Dell PowerEdge R910 review

To test power consumption we linked our in-line power meter to all four 1100W power supplies where it reported a draw of 539W with Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise in idle. With SiSoft Sandra pushing all 64 logical cores to the max this peaked at 859W. When you consider the huge specification of the review system this is impressively low.

Management features start with Dell’s unique Lifecycle Controller and its 1GB of NVRAM memory. The server can be booted directly from this controller which loads Dell’s UEFI (unified extensible firmware interface) environment complete with GUI and support for mouse and keyboard.

The GUI provides access to an OS deployment wizard where you enter your details and leave the server to get on with installing your chosen OS. The controller also provides diagnostics and update tools plus access to the server settings.

Dell’s iDRAC6 Enterprise management controller has a dedicated network port plus VFlash media and 1GB SD card. From its tidy web interface you can remotely monitor and control the server, view the status of critical server components and apply power capping values.

Next up is Dell’s Management Console which aims to manage your entire network. This provides automated discovery, support for all SNMP compliant devices and tools for inventory, system monitoring, OS deployment and remote firmware upgrades.

As the first Xeon 7500 server to market, the PowerEdge R910 will be a tough act to follow. It offers a cracking hardware specification for the price and combines this with a big expansion potential, superb internal design, high component redundancy and quality management features.