Executive summary

Ready Stack is a program that is directed primarily toward channel partners and their customers. The program enables them to easily build complete CI systems from combinations of servers, storage, networking, data protection, and other components from Dell Technologies.

Ready Stack systems are compatible with VMware and Microsoft hypervisors. Ready Stack systems can be managed by the Dell Technologies portfolio of management products and protected by data protection solutions from Dell.

The following figure illustrates the Ready Stack reference system:

Figure 1.              Ready Stack reference system

A Ready Stack reference architecture specifies all the hardware, software, resources, and services that are needed to run a scalable, highly available CI environment. This end-to-end solution approach means that a system can be operational in a shorter time than is typically possible with build-your-own solutions.

Designing, configuring, and running a production-ready CI involves multiple considerations, including:

• Selection of operating system and virtualization software distributions
• Selection of monitoring and management software
• Allocation of cluster services and data storage to physical nodes and arrays
• Selection of server hardware
• Design of the network fabric
• Sizing and scalability
• Performance

Reference systems

In addition to this guide, Dell Technologies provides designs and further guidance for specific hardware choices for each Ready Stack architecture, as follows:

• Design guide—Design, configuration, and sizing of the Ready Stack architecture.
• Deployment guidelines—General guidance on deploying virtualization software on the complete Ready Stack platform, including systems management tools and plug-ins. Depending on the design, deployment guidelines are provided either in a stand-alone deployment guide or as an appendix to the design guide.

The reference architectures that are described in the Ready Stack design and deployment guides are suggestions for specific Ready Stack designs. You can use other combinations of servers, storage, networking, and virtualization software when designing your own configurations, provided they meet or exceed the minimum hardware specifications that are outlined in the Ready Stack design guides. Ready Stack reference architectures are:

• Built on Dell Technologies products that are designed for virtualization across the entire ecosystem
• Designed to help remove risk and accelerate time to value, yet flexible enough to be tailored for any organization
• Accompanied by software that makes Ready Stack easier to manage
• Delivered by Dell Technologies’ trusted partners, who understand our joint customers’ business needs and how to deliver comprehensive, low-risk solutions

A Ready Stack reference architecture removes a significant amount of complexity and risk from the DIY approach by providing guidance on many aspects of a modern data center, as illustrated in the following figure:

Figure 2.              Ready Stack elements

The reference architecture includes:

• Component interoperability and connectivity requirements
• System design redundancy
• Operational management considerations
• Scale-up and scale-out methods

Benefits of an all-Dell Technologies solution

One of Dell Technologies’ strengths is its broad and complete product portfolio that can be tailored to meet customer requirements regardless of the customer’s size, scale, or business model.

The breadth of the Dell Technologies family of products affords the freedom to focus on rightsizing elements of the complete system, including compute, network, and storage.

Ready Stack systems are ideal for customers who:

• Are considering a storage or compute refresh from any vendor
• Want to simplify their IT operations, reduce costs, and minimize support risks by using fewer vendors
• Have concerns about building a full infrastructure solution themselves and maintaining best-practice configurations
• Need to move quickly to deploy new applications or pursue new business initiatives
• Require a complete range of data protection options, including backup, replication, and business continuity, to protect data with various levels of business value/criticality
• Want to avoid “multivendor finger-pointing” or business-impacting delays in their support experience
• Need a repeatable platform for general-purpose virtualization

The Dell Services portfolio provides partners with choice and flexibility in how they provide Ready Stack implementation services. Partners at the gold-tier level or higher can either resell Dell services or deliver their own services, provided they have the appropriate Services Delivery Competencies.