At the heart of the announcement is a single message: the AS/400 is on its way to becoming a competitively priced server in the emerging world of distributed computing. It will bring the advantages of its systems management features and integrated architecture to the PC LAN environment while maintaining its traditional strengths as a commercial host system.
In this article, we give you a detailed overview of the hardware components that will spearhead the AS/400's new direction. These components include:
o Four Advanced Systems models that offer a total of 11 performance levels.
o Two Advanced Server models that come in three different performance levels.
o Upgrade options that let customers migrate existing AS/400s to the new computing platforms.
o Dedicated hardware facilities to speed file-serving performance on both old and new AS/400s.
o A variety of peripherals that expand the capacity and connectivity of the entire product line.
A New Footprint for the Future
The centerpiece of the announcement is an entirely new family of AS/400 systems known as the Advanced Series. The series consists of two different processor groups: Advanced Systems and Advanced Servers. The former group replaces traditional AS/400 processors while the latter group replaces the Server Series that IBM announced last September. 1 shows list prices and shipment dates for the new models and other hardware.
The centerpiece of the announcement is an entirely new family of AS/400 systems known as the Advanced Series. The series consists of two different processor groups: Advanced Systems and Advanced Servers. The former group replaces traditional AS/400 processors while the latter group replaces the Server Series that IBM announced last September. Figure 1 shows list prices and shipment dates for the new models and other hardware.
While the Advanced Series parallels the F-series in performance and capacity, it departs from its predecessors in both packaging and appearance. In terms of packaging, IBM has eliminated the familiar letter and number sequence that has identified AS/400s since 1988. In its place are four Advanced Systems models and two Advanced Server models. The Advanced Systems models are the 9402-200, 9406-300, 9406-310 and 9406-320. The Advanced Server models are the 9402-20S and the 9406-30S. Each of these models (with the exception of the 20S) has two or three performance levels that customers specify with a feature code. For instance, customers can order a 9406-310 with a relative performance ratio (RPR) of 12.0 (feature code 2043) or 20.0 (feature code 2044).
When it comes to appearance, the first two things that current AS/400 owners will notice about the Advanced Series models are their jet black color and an item they are missing: racks. Starting with this series, IBM will house all AS/400 feature codes and peripherals in a single system cabinet or, in the case of the largest models, a system cabinet and an additional expansion tower. The company will also use these cabinets for the RISC-based AS/400s it plans to announce in 1995 and following years. The new design drastically reduces the amount of floor space and electricity the systems consume as well as the heat and noise they generate. As a result, most models no longer require the added expense of separate rooms or dedicated air conditioning systems.
Though the new systems are short on size, they are long on performance and capacity. As 2 shows, the models range from a RPR of 2.5 to 71.5 (IBM rates the 9404-B10 at 1.0). This is virtually the same performance range as that of the F-series. However, many of the new models can hold more main memory than comparable F-series models. Despite their smaller size, they also support similar amounts of disk storage and equivalent numbers of workstations and peripherals.3 and 4 show memory and disk capacities for the new models.
Though the new systems are short on size, they are long on performance and capacity. As Figure 2 shows, the models range from a RPR of 2.5 to 71.5 (IBM rates the 9404-B10 at 1.0). This is virtually the same performance range as that of the F-series. However, many of the new models can hold more main memory than comparable F-series models. Despite their smaller size, they also support similar amounts of disk storage and equivalent numbers of workstations and peripherals. Figures 3 and 4 show memory and disk capacities for the new models.
As in the past, customers can upgrade the new AS/400s. A 9402-200 owner can upgrade the system to a higher performance level in the 200 series, while a 9406-3xx owner can do the same within the 3xx lineup. Customers cannot, however, convert Advanced Systems models to Advanced Server models or vice versa.
When it comes to pricing, the new models are a definite improvement over the F- series. Customers purchasing small- to medium-size systems will spend around 35 percent less on hardware than they would on F-series systems with comparable performance. Those who purchase the largest systems will save around 45 percent. 5 compares the price/performance of the Advanced Systems to that of the three previous AS/400 generations.
