PRESS: INFORMIX, HEWLETT-PACKARD SET NEW TPC-C PERFORMANCE RECORD

INFORMIX, HEWLETT-PACKARD SET NEW TPC-C PERFORMANCE RECORD 2,110 Transactions Per Minute More Than Doubles Previous TPC-C Record MENLO PARK, Calif., (November 8, 1993) -- Informix Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:IFMX) and Hewlett-Packard Company today announced record-breaking TPC-C performance results for INFORMIX(R)-OnLine and the new HP 9000 Corporate Business Server Model T500. The new benchmark result is the first to be published on the newly announced HP 9000 business server, and the highest TPC-C result achieved to date. The Model T500, with six processors running INFORMIX-OnLine, achieved a performance record of 2,110.5 transactions per minute (tpmC) with a cost performance of $2,115 per tpmC. The new HP/Informix result more than doubles the best results published to date for any UNIX platform. "Informix is the leader in the more complex, real-world TPC-C benchmark, because INFORMIX-OnLine was designed for the high-performance, OLTP applications found in today's IT environments," said Steve Sommer, vice president of marketing, Informix Software. "This latest benchmark, in addition to the more than 30 previous performance tests on which we've partnered with HP, demonstrate the suitability of INFORMIX-OnLine and HP's entire suite of Corporate Business Servers for solving business- critical applications." "These outstanding TPC-C results demonstrate the importance our two companies have placed on meeting customers' needs in the data center," said Carol G. Mills, general manager of HP's General Systems Division. "The Informix/HP solution has strengthened our mainframe-alternative program, where HP has helped more than 800 customers reduce or eliminate their reliance on costly mainframe computers." TPC-C Benchmark Predicts Real-World Database Performance The TPC-C benchmark, developed in 1992 by the Transaction Processing Performance Council (TPC), is considered to be the best benchmark test for evaluating real-world application performance. The benchmark measures a more complex, transaction-intensive, business environment by simulating an order-entry application in an OLTP environment. The benchmark includes full OLTP emulation from on-line users to storage devices; a mix of read-only and update intensive transactions; and tests five transaction types including on-line and batch. The benchmark results report the number of orders processed each minute within a specified response time. INFORMIX-OnLine has been used for twelve TPC-C performance tests to date and is also the only relational database server for open systems hardware vendors have chosen to use for their published TPC-C benchmarks. About INFORMIX-OnLine INFORMIX-OnLine is a high-performance OLTP database server that provides high availability, data integrity, and multimedia data management capabilities. Features of INFORMIX-OnLine include stored procedures, which can reduce message traffic in a client/server environment; ANSI SQL-89- compliant declarative integrity constraints, which bring added security to a database by enforcing a set of safety checks on all applications accessing the data; and distributed updates with two-phase commit and recovery. INFORMIX-OnLine supports Informix's entire line of SQL-based application development tools as well as a large number of third-party application development tools and runs on a wide range of UNIX-based computer systems in stand-alone or networked environments. About the HP 9000 Corporate Business Server The new HP 9000 Corporate Business Server Model T500 is based on Precision Architecture RISC (PA-RISC) technology and supports up to 12-way symmetric multiprocessing. Based on open systems and industry standards, the Model T500 runs the HP-UX operating system. Using INFORMIX-OnLine RDBMS, the Model T500 provides the power and functionality to perform mainframe-class applications for the corporate data center. About HP Hewlett-Packard Company is an international manufacturer of measurement and computation products and systems recognized for excellence in quality and support. The company's products and services are used in government, industry, business, engineering, science, medicine and education in approximately 110 countries. HP has 94,900 employees and had revenue of $16.4 billion in its 1992 fiscal year. About Informix Informix Software, Inc., provides the most complete and productive database technology to build, deploy, run and evolve applications. Informix products include powerful distributed database management systems, robust application development tools, and graphical- and character-based productivity software for delivering information to every significant desktop platform. With corporate headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., Informix has European headquarters in London, and Asia/Pacific headquarters in Singapore. ### INFORMIX is a registered trademark of Informix Software, Inc. All other companies mentioned or other names indicated by (TM) or (R) are registered trademarks of their respective manufacturer.