IBM is planning to invest about $1bn in new Linux and open source technologies for its Power Systems servers, as part of efforts to boost efficiency for big data and cloud applications in distributed computing environments.
The latest investment will help develop technologies to assist clients in taking the advantage of big data and cloud computing with latest systems that can serve the new applications approaching the data centre in the post-PC era.
The investment would go towards setting up a new Power Systems Linux Center in Montpellier, France and on a Linux on Power development cloud.
IBM fellow, Power Development vice president Brad McCredie said that many firms are struggling to manage big data and cloud computing using commodity servers based on decades-old, PC era technology.
"These servers are quickly overrun by data which triggers the purchase of more servers, creating un-sustainable server sprawl," McCredie said.
"The era of big data calls for a new approach to IT systems; one that is open, customisable, and designed from the ground up to handle big data and cloud workloads."
The new centre enables software developers to build and implement new applications for big data, cloud, mobile and social business computing on open technology building blocks via Linux and the new IBM POWER7+ processor technology.
IBM’s free Power Systems cloud for development would enable developers to write and test Linux applications for Power servers before implementation, in addition to applications developed for AIX and IBM i.
