cisco announcement. Hardly surprising, HP, Dell and IBM (traditional server makers) weren’t invited to the party.
Here’s the complete press release from Cisco, which includes this section about how channel partners will participate in the unified computing push:
- Cisco will initially go to market with a select group of Cisco Data Center Specialized channel partners that already possess the networking, compute, virtualization, storage, and integrated services practices to help customers successfully make the transition to a Unified Computing architecture.
- As customer demand for Unified Computing accelerates, Cisco will enlist additional channel partners into the new Cisco Unified Computing Authorized Technology Provider Program.
- Cisco has more than 250 highly trained Data Center Specialized channel partners around the world.
- Cisco announced it will develop a channel program designed to enable and accelerate the sales of tested, validated reference designs incorporating products from industry-leading data center vendors, including EMC, Microsoft, NetApp, Red Hat, and VMware.
Cisco added that more than 80 percent of its revenue flows through channel partners.
GigaOm has an interesting look at potential “winners and losers” from the CSCO announcement. Details here.