IBM has announced that it would offer a new series of aggressively priced IBM Power5 processor-based servers, thus providing more competition for HP and Sun.
The new IBM eServer p5 510 is designed to bring Power5 performance and advanced virtualization capabilities to an entry level Unix and Linux server, making Power5 affordable for small and medium businesses. This is the first time that IBM is offering an advanced eServer p5 system to the Unix marketplace at under $4,000.
The IBM eServer p5 510 is a one- to two-way rack-mount system that supports AIX 5L Versions 5.2 and 5.3 as well as Linux operating systems.
The compact p5-510 is capable of leveraging optional IBM virtualization engine technology and micro-partitioning capabilities. This enables clients at the server market's entry-point to support Unix and Linux applications simultaneously with performance characteristics across operating systems.
The technology is expected to help smaller companies run and manage replicated branch applications in areas such as retail, banking, financial services, and health care. Karl Freund, vice president, IBM eServer pSeries said, "With the introduction of the p5-510, IBM is taking AIX 5L and Power5 technology and making them available in an aggressively priced entry-level system."
The new system will also be offered as a part of IBM's Express program -- joining a portfolio of Express server, storage and software solutions representing a comprehensive set of products for the specific needs of mid-sized clients.
IBM plans to make the IBM eServer p5 510 and the 1-way p5-510 Express available on February 18, 2005. The 2-way 1.5 GHz p5-510 Express is planned to be available in April 2005.
With a maximum memory of 32GB, the p5-510 supports Novell SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 9 (SLES 9), and Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS 3 (RHEL AS 3).
The p5-510 will have a starting price of $3967 (excluding operating system) and includes a 1.5 GHz Power5 processor, 512MB memory, 1 73.4GB 10K rpm disk drive, and three-year warranty.
