Compagnie des Machines Bull SA has unveiled its promised mainframe-class Sagister Unix boxes. The systems – previously referred to as Madison – comprise up to four PowerPC 604-based Escalas, each with up to eight CPUs and running AIX Unix, clustered using Bull’s FDDI PowerCluster interconnect. The key differences compared with the Escala line are said to be support for GCOS and MVS mainframe integration; production enablers, which manage transaction processing and database support; operations facilities, which provide multi-server systems management, security and automation; and vertical and horizontal applications, including Oracle Corp’s Parallel Server Option and SAP AG’s R/3. The Sagisters come in three configurations. M1 is the entry-level system with up to eight processors, 510Mb of main memory and up to 2Tb of disk. It can support up to 200 simultaneous users with prices starting from #475,000. The M2 houses up to 16 processors, supporting up to 1Gb main memory and 4Tb disk. It will cost from #670,000. The high-end M3 model can accommodate the four eight-way nodes with up to 8.2Gb main memory and 8Tb disk. Bull says it will support 3,000 active users and costs from #1.4m. Early versions are available now – volume ships are expected in June. The company says it needs a couple of months to sort out US pricing and packaging. Bull’s 2Gbps ISL InterSerial Link for clustering up to 16 Escalas with a total of 128 processors will follow PowerCluster.
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