IBM has unveiled a new server, the zEnterprise 114 mainframe, which the company says is a powerful version of the IBM zEnterprise System that’s the most scalable mainframe ever.
At a starting price of under $75,000 — IBM’s lowest ever price for a mainframe server — the zEnterprise 114 is targeted at companies and governments in emerging markets such as Asia and Africa to sell the product.
The new IBM zEnterprise 114 mainframe server follows the introduction of the zEnterprise System for large banks, insurance companies and governments in July 2010.
The new server, which allows mid-sized organisations to enjoy the benefits of a mainframe as the foundation for their data centres, costs 25% less and offers up to 25% more performance than its predecessor, the System z10 BC server, said IBM.
The company projects that clients can consolidate workloads from 40 x-86 processors running Oracle software on to a new z114 with just three processors running Linux3 and over a three year period, total costs for hardware, software and support on the new z114 as compared to consolidated servers can be up to 80% less with similar dramatic savings on floor space and energy3.
IBM also introduced new features that allow the zEnterprise System to integrate and manage workloads on additional platforms.
The z114 is powered by up to 14 of the industry’s sophisticated microprocessors of which up to 10 can be configured as speciality engines.
These speciality engines are designed to integrate new Java, XML, and Linux applications and technologies with existing workloads, as well to optimise system resources and reduce costs on the mainframe.
The z114 offers up to an 18% performance improvement for processing traditional System z workloads over its predecessor the z10 BC, said the company.
The new server also comes with additional compliance and encryption features.
