HP teams up for Linux supercomputers
Source: CNet News
Hewlett-Packard has signed a partnership with Linux NetworX under which each company will use technology from the other for lower-cost supercomputers, the companies plan to announce Wednesday.
Linux NetworX will use HP's Itanium 2 servers as components in its systems, while HP will use the start-up's ClusterworX software to help manage supercomputers made of interconnected smaller systems. ClusterworX handles tasks such as installing software simultaneously on several computers, monitoring processor usage, and taking automatic actions such as shutting off a computer if a fan fails.
Supercomputing is a good market for Intel to try to secure customers for its still-new Itanium processor family, which works very differently from the established Celeron-Pentium-Xeon lineage and thus requires software to be rewritten. Supercomputer customers are willing to pay a premium for better mathematical abilities--which the Itanium possesses in spades--and often run their own programs so they aren't as dependent on outside software companies to support their needs.
