Review: Next-gen HP ProLiant pumps up the jam

Unlike most movie sequels, the HP ProLiant DL380 gets better with each generation. The DL dynasty just hit generation 8, and true to form, the HP ProLiant DL380p Gen8 does a fine job of incorporating all the latest server hardware, features, and doodads, with special emphasis on CPU clout, storage performance, and systems management.

HP designed the DL380p Gen8 with many of the same market and performance goals as the Dell PowerEdge 720xd (click for the review); both share the same form factor, drive density, and Intel’s Sandy Bridge CPU architecture. The DL380 is also a noticeable upgrade from the DL380’s Gen7 iteration. For one, it runs on dual Xeon E5-2600s instead of the Gen7’s dual Xeon 5600s, which means it can run a maximum of eight cores per socket versus the Gen7’s six cores — with more compute punch in each core. The Gen8 not only supports 768GB of RAM vs. the Gen7’s maximum of 348GB, but it can also handle a wider variety of RAM types. Finally, HP has spent considerable effort increasing the storage performance of its servers. While the Gen8 uses the same Smart Array P420i storage controller as the Gen7, the Gen8 still supports a wider variety of drive types, along with greater density.

My test unit didn’t come max-equipped but still had plenty of oomph, with dual E5-2690 CPUs, four 600GB 10K SAS drives, and 128GB of RAM. The system arrived with a FlexLOM NIC that carried dual 10Gb interfaces (which my paltry switch fabric doesn’t support), but HP also included an optional four-port gigabit Ethernet card. Swapping one for the other was a 1-minute tool-less process that worked like a charm.

The rest of the box is standard by today’s measure: On the front you’ll find two USB and VGA ports, system insight displays, and all the drive bays, including an optional optical bay. On the back are four USB, network, iLO (Integrated Lights-Out) management processor, and VGA rear-mounts along with a good ol’ serial port. Additionally, my unit came with 94-percent-efficient dual-750-watt hot-swap power supplies, though you can get 460-watt or 1,200-watt versions, too. The rack kit is simple to install and entirely tool-less. I had some trouble locating system ID info (including the user name and password I needed to access HP’s System Insight Manager), but finally found it printed on a plastic tab that slides out of the front bezel like an ATM card.

Features, finish, and speed Beneath the quick-removal access panel, you’ll notice typical HP fit and finish. All key components, including CPU, RAM, disks, the hard disk risers, PCI risers, power supplies, fans, and network ports, are upgradeable without tools. The two CPUs and all 24 DIMM slots are protected by a clear baffle and cooled by six fans possessed of the traditional jet-engine, only-tolerable-in-a-rack cooling noise; these are swappable individually or as a whole by removing the entire fan cage. Upgraded from the Gen7, the Gen8 DIMM slots support not just straight DDR3 DIMMs, but also load-reduced DIMMs and unbuffered DIMMs.

Continuing our internal tour, you’ll find both an internal SD slot and USB port. My unit had three PCIe 3.0 and three PCI 2.0 expansion slots (though you can opt for up to six PCIe 3.0), as well as four 600GB 10K SATA drives. Drive options are many, but max out at 25TB using any combination of SFF (small form factor) SAS/SATA disk, SFF SAS SSD, or LFF (large form factor) SATA SSD. In a nice touch, HP has replaced the standard cache setup with flash. That means better performance during a power outage, and you no longer need to worry about changing a battery every couple of years.

Test Center Scorecard
	20%	20%	20%	20%	10%	10%
HP ProLiant DL380p Gen8	9	8	9	7	9	7	8.2 Very Good

HP hasn’t just wired together a big pile of powerful components and slapped a case around them, either. The ProLiant DL380p is carefully engineered to make optimal use of all its hardware muscle as evidenced by publicly published benchmark results using VMware’s VMmark 2.1.1 benchmark test. In case that one’s new to you, VMmark runs multiple workloads across several virtual machines simultaneously. Workloads and VMs are configured via templates and grouped as “tiles,” which form the basis for bench results. Using the two-processor version of VMmark running VMware ESXi 4.1.2, the ProLiant DL380p managed 11.05 at 10 tiles, somewhat higher than the Dell PowerEdge 720xd’s 10.49 score at the same 10-tile count. You can see these results for yourself and read a deeper description on interpreting VMmark results at VMware’s VMmark site.

HP attributes several factors to these benchmark results. RAM performance is improved not just because of support for a wider variety of RAM chips, but also because of new smart memory algorithms that supposedly eliminate some common memory errors. Also, HP claims up to a sevenfold storage performance boost with its new Dynamic Workload Acceleration design, which is supposed to improve data-intensive storage speed through optimized use of HP’s solid-state drive technologies. The use of PCIe-3 for its storage controller doesn’t hurt either.

Lights-out management Just as with the Dell 720xd, some of the ProLiant DL380p Gen8’s slickest engineering is in its management capabilities. HP’s iLO 4 management processor uses tools including HP Agentless Management and the Active Health System to remotely handle a number of tasks that would normally require a physical visit to the server box. For example, you can use iLO to power cycle the server, install a new operating system, interface with perform ROM and BIOS updates, and even mount an ISO image and boot from it. The DL380p also has a new pre-boot information display that provides early system status info in case you’re willing brave the server’s startup noise. Wear earplugs, it’ll help.

The Active Health System is a new tool for HP ProLiant customers. It’s similar to one of those rabid sports fans who soaks up statistics like Rain Man and spews them out ad nauseum with little or no provocation. Active Health logs all diagnostic, alert, and configuration information for your server from the moment it’s powered up. It can then pour that data onto the screen of an HP services technician, probably overwhelming him, her, or it, but providing all the information required for “rapid problem resolution.”

A slick new feature is HP’s mobile management application, which lets you manage your ProLiant from an Android 2.2 or iOS 4.3 device. (Yo! Whaddabout Windows Phone?)  The app gives you direct access to some of the server’s guts, as well as to the iLO console. It’ll let you cycle the server’s power directly, do a BIOS update, and even boot from an ISO image. But you can also launch any scripts you’ve created for iLO and access iLO’s Web interface for deeper management. Store a list of the servers you want to manage on the device and you’ll be able to access all of them from your phone or tablet. It’s very cool, though you know your boss is going to expect you to manage a server while you’re on the golf course.

Even with this potential distraction to my backswing, the DL380p Gen8 is a fitting successor to the Gen7 and keeps the ProLiant’s excellent reputation alive and well.

HP ProLiant DL380p pricing starts at $2,799; the high-performance SKU (the basis for our test configuration) runs to $10,759; and the actual as-tested price comes in at $15,313.

This story, “Review: Next-gen HP ProLiant pumps up the jam,” was originally published at InfoWorld.com. Follow the latest developments in computer hardware, servers, and the data center at InfoWorld.com. For the latest business technology news, follow InfoWorld.com on Twitter.