Use Cases for OpenMetal’s XXL Hosted Private Cloud Hardware

Trying to figure out the best cloud hardware to match your needs? We’re here to help with our hosted private cloud use case series!

OpenMetal’s XXL V4 Hosted Private Cloud hardware offers a powerful and versatile solution for businesses who want a dedicated and customizable cloud environment. Featuring powerful Intel Xeon Gold processors, multiple terabytes of DDR5 memory, tons of high-performance NVMe storage, and high-bandwidth networking on three hyperconverged servers running OpenStack + Ceph (referred to as the OpenMetal Private Cloud Core), the XXL series is equipped to handle anything you can throw at it.

Per Server Specs:

• Two Intel Xeon Gold 6530 64C/128T 2.1/4.0Ghz CPUs
• 2048GB DDR5 4800MHz RAM
• Six 38.4TB NVMe SSDs for storage with two 960GB boot disks
• 20Gbps private bandwidth, and 2Gbps public bandwidth included

Price: $10,238.40/month with no agreement or as low as $6,757.34/month with a 5 year agreement.

***Note that all prices are subject to change at any time. Prices shown above were gathered on  March 10th, 2025. View hardware catalog and current pricing here.

The XXL V4 uses Micron 7450 MAX NVMe drives for high-speed storage. OpenMetal also offers the option to choose the PRO variant of these drives. Here’s a comparison of the two:

As you can see, the MAX variant offers much higher random write IOPS compared to the PRO variant. This difference can be important for applications with write-intensive workloads, such as databases and data analytics.

Key Advantages of OpenMetal’s XXL Hosted Private Cloud Hardware

Exceptional Processing Power

Containing dual Intel Xeon Scalable 6530 processors, with 32 cores and 64 threads each, the XXL V4 delivers exceptional processing power. This makes it ideal for demanding applications like high-performance computing (HPC), big data analytics, and machine learning, which require significant computational resources.

Massive Memory Capacity

With 2TB of DDR5 RAM, the XXL provides ample memory capacity for even the most memory-intensive tasks. This is important when running large databases, in-memory analytics, and virtualization, ensuring smooth and efficient operation.

High-Speed Storage

The XXL V4 comes with support for up to 24 NVMe storage drives, providing extensive high-speed storage with low latency and tons of capacity. This is perfect for applications requiring fast data access, such as databases, data analytics, and high-performance computing, where quick data retrieval and storage are critical.

Fast Data Transfer Rates

2X10Gbit network connectivity supports fast data transfer rates, enabling smooth communication between servers and applications. This is especially important for applications that involve large data transfers, such as video streaming, file sharing, and data backups.

Customizable Hardware

OpenMetal allows for customization of the XXL hardware, enabling businesses to tailor the configuration to their specific needs. This includes options for different NVMe drive variants, network configurations, and other hardware components, providing flexibility to optimize the server for specific workloads.

Considerations

Cost Sensitivity

• High-End Pricing: The XXL V4 is a high-end solution with a corresponding price tag. If your workloads consist primarily of static websites, low-traffic web applications, or simple development/testing environments with minimal resource demands, the XXL will probably be overkill. More cost-effective solutions like shared hosting, VPS, or OpenMetal’s smaller hardware configurations are likely more appropriate.
• Infrequent or Burst Workloads: If your application sees infrequent spikes in demand and remains mostly idle, a cloud-based solution with auto-scaling capabilities might be more cost-efficient. You’d only pay for the resources consumed during peak usage.

Specific Hardware Needs

• GPU-Intensive Workloads: While the XXL can house up to two GPUs, it does not include dedicated GPUs off the shelf. If your applications rely heavily on GPU acceleration (e.g., deep learning training, complex simulations, video rendering), you’ll want to consider adding GPUs and factoring that into the cost. If you’d like to explore these as a GPU-alternative solution, you may be interested in learning about when to opt for CPUs in AI applications.
• Specialized Hardware Requirements: If your application requires very specific hardware configurations not offered by the XXL series (e.g., FPGAs, specialized network cards, large amounts of persistent memory), you’d need to look for alternative solutions.

Data Residency and Compliance

• Strict Data Sovereignty Requirements: If your data must reside within a specific geographic location not served by OpenMetal’s data centers, you’d want to find a provider with a presence in that region.
• Highly Regulated Industries with Specific Compliance Needs: While OpenMetal offers secure and compliant infrastructure, certain highly regulated industries (e.g., some aspects of healthcare or government) may have very specific compliance requirements that need careful evaluation. Confirm if OpenMetal’s infrastructure meets those specific needs.

Management Preference

• Fully Managed Solutions: If you prefer a fully managed solution where the provider handles all aspects of infrastructure management, including OS patching, security updates, and monitoring, a managed hosting or cloud provider might be a better fit. While OpenMetal offers some managed services, the core offering is focused on handling the hardware while you handle everything else.

Existing Infrastructure and Integration

• Complex On-Premises Infrastructure: If you have very complex or large on-premises infrastructure with tight integrations and dependencies, migrating to a hosted private cloud might require significant effort and planning. A hybrid cloud strategy or a phased migration approach might be worth looking into.

So, what are some fitting ways to use this powerful hardware? Here are just a few:

High-Performance Computing (HPC)

High-Performance Computing (HPC) workloads often involve complex calculations, simulations, and modeling, requiring plenty of processing power and memory. Applications such as scientific research, financial modeling, and computer-aided engineering (CAE) rely heavily on HPC to process vast amounts of data and perform intricate computations.

