This site is a guide to the enterprise class hardware that large corporations and internet service providers depend on for day to day operations. We also examine the history of these cutting edge machines and how the technology this hardware is based upon trickles down into the PCs we use every day.

Enterprise servers are deployed in environments where uptime is the defining factor such as databases, web servers, corporate infrastructures and financial institutions. A secondary necessity of enterprise servers and the valuable assets they manage is raw computing horsepower. Enterprise servers are many more times powerful than a desktop PC with some models scaling to 128 processors and hundreds of gigabytes of memory these computers dwarf any home machine. Of the companies that design and support these machines some are household names while others are only known by the IT crowd.

Enterprise Storage also must meet similar uptime performance standards as enterprise servers while offering massive capacities. Though the trickle down effect slowly moves some of the cutting edge storage technology into the consumer segment, enterprise storage systems are leaps and bounds beyond those found in PCs. Unlike desktop PCs, whose storage is typically a hard drive or small RAID array contained in the tower, Enterprise Storage consists of refrigerator sized cabinets full of hard disks. With current capacities scaling beyond 30 petabytes these enterprise storage servers are truly modern marvels.

Finally, we examine Enterprise Networking hardware. As with enterprise servers and storage, the key features are uptime and capacity. Most enterprise class routers and switches are chassis based meaning there is a housing in which expansion slots allow the addition of specific functionality by way of line cards or expansion modules (dedicated VPN, GBICs, VOiP, additional switching/routing capacity, etc).

Enterprise Servers

• IBM - The company that invented the personal computer has an extensive line of Enterprise servers. The IBM iSeries, IBM pSeries and IBM zSeries represent the top of the line offerings.
  
  
• Hewlett Packard - Known in the consumer sector for their printers and PCs. HPs Enterprise Server lineup consists of the PA-RISC processor based HP9000, the Intel Itanium based HP Integrity line and since HPs acquisition of Tandem/Compaq, the NonStop S-Series server.
  
  
• Stratus - With a solid client base in the financial sector, telecommunications and government, Stratus is not a household name though there is a chance your bank account is sitting on one of their servers. Manufacturer of Fault Tolerant systems such as the Stratus Continuum and Stratus ftServer.
  
  
• Sun Microsystems - Sun became a household name during the early dot-com era for a number of reasons arguably the most notable would be the programming language Java. Sun has however been well known and respected in IT circles for their Sun Enterprise and Sun Fire servers.
  
  
• Tandem - Tandem Computers was founded by a group of HP engineers in 1974 with a focus on Fault Tolerant computers. Tandems main flagship line of servers consisted of the NonStop, NonStop Himalaya and the NonStop S-Series servers. Tandem was purchased by Compaq in 1997 who was then acquired by Hewlett Packard in 2002.
  
  Enterprise storage
  
  
• EMC - The king of Enterprise Storage. EMC caters strictly to enterprise applications with their EMC CLARiiON, EMC Symmetrix and new EMC Symmetrix DMX lines of disk arrays. They have also entered the Virtual Tape Library market with the CLARiiON DL line.
• Fujitsu - From notebooks to ATM machines Fujitsu has a diverse line of products for many segments. Their Enterprise Storage products consist of the Fujitsu Eternus line of disk arrays and tape libraries.
• Hitachi Data Systems - The storage division of Hitachi. Commonly abbreviated as HDS, their Enterprise Storage systems product lines are the Hitachi Lightning, Hitachi Thunder and the new Hitachi TagmaStore Universal Storage Platform (USP).
• Storageworks - Hewlett Packards storage division. Their enterprise storage line is comprised of Enterprise Virtual Arrays (EVA), and re-branded Hitachi Lightning 9900V and TagmaStore disk arrays.
• StorageTek - Absorbed by Sun Microsystems in 2005, StorageTek remains the market leader in enterprise class tape drives and tape libraries.
  
  Enterprise Networking
• Cisco Systems - Cisco is the 800LB gorilla in the world of enterprise networking. Cisco has products lines ranging from ethernet switches, firewalls and routers. Cisco Catalyst 6500 switches and Cisco GSR 12000 routers are the upper end offerings in those respective segments.
• Extreme Networks - Extreme offers enterprise class modular & fixed switches, carrier equipment and security devices. Their BlackDiamond, Alpine and Summit brands are Extremes primary switches.
• Foundry Networks - Foundry specializes in enterprise and service provider class switches. Product families include BigIron chassis based layer 3 switches, FastIron modular switches, ServerIron layer 7 switches and NetIron routers.
• Juniper Networks - Junipers enterprise networking products include the E-series, J-series, M-series, and T-series families of switches and firewall / VPN hardware solutions.