VAR Guy Poll: Integrated, Disaggregated Systems Equally Important

There’s no doubt that we live in a world of integrated cloud networks with hundreds and thousands of individual systems working together to form some of the largest and most powerful enterprise computing solutions. But there still remains a market for machines that enable users to build their own systems from scratch.

This week, we asked readers to sound off on whether integrated or disaggregated systems would have the largest impact on their businesses in the coming years. Overall, a majority of respondents felt both integrated and disaggregated solutions will carry equal weight with their customers, meaning enterprises and their customers value having the option to choose which system works best for them.

In case you’re a little fuzzy on the terms, think of integrated systems as a prepackaged network of different computing solutions; for example, Cisco Systems’ (CSCO) Unified Computing System or products from VCE that are possible through the combination of multiple systems. For disaggregated systems, its best to think of each individual solution as modular entities, giving the user the ability to add-on or remove different pieces at will.

In the survey, 63 percent of respondents said integrated and disaggregated solutions would carry the same weight with their customers. Only 25 percent felt integrated systems would rise to the top of the heap, while the remaining 13 percent said disaggregated systems were sure to make the biggest splash. No respondents felt neither solution would have any significant impact.

A recent Gartner study also estimated both integrated and disaggregated systems will have an impact on technology sales, as the market continues to evolve and shift. The latest Gartner Magic Quadrant report found that the integrated system market is growing at a rate of 50 percent per year, while Gartner Research VP David Cappuccio recently stated that integrated systems are quickly becoming the new rage among companies looking for “best of brand” solutions. Conversely, Cappuccio expects sales in disaggregated systems to dip as the impact of the OpenCompute Project emphasizes enterprises to buy their solutions in preordained stacks, according to PC Magazine.

While it’s yet to be clear which method will ultimately win out, it’s important to remember this argument has been relevant for a long time, namely in terms of consumer PCs. Ask any PC enthusiast how to get the best performing PC and they will undoubtedly tell you to build a machine yourself; however, the majority of users would rather buy a prebuilt computer rather than deal with the hassle of building one from scratch. And just as there are people who would rather stick with on-premise servers over cloud solutions, there is likely to be a healthy audience for both integrated and disaggregated systems well into the foreseeable future.