Replies to post #52917 on Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD)

[wbmw]

Re: you used the phrase an integral part of all their server lines. I am not sure what that means. I know that SGI is betting their company on IPF, but SGI is small potatoes. The others have several irons in the fire, correct? Only HP and SGI have burned their bridges, to my knowlege.

I might address other points in your last post at another time when there is more data to debate. For right now, the above is a question that is best addressed by looking at the tier-2 vendors' product lines:

Bull: has 4 server lines
Intel Based - Includes Xeon entry to mid-range and fault tolerant servers, and IPF entry and blade to high end 32-way SMP.
AIX Based - Power based, rebadged IBM servers
GCOS 7 Based - Based on older technology, uses processors based on Bull design, and also Intel architecture
GCOS 8 Based - Newer mainframe technology, has two older, proprietary lines and one new line based on IPF
Summary: all new high end servers from Bull are IPF, indicating that they believe very strongly in it. As GCOS sales transition to IPF and their NovaScale line ramps, expect more IPF sales from Bull
http://www.bull.com/products/index.html

NEC: (only looking at USA sales), has 5 server lines
Itanium 2 Blade Server - one new IPF blade product
Disaster Recovery - Fault tolerant line that uses WAN to sync databases, has one Xeon based line, currently
High Availability - Entry to mid-range solutions with 99.999% uptime, all Xeon based, currently
Itanium 2 Servers - Several lines based on IPF
General Servers - Entry level to mid-range, all based on Xeon
Summary: Very nice entry into IPF market, but still highly Xeon based. I would expect their fault tolerant and disaster recovery lines to eventually dabble in IPF, if not go there fully.
http://www.necsam.com/servers/products/

Unisys: has 2 server lines
ES7000 - Includes 5 Xeon lines, 5 IPF lines, and 2 hybrid lines that use both Xeon and IPF processors.
Clearpath - A number of models using proprietary processors, Xeon, and hybrid systems
Summary: IPF is a large part of their ES7000 line, and has an opportunity to become part of their Clearpath mainframes as well, provided that Unisys make the software transition.
http://www.unisys.com/products/index.htm

Fujitsu: has 3 server lines
Unix Servers - includes 2 entry, 2 mid-range, and 3 high end models, all SPARC based
Intel Architecture Servers - includes 2 economy Xeon models, 4 Xeon tower models, 5 Xeon and 2 IPF rackable models, and 2 blades based on Xeon and Pentium M.
Mainframe Servers - Proprietary, S/390 compatible
Summary: a small start right now, but the introduction of a 64-way IPF server, which was announced recently, indicates that Fujitsu is willing to expand their IPF lines
http://www.fujitsu.com/global/services/computing/server/

Hitachi (Unable to read, servers sold mainly in APAC and Japan with website in local languages)

SGI, as you said, is going IPF top to bottom, if they haven't already.