Re: Getting a new IBM i - need advice

On Thu, Aug 6, 2009 at 23:49, Nathan Andelin<nandelin@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Ironically, the link you provided DOES list the 1 core machine, and shows both the AIX rPerf rating and the IBM i CPW rating. ÂAlso notice the strong correlation between those two ratings - across multi-core servers too.

Yeah. Which aren't industry standard benchmarks, so you can't compare
them across CPU architectures, like you can e.G. with SPEC and
Linpack.

The advantage of the single-core machine is in the cost of software licensing. ÂFor example, MS SQL Server is priced at $25K per "processor", and most folks run it on a quad-core server.

Microsoft licenses on a per-socket basis. So the Enterprise Edition
would set you back 25$k on a quad core machine, not 100k, if you go
for per-socket licensing. Be aware that the single-core IBM i has a
user-charge, which the per-socket version of SQL Server does not have.
But you can opt for the Socket/CAL licensing, which would mean
somewhat around 5k$ per socket and 100$ per (named) user.

IBM on the other hand offers a single-core model 520 for $6-$7K. ÂYou get a fully functional enterprise class database, but it's constrained by just one active core. ÂNevertheless, it's an exceptional value from a functional & cost of ownership perspective.

Don't forget the per-user charge!

You seem to be suffering from the myopia that affects most people - only able to see the immediate out-of-pocket cost of a CPU, a Gig of RAM, or a hard drive. ÂIt takes a little bit longer to understand the total cost of ownership of consolidated workloads on an IBM i server, but it's worth it.

I'm sorry, there's nothing that can explain IBM's Power hardware
pricing for me. Charging five times what they charge for the exactly
same equipment but for System x is price gouging, no matter how you
put it.

A JVM instance, or a Java-based application on the other hand ...

Like the administrative web server, Web Query, the electronic service
agent, or a variety of System i Navigator server tasks?