Posted by Ken Farmer, Thursday June 12 2003 @ 05:24PM EDT
High-availability clustering is too compelling to ignore. Typical clustering models for Unix have one server doing the work, with another standing by idle in case of failure. This active/passive approach can double hardware costs and add time and expense to deployment and management. That's a fair amount of capital to sink into unused computing resources. But the confluence of three factors may change the way clustering is approached.
First, Intel's Xeon processors offer a one-two punch of lower price and competitive performance when compared with RISC chips running Unix.
Second, the emergence of Linux for Intel servers, coupled with low-latency interconnects to bind servers together using Gigabit Ethernet or Infiniband technology, means better server communication.
IDC: Appro Xtreme-X Supercomputer Blade Solution
Analysis of the Xtreme-X architecture and management system while assessing challenges and opportunities in the technical computing market for blade servers. Video - The Road to PetaFlop Computing
Explore the Scalable Unit concept where multiple clusters of various sizes can be rapidly built and deployed into production. This new architectural approach yields many subtle benefits to dramatically lower total cost of ownership.
SpyderByte.com
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