14 DAY TRIAL // Interoperability is critical to boosting IT infrastructure efficiency and driving cost reduction in heterogeneous environments. High-performance computing makes no exception to this rule, with customers running mixed-source solutions needing HPC products to play nice together, and the fact that a Windows and Linux hybrid offering for supercomputers is in high demand should come as no surprise. Microsoft and Novell reveal that the work done as a result of their 2006 landmark Windows and Linux interoperability agreement has resulted in hybrid options for high-performance computing that were met with strong demand from customers.
According to the duo, the joint Windows and Linux high-performance computing interoperability solution is being deployed by no less than 33 new shared customers. The server workload management offering was developed by the joint Microsoft and Novell Interoperability Lab based in Cambridge, and is designed for customers running both SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and Windows HPC Server in their HPC environments.
Ted MacLean, general manager for Strategic Partnerships and Licensing at Microsoft, welcomed the fact that more and more companies were starting to leverage the interoperable cross-platform technical solutions built by Microsoft and Novell. “The fact that we’re able to address a real need in the HPC market is evidenced by the number of licenses we’ve issued. These solutions, coupled with Novell’s proven technical support programs, make it easier than ever for our customers to have confidence that their existing infrastructure investments will serve them well into the future,” he stated.
In the past year, Microsoft and Novell managed to attract companies that were heavyweights in their respective industries to adopt their joint HPC offering. Deutsche Bank AG, Honeywell International, Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. Ltd., Texas Instruments, Tianjin Dawning Information Industry Co. Ltd. and the Tokyo Institute of Technology are among the duo’s customers.
“Many customers are realizing the benefits of the Microsoft and Novell HPC technical solution that streamlines management functions, reduces internal support requirements and enables greater interoperability without having to dedicate time and resources to devise workarounds,” Joe Wagner, senior vice president and general manager of Global Alliances at Novell, added. “Through our successful initiatives in the joint Interoperability Lab, we’ve been able to anticipate the mixed-source IT requirements necessary in today’s business environment.”