Why XXL Hardware for HPC

The XXL excels in HPC environments due to its dual Intel Xeon Scalable 6530 processors per server, providing a total of 192 cores and 384 threads across the three-server cluster with a clock speed of up to 4.0 GHz. This raw processing power is essential for handling the complex calculations and simulations often found in HPC workloads. The 6TB of DDR5 RAM across the cluster improves performance by providing plenty of memory capacity to handle large datasets and complex simulations efficiently.

OpenMetal’s private cloud model offers dedicated resources and predictable performance, especially important for time-sensitive HPC tasks. The platform’s flexibility allows for customization and optimization of the hardware and software stack to meet specific HPC requirements. The high-speed NVMe storage with a capacity of 230.4TB per server, totaling 691.2TB for the cluster, ensures rapid data access and processing, further improving the efficiency of HPC applications.

Big Data Analytics

Big data analytics involves processing and analyzing massive datasets to find valuable insights and patterns. These workloads require high-speed storage, extensive memory, and powerful processing capabilities to handle the volume and complexity of data.

Why XXL Hardware for Big Data Analytics

The XXL V4’s support for up to 24 NVMe drives, with a total potential capacity of 230.4TB per server and 691.2TB for the cluster, provides an ideal amount of storage for large datasets. The Micron 7450 MAX NVMe drives offer high read and write speeds, with up to 1,000,000 random read IOPS and 400,000 random write IOPS, ensuring efficient data processing and analysis. The high random write IOPS are particularly helpful for write-intensive big data applications, such as real-time data ingestion and frequent database updates.

6TB of DDR5 RAM across the cluster further boosts performance by allowing for in-memory processing of large datasets, accelerating analytical queries and computations.

OpenMetal’s private cloud model also provides enhanced security and control over sensitive data, a major aspect of big data analytics.

Machine Learning (ML)

Machine learning involves training complex algorithms on large datasets to enable systems to learn and make predictions. These workloads require significant processing power, memory capacity, and high-speed storage to handle the iterative nature of model training and optimization.

Why XXL Hardware for Machine Learning

The XXL’s dual Intel Xeon Scalable 6530 processors per server, with their high core count and clock speeds, provide the necessary computational power for ML model training. With a total of 192 cores across the cluster, the XXL V4 can handle the parallel processing demands of complex ML models.

The 6TB of DDR5 RAM across the cluster ensures sufficient memory to handle large datasets and complex ML models, and supports efficient training and faster iteration cycles. The high-speed NVMe storage with a capacity of 691.2TB for the cluster further accelerates data access and processing, improving ML workflow efficiency.

OpenMetal’s private cloud model offers a dedicated environment with predictable performance, allowing for consistent and reliable ML model training and deployment.

Virtualization and Cloud Hosting

Virtualization involves creating multiple virtual machines (VMs) on a single physical server for efficient resource utilization and flexibility. Cloud hosting providers use virtualization to offer scalable and cost-effective solutions to businesses.

Why XXL Hardware for Virtualization and Cloud Hosting

The XXL V4’s powerful hardware and resources make it an ideal platform for virtualization and cloud hosting. The high core count and memory capacity allow for hosting a large number of VMs with varying resource requirements. With 192 cores and 6TB of RAM across the cluster, the XXL can handle demanding virtualization workloads.

The customizable hardware configuration allows tailoring the server to specific virtualization needs, optimizing performance and resource allocation. OpenMetal’s Hosted Private Cloud offering eliminates licensing fees for virtual machines and cloud resources, providing a cost advantage as well.

Large-Scale Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems integrate various business processes, such as finance, human resources, and supply chain management, into a centralized system. These systems require lots of processing power, memory, and storage to handle the complex data processing and transaction volume of large organizations.

Why XXL Hardware for ERP Systems

The XXL’s impressive hardware specifications make it ideal for running large-scale ERP systems. The dual Intel Xeon Scalable 6530 processors per server and 6TB of DDR5 RAM across the cluster ensure smooth and efficient operation of ERP applications, even during peak usage.

The high-speed NVMe storage with a total capacity of 691.2TB for the cluster provides fast access to critical business data, improving transaction processing and reporting capabilities.

OpenMetal’s private cloud model offers enhanced security and control over sensitive business data, ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations.

How to Get Started on an OpenMetal XXL Hosted Private Cloud

OpenMetal’s XXL V4 Hosted Private Cloud hardware offers a perfect solution for businesses seeking a powerful, customizable, and secure cloud environment. High-performance specifications and flexible configuration options make it ideal for demanding use cases such as HPC, big data analytics, machine learning, virtualization, and ERP systems. Businesses can use the XXL V4 to achieve their IT goals and drive innovation for just about any business application.

The XXL V4 addresses the specific needs of each use case with its unique capabilities. For HPC, the high core count and memory capacity handle complex simulations and computations. In big data analytics, the extensive storage and high bandwidth enable efficient data processing and analysis. For ML, the powerful processors and ample memory accelerate model training and deployment. In virtualization, the resource capacity and customization options provide a scalable and flexible infrastructure. And for ERP systems, the solid performance and high availability ensure smooth and reliable operation.

These are just a few of the potential applications for our XXL Hosted Private Cloud hardware. If you’d like to find out if this hardware is a good match for your needs, just get in touch!