The Sageza Group: Snapshots

The IBM eServer p5 590 and 595 are the latest offerings in the pSeries with a level of raw computing and virtualization performance that is unprecedented in the marketplace. The p5 595 features the performance of up to sixty-four POWER5 processors (p5 590 up to thirty-two processors) with Capacity on Demand (CoD), the flexibility and efficiency of IBM’s Virtualization Engine and Hypervisor, and support for multiple operating systems including AIX 5L, Linux, and i5/OS. The TPC-C benchmark illustrates the ability of the p5 to achieve high levels of throughput while providing state-of-the-art computational prowess. The p5 595 is an ideal platform for UNIX and Linux workload consolidation that provides enterprises with management and operational cost savings through a simplified, high-performance, low-risk, and cost-effective solution. The p5 590 is just as capable as the p5 595, but is a price performer scaled to meet the needs of those with smaller computational workloads.

November 2004

Banking on the eServer i5

By Clay Ryder

The IBM eServer i5 in conjunction with two leading ISVs — ITI and Mosaic Software — provides scalable solutions for the banking industry that deliver state-of-the-art value-added banking services on a platform with a proven track record of stability and scalability. In addition, these solutions are equipped to handle the integration demands placed upon institutions by the ongoing consolidation taking place in the banking industry today. Banks and other financial institutions in search of a reliable platform for providing banking services that can grow with their business now have a flexible yet secure solution that fits their individual technology and budgetary needs today and can scale as their business grows.

October 2004

IBM eServer i5 595 and the Virtualization Grand Slam

By Clay Ryder

The IBM eServer i5 595 is the latest offering in the iSeries with a level of performance that is unprecedented for an integrated multi workload solution. The i5 595 features the performance of up to sixty-four POWER5 processors and Capacity on Demand (CoD), the flexibility and efficiency of IBM’s Virtualization Engine and Hypervisor, support for multiple operating systems including i5/OS, AIX 5L, Linux, and Windows 2003, and the latest release of the integrated xSeries server. The Virtualization Grand Slam Benchmark illustrates the ability of the i5 595 to undertake multiple workloads while providing high levels of utilization and throughput. The i5 595 is an ideal platform for server consolidation and integration with x86-based architecture, while providing a state-of-the-art execution environment with many of the value-added capabilities associated with mainframes.

October 2004:

IBM Puts On Demand Spotlight on the Mainframe with an Updated Charter

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Last year, IBM announced the Mainframe Charter, its commitment to investment in the platform and its customers. Now IBM is revealing its latest achievements to help customers and show them what they have to look forward to in the near future.

September 2004:

IBM eServer p5 Helps IT Managers Tackle Data Centre Challenges

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

The current business climate is volatile. Businesses are merging or acquiring smaller firms. Regulations are multiplying with frightening speed, and international business requirements guarantee an increase in IT complexity. In the midst of this change, budgets are being held static or decreasing. IBM’s new eServer p5 is designed to help customers take advantage of state-of-the-art technologies to make their data centres more adept at managing environmental challenges, and to allow them to do more with less in these changing times.

September 2004:

IBM Focuses Storage Brand for Mid-market Customers

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

For many mid-market customers, storage offerings are perplexing. Storage vendors have focused on the complex needs of large enterprises with the result that mid-market offerings can seem too big, too complex, and too expensive for their customers’ needs. Customer perception is that naming conventions make offerings seem confusing, and it is not always clear which pieces work together. Along with new offerings to meet changing mid-market requirements, IBM are re-positioning their mid-market line to help demonstrate that in fact they have the right products in the right configurations at the right price point for customer needs.

August 2004:

IBM Mainframe Tackles Java-based Applications with Aplomb

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

IBM’s eServer zSeries Application Assist Processor (zAAP) for the newest members of the mainframe family enables customers to consolidate Java-based applications onto the mainframe for greater efficiency, resiliency, and security. Additionally, because of reduced dependence on the main processor, existing customers with Java-based applications can expect to save on software pricing as well.

August 2004:

IBM Tivoli Storage Resource Manager Automates Storage Management

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Grappling with complexity in the IT environment can lead to upheaval in the data centre, leaving IT managers frustrated. One of the tools they are bringing to their arsenal in the battle for control and efficiency is storage resource management (SRM). IBM’s Tivoli SRM, part of the IBM TotalStorage Productivity Centre, offers gains through automation capabilities for heterogeneous environments.

