Channel onlookers have asserted that the launch of Cisco’s Unified Computing System (UCS) will give many comms resellers the opportunity to enter the server space.

The UCS portfolio, which includes servers, chassis, network adapters and software, is now available globally through distributor Comstor Worldwide.

Fellow global distribution partners Ingram Micro and Tech Data will also have access to the portfolio in due course. Bill Corbin, Comstor Worldwide executive vice president, claimed that up to three fifths of Cisco’s networking and comms partner base would invest in UCS.

“A lot of those partners will not have any experience with HP or IBM,” he said.
“The networking and unified communications business is not that simple, so these are technically savvy businesses ­ the transition into the datacentre will be just another step for them.”

Corbin said Comstor would focus on helping VARs sell into the mid-market, but added: “We are already seeing interest from government and healthcare.”
Keith Humphreys, managing consultant for analyst euroLAN, was impressed with the UCS storage offering.

“I do not think UCS will rule the datacentre, but it is ideal for cloud computing environments,” he said.

“It is unfortunate that Cisco has chosen to take on HP ­ a competitor that is bigger than itself ­ and has decided to fight it out. That is not its style.”

He claimed many top-level partners could include UCS in their portfolio, regardless of pre-existing vendor relationships.

“For a company such as Logicalis, which has an IBM relationship, UCS is fairly complementary,” he added.