QLogic Announces World's First QDR Pass-Through Module

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QLogic logoQLogic, today, announced the official release of the world’s first QDR Infiniband pass-through module.  The 12005-PT16 QDR pass-through module is now available for Dell PowerEdge blade servers geared towards high performance computing workloads.  The module is designed to fit within the Dell PowerEdge M1000e blade server chassis, while only requiring a single slot.  Several other network fabric modules for the M1000e require two [of the three available] slots.

Dell’s PowerEdge servers deliver industry-leading performance and energy efficiency for HPC cluster applications,” said Sally Stevens, vice president of Platform Marketing, Dell. “QLogic’s innovative, 40Gb/second QDR InfiniBand pass-through module and mezzanine adapter augment our M1000e platform with the exceptional value and open-standard technology that customers expect from Dell. By combining Dell multi-core servers and QLogic QDR InfiniBand adapters, switches and pass-through modules, we’re enabling our HPC customers to accelerate the pace of their research efforts.”

The 12005-PT16 pass-through module is just that, a pass-through device.  It is not a switch.  As such, the device does not require internal switching silicon that requires additional power and potentially increases point-to-point latency.  In addition to the pass-through module, QLogic will also provide Dell with their 7300 series QDR mezzanine card designed to fit Dell blade servers.

Blade servers like Dell’s PowerEdge M1000e platform are becoming increasingly popular in HPC environments because they enable clusters to scale in a minimal data center footprint. The low-profile QLogic 12005 QDR InfiniBand pass-through module provides a highly cost-effective solution for these servers by further saving space and power,” said Jesse Parker, vice president and general manager, Network Solutions Group, QLogic. “By making InfiniBand easier to deploy and use, QLogic and Dell are empowering HPC users with the ability to produce quicker results for applications such as aerospace, earthquake modeling and biomolecular design.”

Keep an eye on QLogic’s Infiniband business.  Over the past twelve months, they have landed OEM relationships with HP, IBM, Dell and SGI.  As such, they now have the ability to directly or indirectly market their technology very efficiently across a wide expanse of the HPC ecosystem.  Remember, QLogic’s Infiniband technology is not based on Mellanox silicon.  They bring the legacy “out-of-the-box” thinking from their Pathscale acquisition.  Don’t be surprised to see QLogic start popping up more and more in an HPC shop near you.

For more info, check out the QLogic website here.