August 2004:

IBM eServer z890 and ESS Model 750 Provide Mainframe Punch in a Pint-sized Package

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

IBM’s mainframe capabilities are legend. Customers deploy systems that remain for years because they continue to work well. However, mainframe systems have seen significant technical improvements for running new applications in the last few years, and customers can see real gains in price/performance if they can take advantage of this new technology. The new IBM eServer z890 combined with the IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Storage Server (ESS) Model 750 provides customers running older systems with an infrastructure solution to run traditional and new workloads that fit their budgetary needs. This new combination should give customers with older systems the impetus to update.

July 2004:

SOA Blueprints: An Executive Summary

By Rob Kidd

Executive Management, you are facing demands from all your constituencies. Regulators ranging from the SEC to the accounting standards board are demanding you take responsibility for corporate governance, and failure is not an option. Shareholders want profitability and accountability; this failing, the company board will summarily ask you to accept a lesser compensation package, in line with lesser results. The economy is picking up and so are company earnings. Now, after a long hiatus of bad news, employees are expecting better hours, working conditions, compensation, and benefits. IT holds one of the keys to resolving the above problems and helping you and your management team cope with these multiple dilemmas. Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) holds promise, as an enabler for IT cost containment, corporate governance, regulatory compliance, and organizational responsiveness. SOA is also an enabling platform to drive profitability growth.

July 2004:

IBM eServer xSeries 206 and 306: IT Building Blocks for SMBs

By AJ Dennis

IT architectures reflect the same issues of complexity and confidence as the companies that deploy them. Responding effectively to today’s business challenges and opportunities requires flexibility in the IT infrastructure upon which they are built. A company’s product may be medical services, travel, insurance or even specialty steel, but the business of that company demands skills in information management, communications, and government regulation. The ability to respond to rapid marketplace changes is a universal business necessity, regardless of whether said business is a small, medium, or even large enterprise. As a result, the goal for vendors and their customers is to simplify computing complexity and raise business confidence through manageable, autonomic business computing infrastructures that respond to changing business demands. IBM’s continued commitment to the SMB market is manifest through a range of solutions, from the recently introduced eServer xSeries x206 and x306 servers to the expanding options afforded by the company’s Express Portfolio initiative.

May 2004:

EMC Piranha Bites Into Low-End Storage Needs

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Small enterprise computing or entry-level storage needs have traditionally translated to JBOD (just a bunch of disks) solutions, as advanced capabilities were previously only available to those with who could afford highend solutions. Nevertheless, small enterprises need to manage and access corporate data and could benefit from these technologies. To address this market need, EMC announced on May 26, 2004 the CLARiiON AX100 (codenamed Piranha), an entry-level networked storage solution with enterprise features scaled for the simplicity and price point requirements of small enterprises or branch offices. This report will take a look at the market for the AX100, explore the product features, describe which customers can benefit most from this product, and examine EMC’s enhancements to its worldwide channel program in support of the AX100.

May 2004:

IBM's New eServer i5: Defining POWER as the 21st Century IT Platform

By Clay Ryder and Charles King

IBM’s announcement of its new eServer i5 systems offers a number of “firsts” that are well positioned to significantly impact IT customers and the market at large. The eServer i5 is the first commercially available product based on IBM’s new POWER5 processor, the latest iteration of the company’s venerable POWER architecture. However, the new capabilities of the POWER5 are just one element of the eServer i5, and provide a stylish bow around this well considered, thoroughly integrated, and highly scalable business-computing package. Whether the customer is a small, medium, or larger enterprise, the eServer i5 provides a breadth and depth of computing agility in a cost-effective compact package that until recently was simply not available in the marketplace.

May 2004:

IBM eServer i5 Brings Computing Advantages to Harried Administrators

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Mid-market IT departments cannot afford underutilised resources and inefficient architectures. Creeping server growth leads to an exponential rise in service and administration costs. Solutions should be easy to install, simple to manage, and stable so that IT does not spend their time babysitting the corporate infrastructure. The new IBM eServer i5 provides an efficient platform for applications, combining leading-edge and industry standard technologies for maximum flexibility. IBM have pricing designed to make this platform competitive with Wintel platforms while at the same time offering superior integration and manageability that should appeal to frugal IT departments looking to grow strategically, as a function of business planning, rather than in a random, ad-hoc fashion.

