In-Depth
Inside IBM
Capacity Upgrades for S/390IBM's Capacity Upgrade on Demand allows "spare" capacity to be "turnedon" when needed within installed S/390 Parallel Enterprise G5 servers. IBM is alsoannouncing a Plan-Ahead process where IBM works with customers to project a growth pathfor S/390 G5 servers. The following features are offered with Plan-Ahead:
- Capacity Upgrade on Demand Allows for the addition of one or more central processors up to the maximum number of spare processors available in a server. Capacity Upgrade on Demand uses a system architecture change to provide an upgrade while the system continues to run. Then, when the extra capacity is needed, the new capacity can be brought online without disrupting normal business operations.
- Concurrent Conditioning Concurrent Conditioning configures an S/390 G5 Server for "hot-plugging" of additional I/O components that otherwise would have required a system outage.
A Capacity Backup Upgrade option allows for both remote and faster activation by IBM ofemergency capacity. Additionally, IBM said it intends to make the functional enhancementsthat will be developed for the next generation of S/390 servers available on the G5.
Capacity Upgrade on Demand is designed for both single system upgrades and for use withS/390 Parallel Sysplex technology clusters to provide upgrades of individual servers withno downtime. Customers with Geographical Dispersed Parallel Sysplex (GDPS) installations clusters spread across two sites separated by up to about 24 miles can combine GDPSenvironments with the Capacity Backup Upgrade option.
IBM said Concurrent Conditioning will be available in Q1. Capacity Upgrade on Demandand Capacity Backup Upgrade are expected to be available in the second quarter of 1999.
G5's New Record
The S/390 G5 Server set a record for Internet performance, according to results ofrecent SPECweb96 testing.
The 10-processor S/390 G5 Turbo server, running an early version of OS/390 Version 2,Release 7 with the IBM WebSphere Application Server, posted a rating of 21,591 hits persecond a 50 percent increase over the previous SPECweb record. Contributing to therecord-setting SPECweb performance was the improved TCP/IP perform-
ance technology the Fast Response
Cache Accelerator in the eNetwork Communications Server, which is expected to beavailable with OS/390 Version 2, Release 7 this month.
SPECweb was developed by the Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation's (SPEC) OpenSystems Group a nonprofit organization in conjunction with research organizationsand Web product vendors, including IBM. Results for the Top 20 servers are atwww.ideasinternational.com/benchmark/spec/specweb.html.
MQSeries: The Next Generation
The next generation of MQSeries features include a publish/subscribe capability thatlets users receive customized messages, and improved scalability and systemsadministration. The latest version of MQSeries for Windows NT offers an enhanced GUI andgraphical tools. MQSeries Workflow for OS/390 extends the benefits of MQSeries to thelargest of S390s. In addition, IBM announced its first message broker product, MQSeriesIntegrator, which routes, translates and exchanges messages between applications.
Enhancements to MQSeries include:
MQSeries Version 5.1 and MQSeries for OS/390, Version 2.1: A new feature called DynamicWorkload Distribution, unifies MQSeries servers to maximize IT utilization and providesautomatic recovery if systems fail. MQSeries for Windows NT, Version 5.1: A "ready togo" default configuration, graphical interfaces for working on queues, and newgraphical tools and a programming interface are some of the highlights.
MQSeries Version 5.1 will be available worldwide for Windows NT, AIX, HP-UX, OS/2 Warp,and Sun Solaris platforms in Q2 1999. MQSeries will also be enhanced for the AS/400 toprovide the new features. MQSeries for OS/390, Version 2.1 the latest version ofMQSeries for MVS/ESA is available worldwide. Pricing varies by platform, starting at$3,000. An MQSeries server and an MQSeries link for SAP R/3 on Compaq DIGITAL UNIX is alsonow available.
MQSeries Integrator: Previously jointly marketed by IBM and New Era of Networks, Inc.(NEON) as MQIntegrator, IBM MQSeries Integrator uses NEON's advanced rules and formatterengine. MQSeries Integrator will be available in US English on distributed platforms in Q11999 and on S/390 in Q2 1999. Pricing varies by platform, starting at $100,000.
IBM MQSeries Workflow for OS/390, Version 3.1: The new version includes a graphicalbuild-time client for Windows NT and Windows 95. MQSeries Workflow for OS/390, Version3.1, will be available worldwide in 1Q 1999. Pricing varies by number of users andprocessor capacity.
NEON and MQSoftware, Inc. will deliver a training program for new customers andbusiness partners in Q1 1999. 1999 training schedules are available at:www.training.ibm.com/ibmedu/spotlight/mqss.html and at www.neonsoft.com.
Novell Network for OS/390
This month, IBM made available Novell Network Services for OS/390. This no-chargeoperating system feature brings the S/390 Parallel Enterprise Server's mission criticalavailability and system management facilities to customers who need to manage largenumbers of networked PC users. Novell Network Services for OS/390 incorporates NovellDirectory Services (NDS) Version 4 and it requires installation of the OS/390 SecurityServer.
Novell Network Services for OS/390 is a distributed service based on Novell'smultiplatform directory technology, NDS, that stores information about hardware andsoftware resources available within a given network.
The use of directory technology will allow multiple mainframe, UNIX and LAN systemnetworks to be treated as a single entity.