Definition: ARM server

A file server or application server that uses a CPU architecture licensed by ARM in England. Although x86 CPUs have been the mainstay in the datacenters of enterprises and cloud providers, ARM-based servers emerged in the 2010s. For example, AMD began to offer its Opteron A1100 ARM servers in 2016.

ARM servers offer more efficiency and continue to gain ground. In 2026, China's supercomputer became the world's fastest using ARM processors (see LineShine). See application server, ARM processor and ARM.

An ARM Server from Lenovo

This Lenovo ThinkSystem is a rack-mounted ARM server (see rack mounted). It contains six drive bays and an ARM CPU from Ampere Computing, a company founded by an ex-Intel employee to compete with x86 servers. The CPU has 32 cores running at 3.3 GHz. (Image courtesy of Lenovo.)