April 2004:

Primeur Italia and IBM eServer pSeries Simplify Data Exchange

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Primeur Italia and IBM eServer pSeries provide scalable solutions for businesses that communicate and share files with partners in heterogeneous environments. Businesses in search of a stable, reliable platform for managing file transfer that can grow with their business now have a flexible yet secure solution that fits their individual technology and budgetary needs today and can scale as their business grows.

January 2004:

IBM Telenet Program Provides European eServer pSeries ISV Opportunities

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

European ISVs who develop applications for UNIX operating systems will find that IBM has made its eServer pSeries platform much more attractive with its Telenet program. The program provides comprehensive sales development approach that encompasses both technical and marketing support to help ISVs develop their business and increase their market exposure.

January 2004:

IBM Provides Strategic Alternative to Purchasing Yet another Disk Controller

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Mid-market customers looking to purchase more storage have new options from IBM. Instead of simply adding another controller with disk, they can take advantage of IBM’s new SAN Volume Controller to improve performance, increase average disk utilization, and increase overall data uptime. By purchasing the SAN Volume Controller and FAStT technology in combination, customers get the best value for technology. Additionally, the products are positioned for easier adoption of virtualization technology as they evolve their storage environment over time.

November 2003:

EMC and the Mainframe: The Evolution Continues

By Charles King

Mainframe computing occupies a curious position in enterprise IT ecosystems. In an industry where product validity, let alone leadership, is often measured in months or even weeks, the mainframe’s decades-long reign at the top of the IT food chain is unequaled. Moreover, that situation is likely to continue. Industry surveys suggest that mainframes play key roles in the data centers of virtually all Fortune 2000 companies, many governmental agencies, universities, and other organizations. According to IBM, 180 billion lines of legacy code exist on zSeries systems, and it has been estimated that well over half of the world’s data resides on mainframes. IBM continues to invest in the zSeries. The company’s expansion of mainframe capabilities via Linux, development of mid-market mainframe solutions with its z800 product line, and introduction of the new z990 “T-Rex” earlier this year which effectively doubled the capacity and performance of the company’s previous high-end mainframe systems all reflect this point.

October 2003:

The State of Enterprise Infrastructure and the Need for Infrastructure Simplification

By Clay Ryder

One cannot help but liken the present state of enterprise IT deployments to the morning-after affects felt during many spring break bacchanalias: “Where am I?” “How did I gethe present state of enterprise IT deployments,t here?” “Where’s all my money?” In the latter half of the 1990s, the IT industry saw a confluence of events that led to an unprecedented binge in IT investment. The excitement surrounding the commercial possibilities of the Internet raised the awareness of IT deployments in many decision makers’ minds. While the Internet captured the imagination of those decision makers, it also created a whirlwind of confusion and uncertainty, and fear of falling behind drove many IT purchasing decisions. Unable to see clearly into the future, many companies bought products on a tactical basis. Yet despite all the confusion, trenchant new ideas did gain a foothold in the marketplace. The Internet brought a much greater awareness of the power of n-tier computing and the vast possibilities of managing and manipulating data in ways never before imagined.

August 2003:

IBM eServer pSeries Delivers Cost-Effective, Dynamically Scalable IT Solutions

By Charles King

With the announcement of its On Demand initiative, IBM raised the strategic bar for UNIX solutions by bringing Capacity Upgrade on Demand (CUoD) and On/Off Capacity on Demand (On/Off CoD) to its venerable eServer pSeries platform. Through CUoD and On/Off CoD features on eServer pSeries, IBM delivers a flexible, cost effective answer to address enterprises’ dynamic workload needs without incurring the burden of excess capacity deployed solely to meet occasional peak demand. The new CUoD and On/Off CoD offering for eServer pSeries delivers dynamically scalable POWER+ solutions to enterprises of any size.

August 2003:

zSeries with Linux Provides an Opportune Platform for SAP Server Consolidation

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

The IBM zSeries has long been used as a platform for the SAP database server due to its superior levels of reliability, flexibility, performance, and manageability. The acceptance of Linux on the zSeries as well as its nascent use for SAP offers new opportunities to SAP project managers to consolidate NT or UNIX application servers onto the zSeries and take advantage of increased capabilities as well as potential cost savings.

