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IBM Previews WebSphere Application Server V5 by Joe Hertvik [Editor's Note: This story contains errors that are corrected in an article published on May 28, 2002.] At IBM's recent developerWorks Live conference, the company introduced WebSphere Application Server Version 5, which is scheduled to be available in the third quarter. New features in Version 5 include support for J2EE 1.3, more support for Web services, authorization and security upgrades, and improved XML-based administration capabilities. And to keep WebSphere sales flowing in the short run, IBM has promised a free Version 5 upgrade to any customer who purchases Version 4 before the new software hits the shelves.
With IBM in a dead heat with archrival BEA Systems for dominance in the Java-based application server marketplace--where, according to Giga Information Group, both companies have captured 34 percent of the market--the WebSphere Version 5 announcement comes at the right time for Big Blue: On April 30, BEA released WebLogic Server 7.0 (which is available for download on the company's site). So WebSphere Version 5 was facing tight competition even before IBM put it into the market. Still, being first doesn't count as much as other factors. The key to marketplace leadership is providing customers with what they need. To that end, here are some of the new features IBM is building into WebSphere Version 5:
IBM hasn't yet provided any details about what platforms WebSphere Version 5 will be offered on, or in what order they will roll out. Nor has it released any pricing information. If IBM stays true to form, WebSphere Version 5 will probably debut on Windows, AIX, and Solaris platforms, later followed by the other platforms, including the iSeries. IBM has traditionally released WebSphere for OS/400 after the other platforms, because, according to IBM sources, the iSeries group imposes more stringent testing requirements. (For IBM's explanation of why this happens, read my interview with Sandy Carter, IBM's vice president of WebSphere marketing.) I expect that WebSphere Version 5 will appear on the early adopter platforms in the late June or early July (Version 4 was scheduled for a June 30 premiere in 2001), with OS/400 support to come by the end of summer. There also may be a new pricing scheme for WebSphere Version 5. WebSphere Version 4 is priced at $8,000 to $12,000 per CPU, regardless of whether or not you're running it in a partition that may only be using a subset of the available CPUs. Under a rumored pricing scheme, IBM could start selling WebSphere Version 5 on a partition pricing basis, and there may even be some form of capacity pricing for running both WebSphere Version 5 and WebSphere Commerce Suite for iSeries software on an iSeries machine. All of the ins and outs of WebSphere pricing is still up in the air, and more details should be available when IBM puts out its announcement letters on the product. Also coming with WebSphere Version 5 is the new WebSphere Application Server, Express Edition. As I discussed earlier this year, WebSphere Express Edition Version 5 (which was then referred to as WebSphere Application Server, Entry Edition) would be a low-cost entry into the WebSphere product line (not free, but less than $8,000 per CPU for the low-end WebSphere 4.0 product). It will have less functionality than the Advanced Edition software, meaning it can deliver JavaServer Pages and Java servlets but not Enterprise JavaBeans. And it also will lack many of the scalability and high-end transaction and security processing features found in the Advanced Edition. So WebSphere Express will become the replacement product for the free WebSphere Application Server Version 3.5, Standard Edition, which IBM is phasing out on June 30, 2003. IBM was planning to phase out Version 3.5 of the Standard Edition on December 31, 2002, but, because of customer requests, IBM's Software Group extended technical support through mid-2003 to give customers time to migrate to a newer version of WebSphere. As a side effect of the WebSphere Express premiere and the extended technical support for WebSphere Standard Edition Version 3.5, one might expect diminished enthusiasm from IBM for its Jakarta Tomcat application server for OS/400 software, for which IBM is currently providing both software and technical support. Now that IBM has a defined low-cost migration path for Standard Edition customers, OS/400 Tomcat becomes less important in IBM's eyes, and it may start withdrawing technical support for the server (possibly even instructing customers to go to open source sites on the Web for OS/400 Tomcat support). Alternatively, Big Blue could freeze OS/400 Tomcat at its current level and no longer provide upgrades, making the server technically obsolete within a year. As I said before, a free OS/400 Tomcat application server stands in the way of OS/400 WebSphere sales, so don't be surprised if IBM starts backing away from this server. If you're starting to get attached to OS/400 Tomcat for your business, you may want to rethink your strategy. By the way, WebSphere Version 5 is not the only new WebSphere product coming out for the iSeries. IBM will be releasing the WebSphere Portal Server for iSeries in the fourth quarter of this year. In addition to announcing WebSphere Version at developerWorks Live, IBM announced the following products that may eventually be offered on the iSeries:
For all of the WebSphere-related news that came out of developerWorks Live, see the conference Web site.
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