Re: SCO not recommended for high number of users.

jparker@boi.hp.com (Jack Parker) wrote: :> :> > My point here is that the current numbers *seem* to show better :> > results - substantially better - than most medium sized risc based :> > Unix servers, including the K-series from HP. Currently it's simply :> > an interesting observation. It may very soon grow into something :> > much more than that. For the benefit of us users. And Informix will :> > be there to compete, and the way it looks now, compete very :> > effectively. :> :After thinking about my reply to this yesterday I realize that I have been :away from hardware for too long. I am no longer aware of how effectively :a micro (read souped up pc) can compete with the unix 'mini'. I would imagine :there would be some substantial growth issues as well as bus differences. :Anyone care to comment? As so often I'll care :-) I dare do this here at c.d.i. although some may not see the direct relevance to Informix databases. All I can say is to mee the hardware platform was allways very relevant to what software I could bring out. With bus differences I assume you mean high speed busses which are lacking from the PC-arena (PCI is of course not a high speed bus in this context). Part of it may be solved by Fiber Channel using direct connect to the processor (not via a PCI card). HP and others are allready using Fiber Channel for disk connections as I understand it. This is coming to the PC areana as well and will enable both high speed connections to large number of disk drives and high speed connections between multiple servers to form clusters. Used in a PC areana the production volume may drive prices down a lot and I see no reason why this shouldn't replace SCSI. Seagate allready seems to ship FC disks in volume. HP are among the first (and probably the best) in making products available for this technology for both fiber optic and copper wire connections. With memory allready connected directly (no bus) and Fiber Channel techonology used in the same way both the bus and growth issues should be solved to a large extent. Imagine: 4 x Pentium Pro 200 MHz class processors or better, a gigabyte RAM or more, 4 x 4 Gb disks as a cluster node. Expandable up to perhaps 32 such nodes initially in an MPP configuration. Initially perhaps US$ 15.000 per node. Falling well below 10.000 per node reasonably soon. Including paraphernalia (Ethernet, boxes, cables +++) and full service and support available (from HP or others). I am not all that updated on the Unix server side, but from what I see isn't this going to be competition for HP, Sun and IBM Risc machines? There is no real cost difference between the above and a Risc based machine some will say. The key here is volume production by PC type manufacturers that are used to driving prices down. All this technology looks to become standard in the stock PC's (except perhaps the SMP part) so prices will go down rapidly. HP has a great position here of course as they may be the once to bring out something like this. Nils.Myklebust@ccmail.telemax.no NM Data AS, P.O.Box 9090 Gronland, N-0133 Oslo, Norway My opinions are those of my company