HP Unveils Four Entry-Level ServersHP Unveils Four Entry-Level Servers

Hewlett-Packard on Monday introduced four entry-level ProLiant servers for midsize companies with limited space and IT staff.

The new servers include software tools that guide users through system configuration. "HP is aggressively focused on creating technologies that reduce complexity for midsize customers at every step," Paul Gottsegen, VP of marketing for industry standard servers for HP, said in a statement.

The four products use serial ATA (SATA) hard disk drives and support redundant arrays of independent disks. RAID is an umbrella term for storage schemes that divide and replicate data among multiple disks.

The new lineup includes the ProLiant DL180 G5 and the DL185 G5, which are two-processor, 2U servers with three PCI-Express slots and optional redundant power supplies. The DL180 G5 has up to 9 Tbytes of storage while the DL185 G5 has up to 10.5 Tbytes. The latter also has dual network interface cards and is a good option for mail and messaging, video capture, online gaming, and high-performance computing, HP said.

The ProLiant DL165 G5 and DL160 G5 are two-processor, 1U servers. The DL165 G5 features four 3.5-inch hard disk drives. The DL160 G5 is designed for high performance computing environments. It has two PCI-Express x16 2.0 slots and supports faster front side bus speeds.

The servers are available pre-configured with Citrix Access Essentials and Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. Citrix is used for secure access to the server either remotely or over a network. Exchange Server is Microsoft's messaging environment.

In addition, HP offers its Lights-Out technology for remotely managing ProLiant G5 servers from any location, for installing or updating software over the Internet or a local area network, and for monitoring hardware performance.

The ProLiant DL160 G5 and DL185 G5 are available now. Prices start at $1,399 and $1,749, respectively. The DL180 G5 and DL165 G5 are scheduled for release in 90 days. Pricing for the Lights-Out 100i Advanced Pack is $199 per license, the Lights-Out 100i Select Pack at $99 per license and the Lights-Out 100c Remote Management Card at $219.

HP's new servers run on Intel processors. HP competitors in the x86 server market include Dell and Sun Microsystems.