Dell's attempt to make further inroads into enterprise IT by purchasing 3PAR didn't work out, and the company still has work to do if it wants to be a big player in the business market. The AP's Jessica Mintz takes a look at Dell's progress in gaining a foothold in selling networking infrastructure and consulting services to businesses.

PCs still outsell servers at Dell, but the manufacturer's x86 server lines have grown in popularity with technology improvements lately.  According to Gartner, Dell ranked in second place in terms of the number of servers it shipped in the second quarter this year.

When it comes to consulting services, though, Dell hasn't been as successful as hoped, according to some analysts. Despite its purchase of Perot Systems last fall, the company is still widely viewed primarily as a computer seller. Cloud computing may offer an opportunity for Dell to expand that reputation, which explains its sky-high bid for data storage provider 3PAR.

For more:
- Jessica Mintz' article at Yahoo News

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