Dell is buying privately held Scalent Systems on undisclosed terms and means to add Scalent's real-time virtualization management software to its Advanced Infrastructure Manager (AIM) solution, which is what Round Rock uses so a single administrator can dynamically allocate compute, storage and network resources for physical and virtual application workloads.

According to the head of Dell's Enterprise Product Group Brad Anderson, "Scalent provides a critical building block for our Virtual Integrated System...This acquisition will solidify an important component of our enterprise solution portfolio....Scalent's open architecture is an example of Dell's ongoing commitment to provide customers with solutions that don't lock them into proprietary hardware or gateways."

Scalent's agent-based V/OE infrastructure management widgetry, which Dell has been selling under its own brand since the fall, works with x86 servers, Ethernet and Fibre Channel switches and VMware, Xen and Hyper-V hypervisors.

The deal should close this month.

Scalent, which has had some success with the Fortune 1000 as well as Dell partners, raised about $37 million across three rounds from Credit Suisse, Hummer Winblad, JK&B Capital and Pequot Capital. The last round was in February of 2007.