When it comes to pricing, the new models are a definite improvement over the F- series. Customers purchasing small- to medium-size systems will spend around 35 percent less on hardware than they would on F-series systems with comparable performance. Those who purchase the largest systems will save around 45 percent. Figure 5 compares the price/performance of the Advanced Systems to that of the three previous AS/400 generations.
The new systems offer other advantages besides improved price/performance. All models support RAID5 data protection as an option; in previous systems, RAID5 was only available on systems that supported 9337 disk arrays. In addition, the 9406-3X0 series offers concurrent disk maintenance. If a drive goes down in a 3X0 array, technicians can replace it without bringing the system down. Finally, the cabinets that house the new models are RISC-ready. This means that they will be field-upgradable to AS/400 models using RISC processors planned for next year.
Send in the Forklifts
While it will be relatively easy to upgrade the Advanced Series to RISC, customers who want to upgrade existing systems to the Advanced Series (or the RISC systems that will follow them) face a bigger challenge.
There's good news and bad news for upgrade aspirants. The bad news is that this is a forklift upgrade that will require customers to tear apart their old systems, migrate some of the pieces to the new systems and ship the rest back to IBM on a pallet. The good news is that your old system's serial number is one of the pieces you get to keep. As any accountant will tell you, this lets you avoid tax and depreciation headaches because you can claim the resulting system is still the same AS/400 you've always owned.
The other good news for 9406 customers is that they can keep their expansion racks and many of the adapters and peripherals they contain. With the help of numerous conversion kits, the migrating customer can reattach old components to the new systems without removing them from the racks.
Whether you own the smallest 9402 or the largest 9406, IBM's migration rules are as follows:
o Owners of B-models cannot up-grade to the new series. They can, however, upgrade to the F-models until early November of this year, and then upgrade to the new series.
o All 9402s (except the 9402-100) can upgrade to the 9402-200.
o The 9402-100 can upgrade to the 9402-20S, while the 9404-135 and -140 can upgrade to the 9406-30S. For tax purposes, IBM will declare that an upgraded 9404 server model is still a 9404.
o All 9404s (except B-models and the 9404-135 and -140) can upgrade to the 9402-200 or 9406-3X0 models. For tax purposes, IBM will declare these upgraded systems are 9404s.
o All 9406s (except B-models) can upgrade to the 9406-3X0 models.
o All upgrades, except upgrades to Advanced Servers, will be available this month. IBM will begin server model conversions in September.
IBM also established rules regarding the peripherals and feature codes that can migrate to the Advanced Series. In general, the company has done what it can to preserve its customers' investments in these devices. However, some older components are going to the scrap heap. 6 provides some guidelines for what will and won't make it onto the new systems.
IBM also established rules regarding the peripherals and feature codes that can migrate to the Advanced Series. In general, the company has done what it can to preserve its customers' investments in these devices. However, some older components are going to the scrap heap. Figure 6 provides some guidelines for what will and won't make it onto the new systems.
For those customers who don't want to upgrade yet, IBM also announced expanded capacities for some of its older hardware. The company increased the maximum memory allowed on the model E80 to 512 megabytes (MB). It also boosted the memory limit for the E90 to 1,024MB and the top end for the E95 to 1,152MB. More importantly, the company announced that most of its older systems will support many of the new options it is offering on the Advanced Series. It is these options to which we now turn our attention.
More Than Bells and Whistles
When it came to system enhancements, IBM did not restrict its gifts to the Advanced Series. Instead, the company rejuvenated older AS/400s with some impressive components that will also run on the new systems. The biggest improvement was the File Server I/O Processor (FSIOP), a dedicated processor that accelerates the serving of PC files to clients by up to eight times. Based on an Intel 80486 chip, the FSIOP serves PC files from the AS/400 to DOS, Windows and OS/2 clients on Token-Ring or Ethernet LANs. It also provides LAN communications to AS/400 applications using TCP/IP or APPN. The FSIOP will run on any AS/400 D-, E- or F-model (with the exception of the D02, E02 and F02) running OS/400 Version 3, Release 1 (V3R1) due for initial shipment August 19, 1994 (see "Software Announcements: A Blueprint for the Future," page 38). It also runs on all Advanced Series systems.
