Fujitsu SPARC M-Series Enhancements

The SPARC roadmap is alive. Consistent with the last released roadmap Fujitsu and Oracle have announced a new SPARC M12-2.  Memory slots per CPU module are increased from 16 to 24, providing a 50% increase in memory density.  While Oracle has indicated the current M8 processor may be their last for the foreseeable future, development of the SPARC platform and Solaris will continue through the combined efforts of Oracle and Fujitsu.  Read more…

Oracle Database Thrives on IBM LinuxONE

When planning to upgrade your Oracle database infrastructure platform – e.g. with Exadata – you should consider IBM’s LinuxONE as an option.  Read more…

Vapor and Liquid Loop Cooling

The Fujitsu SPARC M12’s innovative Vapor and Liquid Loop Cooling (VLLC) is an often underappreciated feature of these innovative servers.  Performance, reliability, and datacenter space all benefit.  Read more…

Oracle Database – Running Better For Less

Exadata is recognized as the gold-standard platform for running Oracle Database Enterprise Edition, and for good reason. It is a high-performance, customized, single-purpose system built to do nothing but run EE better than any competing platform, and that it does. It is also expensive. In situations where Exadata may be cost-prohibitive there are other, less expensive options that provide similar benefits.  Read more…

Legacy SPARC serves a purpose…BUT

Maintaining older SPARC for applications?  If so you’re not alone.  Many users are continuing to run legacy SPARC systems because their applications are stable on Solaris 10 and they either can’t or don’t want to migrate to Solaris 11, a requirement for new SPARC T systems. (Estimates are that as many as 50% of all SPARC systems in service are still running Solaris 10) The reliance on older, less reliable hardware can be expensive as high maintenance costs and management time add significantly to IT overhead.  Read more…

Why Dbvisit?

Oracle Database users can leverage DBVisit, a 3rd party, Oracle Certified Application available to run with Standard Edition, to save licensing costs and/or enhance recovery capability in several ways. Read more…

Core Power – Part 2

Our last post explained how more powerful cores, like those in the Fujitsu SPARC M12, can save on expensive licensing costs.  Since then we’ve been asked by several users how that would work in practice given that they already own their licenses.  Read more…

Core Power

More powerful, advanced processor cores may cost more but can reduce the overall IT budget.

Why?  Enterprise applications are expensive and typically licensed by core count.  For example Oracle Database Enterprise Edition costs $47,500 per processing unit plus support.  More powerful, efficient processors can significantly reduce licensing requirements by running the same applications on fewer cores.  That efficiency can in many cases far outweigh the cost of new systems with such processors.  Read more…

Fujitsu M-series Servers

What’s the road ahead for SPARC? There has been much speculation recently regarding the future of the SPARC processor and Solaris.  While Oracle has indicated the current M8 processor may be their last for the foreseeable future, development of the SPARC platform will continue through the combined efforts of Oracle and Fujitsu.  Read more…

SMI Featured as Fujitsu Partner of the Month

SMI helped a major defense-related research facility upgrade their large installed base of aging systems running on Solaris 10 with minimal disruption by recommending the Fujitsu M10-1.  Read more about the project and the advantages of the M10-1.

SMI President Peter McLoughlin quoted in a Tech Target article

Check out the article, Outdated technology: A channel partner challenge, to read about the challenges channel partners face when they encounter outdated technology in clients’ datacenters.

Oracle OpenWorld 2015

Peter McLoughlin, President of SMI, accepts an award from Fujitsu for the largest sale of M10 servers to a single private company.

SMI Replaces Aging Systems with Compact Fujitsu M10 Servers at Major Pharmaceutical Company

Read about how SMI partnered with Fujitsu to install M10-4 servers in major pharmaceutical company.