Cisco Cisco UCS B440 M1 High-Performance Blade Server Libro blanco
A Principled Technologies test report 2
VDI performance comparison: Cisco UCS solution vs. HP solution
PROJECT OVERVIEW
This report highlights the benefits of using the Cisco UCS solution to support multiple virtual desktops,
and compares the Cisco UCS solution’s performance with 256GB of system memory to that of the HP solution
with 192GB of system memory. Specifically, the Cisco UCS B250 M2 Extended Memory Blade Server has 48
memory slots, allowing a 256GB configuration of RAM using lower cost 8GB memory modules, while the HP
ProLiant BL460c G7 Server has a maximum of 12 memory slots, requiring 16GB memory modules for the
192GB configuration.
We tested both solutions using Citrix XenDesktop 4 and the Streamed VHD FlexCast™ delivery model
with Citrix XenServer 5.6 and Microsoft Windows 7 virtual desktops. We used the same NetApp FAS3040
storage array for both solutions.
Figure 1 shows the supported virtual desktops for both solutions while maintaining an acceptable
response time. With 2GB RAM per virtual desktop configuration, we were able to test 112 virtual desktops for
the Cisco UCS solution and 93 virtual desktops for the HP solution. We used the Login VSI benchmark to
determine how many virtual desktops each server could support while maintaining an acceptable user
response time. For more information, see the How We Tested section.
Please note that
Microsoft Windows 7 system
requirements specify a minimum
of 1GB RAM per virtual desktop
for the 32-bit version. Some
manufacturers and independent
studies suggest 2GB RAM or
more for end users running
heavier workloads. It is
important to note that Login VSI
does not test against memory
other than to ensure basic memory requirements for its client emulation.
112
93
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
V
irt
u
al
d
e
sk
to
p
s
Number of virtual desktop sessions supported per
solution
Cisco UCS
solution
solution
HP solution
Figure 1: Number of virtual desktops the Cisco UCS solution and the HP solution
supported. Higher numbers are better.
supported. Higher numbers are better.