Makeover for IBM iSeries

IBM yesterday announced a makeover of its iSeries line of servers, rolling out new high-end Power 4-based systems with price changes and different options. The changes, says IBM, make the server range more compatible with its computing on-demand initiative.

The new high-end 32-way Power 4 servers, called the eServer iSeries 870 and 825, are capable of running multiple operating systems including Linux, OS/400, Windows and Unix. IBM also unveiled the iSeries 810 and 800 models aimed at small and medium-sized businesses. These support up to two processors and will be priced for the entry-level market.

The most significant change in the new range is the On/Off Capacity Upgrade On-Demand feature, which enables users to turn processors on and off depending on their requirements. They only pay for the processing power they use. [InfoWorld]

Dell continued its on-off relationship with Linux this week, saying it sees Linux replacing Unix. In an interview this week, Dell CEO Michael Dell told PCWorld that the company is "focused on things that are broadly accepted standards. I see proprietary Unix going away and being replaced by Linux and Windows.

"That is kind of what the market trend really is. I grant you there are customers still buying those things, but I think they continue to get pushed up to the higher end, and the volume Unix market will be predominantly Linux on high-volume servers like those from Dell."

Dell says that despite impressions that the company does not offer Linux as an option for its desktop machines, the company still offers the open source operating system. "We offer Linux on the desktop. We continue to offer Linux on the desktop and there is nothing else to say. Microsoft is a great partner of ours, and they don`t sell only to Dell, and we don`t sell only their products. It`s pretty simple," he said. [PCWorld]

CBROnline reports that the Web Services Interoperability organisation is readying for a second set of Web services standards, this time focusing on security issues. The WS-I, a Microsoft-backed industry group, is apparently preparing a set of standards to ensure interoperability of emerging XML security standards.

The working group appointed to the task says it will complete its preliminary work in this area by March before making recommendations to the WS-I board.

The first profile consists of guidelines for how implementations of simple object access protocol 1.1 (SOAP); Web services description language (WSDL) 1.1; universal description, discovery and integration (UDDI) 2.0; XML 1.0 and XML Schema should interoperate. [CBROnline]

Hewlett-Packard yesterday introduced what it describes as the first four-processor blade server from a "major" manufacturer.

The new four-processor ProLiant BL40p blade server is based on Intel`s Xeon MP chips and features storage area network (SAN) fibre channel architecture. This makes it easy to hook the systems up to large storage clusters operated by major enterprises.

IBM plans to introduce four processor blades later this year with SAN connections, according to spokesman Lisa Lanspery.

Liam Nguyen, a Dell spokesman, says his company also has four processor blades on its product roadmap.

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