RLX Technologies was a computer company based in

The Woodlands, Texas The Woodlands is a special-purpose district and census-designated place (CDP) in the U.S. state of Texas in the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area. The Woodlands is primarily located in Montgomery County, with por ...

. Founded in 1999 by

Christopher Hipp Christopher G. Hipp (August 6, 1961 – July 14, 2009) was an American inventor and serial entrepreneur who received a patent for his invention of the blade server, a compact, stripped-down computer server that includes all of the necessary co ...

, one of the inventors of the blade server, and former

Compaq Compaq Computer Corporation (sometimes abbreviated to CQ prior to a 2007 rebranding) was an American information technology company founded in 1982 that developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services. Compaq produced ...

employees, the company pioneered the use of

blade server A blade server is a stripped-down server computer with a modular design optimized to minimize the use of physical space and energy. Blade servers have many components removed to save space, minimize power consumption and other considerations, wh ...

s, a compact, stripped-down

computer server In computing, a server is a piece of computer hardware or software (computer program) that provides functionality for other programs or devices, called " clients". This architecture is called the client–server model. Servers can provide vario ...

that includes all of the necessary components to operate as a computer while taking up minimal space on a standard

19-inch rack A 19-inch rack is a standardized frame or enclosure for mounting multiple electronic equipment modules. Each module has a front panel that is wide. The 19 inch dimension includes the edges or "ears" that protrude from each side of the equ ...

and minimizing power consumption. It became part of Hewlett-Packard in 2005.

History

RLX was first founded in 1999 as RocketLogix, Inc. with a connection to a Dallas-based investment firm, Cracken Harkey, Co. After convincing the firm that there was a need for a new efficient web server concept, they agreed to build an investment profile for RocketLogix. Former

executives helped to raise money, including Rod Canion (founder and CEO of Compaq) and Robert W. Stearns (former Compaq SVP of Corporate Development, now at venture capitalist firm Sternhill Partners). After development of their blade architecture, the company changed its name in 2001 to RLX Technologies. This change coincided with the company's move to the Woodlands. Former

executives Gary Stimac and Michael S. Swavely became CEO and President of RLX, respectively. In 2004 RLX decided to shift their focus away from hardware development and focus their efforts solely on their blade server management system, Control Tower. This shift was necessitated by a decline in the server market, largely due to the dotcom gloom. Christopher Hipp and David Kirkeby applied for a patent on their design on July 20, 2000, and the

United States Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alex ...

awarded patent 6411506 for a "High density web server chassis system and method" on June 25, 2002. After 5 years of operation, RLX was bought by Hewlett-Packard in October 2005.Zarley, Craig
"HP Will Acquire RLX To Bolster Blades"
''

InformationWeek ''InformationWeek'' is a digital magazine which conducts corresponding face-to-face events, virtual events, and research. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California California is a state in the Western United States, located alo ...

'', October 3, 2005. Accessed July 17, 2009.

References

{{Reflist Hewlett-Packard acquisitions Defunct computer companies of the United States 2005 mergers and acquisitions Defunct software companies of the United States