Unisys Partitions Intel Mainframes

Unisys today announced an extension to its virtual approach to server consolidation on mainframes using secure partitioning (sPar)  technology that runs on top of Intel processors.

The company is extending its sPar technology on its Intel-based ClearPath servers to create specialty engines for running specific types of application workloads. Each engine is centrally managed by the ClearPath MCP operating system, but each partition is the equivalent of a dedicated server that has its own memory and I/O channels.

According to Bill Maclean, vice president of ClearPath portfolio management for Unisys, the sPAR architecture creates an opportunity to IT organizations to take advantage of a centralized approach to enterprise IT that consumer less power and fundamentally scales better. That approach, he added, is also fundamentally more efficient in private cloud computing scenarios where there is a lot of uncertainty concerning how to manage dynamic application workloads.

The four sPar engines that Unisys is making available this week include a Java application engine, an encryption engine and an engine dedicated to running IBM Websphere MQ Server messaging software. The fourth sPar engine, called the ClearPath ePortal, for managing mobile computing devices was previously announced.

In addition, Unisys today announced the ClearPath Libra 4100 series and a Dorado line of servers based on the latest generation of Intel processors.