• The Four Hundred
  • Subscribe
  • Media Kit
  • Contributors
  • About Us
  • Contact
Menu
  • The Four Hundred
  • Subscribe
  • Media Kit
  • Contributors
  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Does the IBM Server Selection Tool Select the System i?

    July 10, 2006 Mary Lou Roberts

    Recently, IBM posted the Systems Advisor Tool on its Web site. This tool, according to Big Blue, “pinpoints the server or storage offering that best suit your needs and offers up to three recommended choices.” Intrigued, I decided to check this out.

    My mother told me many times in my life to be wary of easy answers. But I was curious to see if this quick and easy tool would select the beloved System i or if it was predisposed to recommend other server choices.

    The tool has six questions to pose to the reader relating to:

    1. System use (e.g., application server, database server, etc.)
    2. Number of concurrent users
    3. Growth expectations
    4. Data capacity
    5. Operating system preference
    6. Space and form factor of server

    In question 5, of course, i5/OS (and OS/400) is one of the choices, and any time you select this operating system preference the tool will recommend the System i. But you also have the option of responding, “Unsure/no preference” which, of course, many users new to the platform might select.

    I gave it a try, telling the tool that I wanted to use my server as an application server, database server, and for ERP. I selected 50 to 99 concurrent users, moderate growth, 500 GB of storage, and no preference on operating system or physical size. The tool responded that my best choice was the System i5 520 Express, and offered me two other recommendations: an xSeries x366 Express, and a BladeCenter HS20 Express. (Express, in the IBM server lingo, means a preconfigured machine that has all the basic software and peripherals you need to do real work, usually with a discount.)

    I then ran the tool (with no operating system preference) with several other responses, each time getting an i5 as a recommendation until I give it more than 1,000 users or more than 2 TB of data storage, at which point it pointed to the zSeries.

    Matt Graybiel, iSeries channels engineer for NetIQ gave it a try, describing his hypothetical needs for an application, collaboration and email, CRM, and database server with 100 to 499 concurrent users, moderate growth, 500 GB to 1 TB of storage, and no preference for operating system or physical space. The tool recommended three servers: the i5 520, i5 Domino Edition, and the xSeries x366 Express. “Not bad that the top recommendation was an i5,” says Graybiel.

    Nigel Fortlage, vice president of information technology for GHY International gave the tool a try seven different times with various configurations from collaboration servers. The results, he says, always seemed to point to the i5 Domino Edition as the right selection for a small, less-than-50 user applications server.

    Steve Rosen, vice president of marketing for EXTOL also gave the tool a try, selecting CRM and applications for a mid-sized company with no preference for operating system or physical space. Using these criteria, the system recommended a pSeries with i5 as an alternate recommendation.

    Rosen makes some interesting observations about the tool, however. “I note that the ‘uses’ were not business uses, but focused on the typical IT issues (supporting the status quo more efficiently, focused on utilities–the IBM way), rather than on the job that needs to get done or what business needs are to be addresses. There was nothing about e-business, B2B, company efficiency, extending value from legacy applications, scaling for business growth,” he says.

    Finally, IT Jungle’s own Timothy Prickett Morgan, ever the curmudgeon, asked the tool for an OS/400-based blade server with 1 TB of storage capacity and minimal growth needs. The response: “No server found. We’re sorry, there are no servers that match the exact criteria you requested. However, this does not mean we cannot recommend a server.”

    “Well,” TPM says, “actually that’s exactly what it means.” His point being, of course, that IBM should have long since delivered an OS/400-based blade server.

    Share this:

    • Reddit
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Email

    Tags: Tags: mtfh_rc, Volume 15, Number 27 -- July 10, 2006

    Sponsored by
    DRV Tech

    Get More Out of Your IBM i

    With soaring costs, operational data is more critical than ever. IBM shops need faster, easier ways to distribute IBM applications-based data to users more efficiently, no matter where they are.

    The Problem:

    For Users, IBM Data Can Be Difficult to Get To

    IBM Applications generate reports as spooled files, originally designed to be printed. Often those reports are packed together with so much data it makes them difficult to read. Add to that hardcopy is a pain to distribute. User-friendly formats like Excel and PDF are better, offering sorting, searching, and easy portability but getting IBM reports into these formats can be tricky without the right tools.

    The Solution:

    IBM i Reports can easily be converted to easy to read and share formats like Excel and PDF and Delivered by Email

    Converting IBM i, iSeries, and AS400 reports into Excel and PDF is now a lot easier with SpoolFlex software by DRV Tech.  If you or your users are still doing this manually, think how much time is wasted dragging and reformatting to make a report readable. How much time would be saved if they were automatically formatted correctly and delivered to one or multiple recipients.

    SpoolFlex converts spooled files to Excel and PDF, automatically emailing them, and saving copies to network shared folders. SpoolFlex converts complex reports to Excel, removing unwanted headers, splitting large reports out for individual recipients, and delivering to users whether they are at the office or working from home.

    Watch our 2-minute video and see DRV’s powerful SpoolFlex software can solve your file conversion challenges.

    Watch Video

    DRV Tech

    www.drvtech.com

    866.378.3366

    Share this:

    • Reddit
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Email

    Admin Alert: Creating More Distinctive PC5250 Window Titles Unix Calls from OCL

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

TFH Volume: 15 Issue: 27

This Issue Sponsored By

    Table of Contents

    • Does the IBM Server Selection Tool Select the System i?
    • Centerfield Technology, Innovatum Team on Database Tuning, Compliance
    • Google to Defend Net Neutrality with Antitrust Lawsuits?
    • Faulty Business Data Leads to Bad Decisions, Workers Say
    • Storage Vendors–Minus IBM–Partner on Storage Management Standards
    • Does the IBM Server Selection Tool Select the System i?
    • High End Power5+ System p5 Launch on July 25; System i5 Machines Possible, But Not Rumored
    • The X Factor: Is Memory-Based Software Pricing the Answer?
    • Open Source RPG Apps: The ‘Bright Future’ That Didn’t Happen
    • Micro Memory Bank: Another System i Clone Memory Maker

    Content archive

    • The Four Hundred
    • Four Hundred Stuff
    • Four Hundred Guru

    Recent Posts

    • Meet The Next Gen Of IBMers Helping To Build IBM i
    • Looks Like IBM Is Building A Linux-Like PASE For IBM i After All
    • Will Independent IBM i Clouds Survive PowerVS?
    • Now, IBM Is Jacking Up Hardware Maintenance Prices
    • IBM i PTF Guide, Volume 27, Number 24
    • Big Blue Raises IBM i License Transfer Fees, Other Prices
    • Keep The IBM i Youth Movement Going With More Training, Better Tools
    • Remain Begins Migrating DevOps Tools To VS Code
    • IBM Readies LTO-10 Tape Drives And Libraries
    • IBM i PTF Guide, Volume 27, Number 23

    Subscribe

    To get news from IT Jungle sent to your inbox every week, subscribe to our newsletter.

    Pages

    • About Us
    • Contact
    • Contributors
    • Four Hundred Monitor
    • IBM i PTF Guide
    • Media Kit
    • Subscribe

    Search

    Copyright © 2025 IT Jungle