In addition to the FSIOP, many AS/400s will support seven new peripherals. With some minor exceptions, any AS/400 D-model or above running OS/400 V3R1 or higher will work with the following devices:
o A quarter-inch cartridge tape drive with an uncompressed capacity of 2.5 gigabytes (GB) and a compressed capacity of 5GB. This unit cannot run on the D02, D04 or D06.
o An integrated fax adapter that can simultaneously send or receive two fax transmissions to fax machines, PCs with fax adapters and other AS/400s. This unit attaches to all systems except the D02 and E02.
o The 6408-CTA and 6412-CTA line matrix printers, which offer twinaxial, ASCII serial and parallel PC attachment capabilities in the same unit. The printers replace IBM's older 4234 series.
The company also unveiled OptiConnect/400, a facility that links up to seven AS/400s over a fiber-optic bus to improve data availability (see Significa, December 1993). Opti-Connect/400 works with AS/400 models D60 to D80, E60 to E95, and F50 through F97 as well as Advanced Series models 310 and 320.
While all the hardware mentioned above will run on existing AS/400s, a few new components will not. Among these is the 6502 Integrated Disk Controller, a feature that manages RAID5 disk arrays on all Advanced Series systems. The 6502 improves on the current 6501 with an enhanced 2MB nonvolatile write cache and supports up to 16 disks. IBM also announced an eight-millimeter tape drive for the Advanced Series that writes up to 7GB of uncompressed data and 14GB of compressed data per cartridge.
IBM's Big Gamble
As the peripheral announcements indicate, IBM did more than introduce new systems. It also upgraded existing AS/400s to meet changing customer needs. The company's software announcements (see "Software Announcements: A Blueprint for the Future," elsewhere in this issue) make this point even more clearly. By making existing AS/400s compatible with OS/400 V3, IBM is letting all AS/400 owners boost the performance and functionality of their systems in distributed computing environments.
This synergy between new hardware, new software and existing systems protects the investments of AS/400 owners. By implementing OS/400 V3 with other hardware and software components, customers can transform their current systems into powerful LAN servers without sacrificing host capabilities. As a result, many AS/400 owners may decide that they can implement V3 now and postpone an upgrade to the Advanced Series until later.
While this strategy may be a good one for many AS/400 owners, it represents a gamble for IBM. Indeed, the company is betting that the money it loses from deferred upgrades will be offset by outright purchases of the Advanced Series. IBM's gamble will only pay off, if the Advanced Series' aggressive price/performance, compact size and readiness for a RISC upgrade convinces new and existing customers to put thousands of additional systems in the field.
The question remains, however, whether a flood of new system purchases will actually materialize. Whether it does or not will largely depend on two things. First, it will rest on IBM's ability to change the MIS community's perception of the AS/400 as a closed, proprietary system that can only run host-centric applications. Until the AS/400 sheds this undeserved image, potential buyers that are unfamiliar with the system will not give it serious consideration.
Second, IBM must convince the AS/400 community that it will not save money by deferring new system purchases until 1995. This second task may be as tough as the first one, as most observers expect the 1995 RISC-based systems will provide substantially better performance for the dollar than this year's models. Customers who stress this point may win substantial price concessions from IBM sales representatives over the next year.
Because of the challenges facing the AS/400, IBM needs to demonstrate an even higher level of commitment to the platform in the coming months. If it fails to do so, revenues could fall and threaten the system's potential as a best-of- breed server to distributed clients. However, if the AS/400 Division's track record is any indication, IBM's premier midrange system will adapt, evolve and excel in the networked computing environments of the future.
Lee Kroon is an industry analyst at Midrange Computing.
Hardware Announcements: A New Look...A New Directi
Figure 1 New AS/400 Hardware Prices and Ship Dates
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Hardware Announcements: A New Look...A New Directi
Figure 2 Advanced Series Relative Performance
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Hardware Announcements: A New Look...A New Directi
Figure 3 Advanced Series Main Memory Capacities
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Hardware Announcements: A New Look...A New Directi
Figure 4 Advanced Series DASD Capacities
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Hardware Announcements: A New Look...A New Directi
Figure 5 AS/400 Price/Performance Improvement
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Hardware Announcements: A New Look...A New Directi
Figure 6 Migration Guidelines
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