Abstract: An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for a modular blade. The blade has a first carrier card and a second carrier card. At least one of these cards connects into the backplane of a blade server and provides connectivity for the modular blade to the backplane. The carrier cards also provide connectivity between their respective attached devices. In order to increase the density available in a modular blade, the computing components on the first and second cards interleave with one another such that a maximum number of components fit in a minimal space. The modular blade also provides an airflow channel for air circulation necessary to provide cooling. The first carrier card and second carrier card may also be identical, with one of the identical pair rotated one-hundred and eighty degrees with respect to the other.

Abstract: An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for a scalable, composite, reconfigurable backplane. The backplane is made up of one or more blade aggregation modules which provide switching for attached devices. The blade aggregation module connects to transition cards that then connect with blade modules. The blade aggregation module provides connectivity to the connected modules, which may connect to a second blade aggregation module through the transition cards. The transition cards may additionally connect with unit aggregation modules to connect rows of blade modules together. Transition cards can also provide outside connectivity. The backplane, made up of blade aggregation modules, transition cards, and unit aggregation modules, is highly scalable and versatile, and also provides an unblocked airflow path to facilitate cooling the blades.