HP ProLiant 3000 Compaq Servers: Enterprise Class Performance Leading the Way - Page 9

ECG078/0498 WHITE PAPER COMPAQ SERVERS: ENTERPRISE CLASS SYSTEMS 9... PCI bridge. Compaq's decision to combine its I/O design with Corollary's memory subsystem and the next-generation Deschutes/Slot-2 processor by Intel is clearly the right one. With the Pentium Pro soon to reach its natural end of life, the Compaq/Corollary/Intel combination will yield a balanced, high-performance system architecture for the future. Compaq Implementation of Merced Technology Compaq is prepared to develop innovative and optimized industry-leading systems for the Intel Architecture (IA)-32 architecture to provide a clear and straightforward migration path to Intel's Merced microprocessor generation, the first true 64-bit member of the IA family. Merced processors, expected to be delivered sometime in 1999, will run all software that currently operates on 32-bit Intel processor-based machines. Compaq will be the leading supplier of Merced processor-based servers and expects to ship systems with Intel's first Merced production processor. Intel is committed to the concept of a level playing field concerning Merced, according to Linley Gwennap in his MicroDesign Resources forecast report. "Although there were initial indications that HP would be allowed to develop and even manufacture its own IA-64 processors, the companies have now made it clear that all IA-64 chips will be built by Intel and available to all interested system vendors."3 Gwennap added that in the long run, the Intel partnership probably gives HP no significant hardware advantage over other IA-64 system vendors. "Assuming equal access to the chips, which Intel will provide, the key issue for system vendors is getting input to and advance information on the system interface of the processor. Although HP played a major role in defining the internal architecture of Merced, Intel drove the definition of the external interfaces, working with Compaq, Sequent, and other key customers as well as with HP. Once the interface definition was complete, these vendors had the same early access to Merced documentation that HP did."3 Thus, with this early access and as the only leading vendor with servers and workstations focused solely on Intel architecture, Compaq has dedicated a substantial team of its best hardware, integration, and systems engineers to work directly with Intel on advancing the capabilities of Compaq systems using the Merced processor. Compaq is working to ensure that applications and operating systems used by Compaq customers today will work smoothly on IA-64 processor-based systems. Together with Intel, Compaq will conduct extensive systems testing and integration to help ensure a compatible growth path for customers that use Compaq systems running Pentium, Pentium Pro, Pentium II, or Deschutes processors. Compaq has established Compaq Solutions Centers to help strategic independent software vendors (ISVs) and customers optimize their applications for Compaq servers based on current and future Intel microprocessors, including Merced. Through the centers, Compaq helps ISVs ensure that applications used by Compaq customers today will work seamlessly on future Compaq systems based on Merced. Compaq Solutions Centers provide various porting and compiling tools jointly with Intel, as well as dedicated hardware to help software partners, including Microsoft, optimize their applications for multiprocessor IA-32 architectures and port the applications to future IA-64 architectures. "The company's experience and extensive systems expertise in Intel servers and efforts with Intel on future 64-bit platforms help ensure that Compaq Solutions Centers will provide valuable 3 "Intel's Merced and IA-64: Technology and Market Forecast" by Linley Gwennap; MicroDesign Resources, 1997.