June 2003:

Small Is Beautiful: Remaking the IBM zSeries for SMEs

By Charles King

Traditional mainframe customers know who they are: the vast majority of the Global 1000, and other large enterprises that require the highest levels of IT reliability, flexibility, and security. However, over the past eighteen months IBM has created a number of new technical, licensing, and financing options for its eServer zSeries products that make mainframe solutions viable and compelling options for smaller enterprises.

June 2003:

IBM Provides Strategic Alternative to Purchasing Yet Another Disk Controller

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Mid-market customers looking to purchase more storage have new options from IBM. Instead of simply adding another controller with disk, they can take advantage of IBM’s new SAN Volume Controller (SVC) to improve performance, increase average disk utilization, and increase overall data uptime. By purchasing the SVC and FAStT technology in combination, customers get the best value for technology. Additionally, the products are positioned for easier adoption of virtualization technology as they evolve their storage environment over time.

May 2003:

IBM Redefines On Demand Compute Flexibility with New eServer zSeries 990

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

With the new IBM eServer zSeries 990 IBM have created a state-of-the-art system for eBusiness on demand. The new system combines all the hallmarks of the mainframe environment with additional scalability, flexibility, and performance, with new pricing to entice users to take advantage of these capabilities and lower data centre costs.

April 2003:

Centera Compliance Edition: EMC Delivers Disk-Based Solutions for Regulated Industries

By Charles King

In this era of intense corporate scrutiny, EMC recently announced the Centera Compliance Edition, specifically engineered to help businesses comply with long-term data retention and integrity requirements in government, financial services, healthcare, life sciences, and other regulated industries. This report discusses how EMC’s latest storage offering can help enterprises achieve higher levels of data security, authenticity, and access than were previously possible.

March 2003:

Storage Selection Directly Impacts Business Continuity Implementation

By Charles King

EMC recently announced its new Symmetrix DMX series of high-end storage solutions to address the optimization challenges faced by high-end storage customers. This report examines EMC’s recent products in the context of satisfying organizations’ business continuity needs through flexible high-performance enterprise storage solutions.

March 2003:

EMC's DMX800 Delivers Flexible High-Performance Storage

By Charles King

With the new Symmetrix DMX800, EMC believes it has an ideal solution for companies seeking high-end storage in a flexible package. The new modular, rack-mounted DMX800 allows storage to be purchased incrementally, affording customers Symmetrix’ integrated performance without “raised floor” data center requirements but with the ability to prudently manage storage growth.

December 2002

New z800 Targets Mainframe for Mixed Environments and Small Workloads

by Joyce Tompsett Becknell

With the new eServer z800 0X2, IBM believes it has an ideal configuration for running new applications alongside traditional workloads, providing an optimal environment for mixed workloads. The new 0X2 is designed with two small engines, allowing customers to take advantage of aggressive engine-based pricing for the z/OS.e operating system, while providing the superior manageability and performance of the mainframe environment.

October 2002

New IBM zSeries Provides Big Power in a Little Package

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

The new IBM eServer z800 0E1 provides mainframe customers with greater flexibility and choice, by providing a model with a small MIPS engine for traditional workloads, as well as the ability to port or develop new workloads for Linux on the same system.

September 2002

New IBM eServer BladeCenter Drives Server Consolidation Opportunities

By Charles King

The BladeCenter announcement introduces a new family of blade servers from IBM. These blade servers are designed to meet the complex application needs of customers as they consolidate server environments for more efficient and effective compute architectures. The new blades provide important advancements in performance, density, environmental features, and manageability to make server consolidation on blade architectures a serious option for IT manager.

August 2002 (White Paper)

Revisiting the Midrange Storage Market: A Current Look at Strategic Shifts, Market Accelerators, and Solutions

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Storage in the enterprise is no longer just about adding peripherals and capacity as the network grows. Managers are looking for better, more efficient ways to manage and protect the assets they have. They are struggling with new data types that have different performance and management requirements than traditional data, and they are looking for ways to efficiently protect enterprise data assets in real-time....

July 2002

IBM Heads into the Deep End of the Pool with Latest Shark

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Three years after the launch of the original ESS “Shark” enterprise storage product, IBM is rolling out the newest member of the family, the ESS 800 and 800 Turbo option. The system has been upgraded from end to end resulting in a bigger, faster, and more capable box at the same price point. IBM sees the ESS 800 appealing to new customers as well as fitting in neatly with existing customers’ growing infrastructure.

