Dell has launched a new line of microservers (compact one-core servers), going after users with shared infrastructure.

The new PowerEdge C line starts with two products: C5125 and C5220. Offering between eight and 12 nodes per 3U chassis, Dell is emphasizing density and energy efficiency of the third generation of its microservers.

Optimized for dedicated and virtualized deployments, they support both Intel and AMD processor architectures. The company said microservers were designed for use cases where multi-core CPU architectures and extensive virtualization were overkill.

Dell quoted IDC analyst Reuben Miller, who said growth in the cloud computing space has stimulated thought about optimization and performance scaling in large data centers.

"This new microserver series, through a shared infrastructure and energy efficient design, helps these customers maximize their IT environments while helping them adapt to change with a highly modular and serviceable design, he said.

Other features of the new Dell microservers include: 4 x DDR3 UDIMMS, 2 x 3.5-inch or 4 x 2.5-inch HDDs, 2 x GbE ports, IPMI 2.0 management, iKVM

Intel has recently announced a roadmap for its near-future microserver strategy. The chip maker plans to roll out four new processors for microservers, whose power requirements will range from less than 10 watts to 45 watts. All four will have sever features that include 64 bit, Intel Virtualization Technology and Error-Correcting Code.

One major end user that is actively evaluating Intel-based microservers for its use is Facebook. Gio Coglitore, Facebook labs director, said the company has been testing microservers in production and may use the architecture in its data centers, according to an IDG report.