July 2002

The Sage Group Brings World-Class ERP to the Growing Mid-Market

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Mid-market customers are looking for robust back office solutions to run their businesses. Unfortunately, their choices up to now have not been ideal. With the UK-based Sage Group’s Line 500 product, mid-market customers now have the opportunity to run their businesses on a scalable and robust platform at a price that won’t sink the ship.

June 2002

IBM Brings High-End UNIX Capabilities to Entry-Level Customers

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

With the new eServer p630, IBM takes the technology capabilities of the larger p670 and p690 servers and packages them into an entry-level system that creates a serious price/performance offering for customers looking for a UNIX package. IBM argues you aren’t required to compromise budget over functionality, an ongoing issue for conservative managers looking to stretch their money.

June 2002

IBM Articulates a Storage Strategy for Block Virtualization

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

IBM is tackling the difficult issue of growing complexity in storage management. Leveraging its knowledge of RAID controller design combined with experience in server and clustering architectures, IBM recently announced plans for several forthcoming products, which address various aspects of storage networks. This report looks at IBM’s plans for a storage virtualization engine and its use in the company’s customer base.

April 2002

New IBM i890 Drives eServer Family Forward

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

The new IBM i890 brings together the performance and scalability of the Power4 family used in the UNIX and mainframe lines as well as the manageability features of eLiza to create the most powerful member of the iSeries yet. More important than bringing new features to the series, with the new i890 IBM is laying the architectural foundations for the future of the eServer family.

April 2002

IBM iSeries Takes on SME Customer Challenges

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

Small and medium enterprise (SME) customers face a different set of challenges than their colleagues in enterprise IT departments. Their requirements span the traditional needs of availability, reliability, and scalability, but they need partners who can help them optimize the results possible with their usually smaller resource pools. The IBM iSeries server has several characteristics that address these needs squarely.

April 2002

IBM Remakes Unix Availability with Mainframe Technology Affordable to More Customers

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

The new IBM eServer p670 is not just a smaller, more affordable version of the p690 that so many IT managers have lusted after. The news behind this launch is that IBM continues to drive its mainframe philosophy of system design into the UNIX market, and to midrange customers.

March 2002 (White Paper)

After September 11: Lessons on Planning and Implementing Business Continuity

By Charles King

With the perspective on the events of a mere six months ago, this paper examines what enterprises and their vendors are doing differently to ensure data continuity since September 11, 2001. The Sageza Group worked with EMC, its customers, New York professionals, customer service, and headquarters staff to explore what they learned and what it means to organizations planning for enhanced business continuity....

March 2002

IBM's xSeries Modular Architecture Provides Increased Flexibility

By Joyce Tompsett Becknell

With the announcement of the new IBM eServer x440, IBM has raised the stakes for Intel-based servers and created an offering that all serious Microsoft users should consider, as they continue to invest in server infrastructure. The new x440 not only takes the technology to the next level, it is also a clear demonstration of the company’s commitment to make it easier for customers to do business with IBM.

March 2002 (White Paper)

Commoditization, Standards, and the Enterprise

By Clay Ryder and Charles King

The very nature of technology is the nature of change, and significant changes have marked the barely fifty years that represent the short, rich history of modern computing. In the parlance of computing waves, we are in the fourth wave. In each wave of the computing world and subsequent marketplace, there have been several constants. The ones we will explore here are the effects of commoditization and standards and their subsequent impact on the enterprise....

October 2001 (White Paper)

When is Enough Too Much? Taming Storage Complexity with Heterogeneous Management Solutions

By Charles King

In recent years, increasingly heterogeneous computing environments and spiraling data storage growth requirements have permeated developments in enterprise data storage. The problem is exacerbated any time a new application is implemented, even if the intent is to save money by increasing the efficiency of business processes. Just how this evolution will proceed is a matter of intense interest, but many believe that the natural home for simplifying data management processes lies in enterprise storage management software and services....

An enterprise-specific evaluation of a particular technology, a company’s strategy, market dynamics, and current industry developments for business executives and IT professionals. Primary research combined with forward-looking insights lets readers get up to speed quickly on changes in the IT and ecommerce market.

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