http://www.hp.com/pressrel/05mar96c.htm (PC Press Internet CD, 03/1996)
Palo Alto, California. March 5, 1996
Demonstrating its commitment to extend its HP 3000 9X9KS family of midrange servers, Hewlett-Packard Company today announced that it has added four new performance points to the family with 120MHz advanced cache processors. Powered by HP's industry-leading PA-RISC(1) PA-7200 processors, the new one- to four-way symmetric multiprocessors are expected to boost performance by 20 percent and are immediately available to customers.
Recognizing customers' need for investment protection, HP offers upgrades to the new processors via a simple board swap to their existing 9X9 system. The HP 3000 9X9KS family of servers is ideal for small- to medium-size businesses that have demanding computing requirements for client/server applications and system consolidation projects.
"Customers continue to stress scalability and flexibility as a critical solution to their changing computing requirements," said Harry A. Sterling Jr., general manager of HP's Commercial Systems Division. "HP is committed to delivering increased performance capability to our customers. By extending the 9X9KS family of midrange servers, HP gives customers the flexibility to expand their systems while maintaining excellent system price/performance and functionality."
"The 969KS/x20 announcement provides us with more investment protection," said Steve Stewart, facilities manager of Trident Infotech USA, Inc. "We had purchased a 959KS for an HP SharePlex/ix high availability solution. The new 969KS/x20 upgrades will give us more headroom to grow without having to purchase a whole new system."
With the extension of the one- to four-way processors to the midrange family, the 9X9KS offers additional processor enhancements as customers' computing requirements continue to expand. The midrange family offers more power and performance, while still allowing for consolidation of as many as seven or eight systems in a box and leaving room to grow. Customers have the option to grow their existing hardware environment and take advantage of cost-effective, convenient board upgrades.
With the 9X9KS's scalable performance, customers can combine applications or add an application to their computing environment while improving end-user response time. The advanced cache makes it easy for complex applications to be performed on the 9X9KS platform and offers aggressive price/performance points and improved productivity. Previously, many of the solutions found on the 9X9KS line were only offered on large corporate business servers. Customers who want to run complex applications will now find the 9X9KS has both the price and performance to do so today.
Upgrades to the 9X9KS family are $19,000 for an additional 120MHz processor with 1,024/1,024 KB cache.
Return credits are as follows: A returned 80MHz 256/256KB cache processor receives $8,000; a returned 100MHz 256/256KB cache processor receives $10,000; and a returned 120MHz 256/256KB cache processor receives $13,000. All upgrades are available immediately.
The Series 9X9KS is preconfigured at the factory with 64MB or 128MB of memory, expandable to 2GB; up to 16GB of internal disk storage; a 2GB to 4GB DDS tape drive; a CD-ROM drive; and an integrated I/O card that supports up to 15 devices, four or eight additional I/O slots and an uninterruptible power supply. It also supports up to a total of 448GB of disk storage using external disk drives.
The PA-RISC-based HP 3000 is a flexible, open server with exceptional reliability and transaction performance. The MPE/iX operating system offers many of the same open-systems features typically associated with UNIX system platforms, as well as additional advantages that make it ideal for mission-critical applications, client/server processing and high-end scalability. These capabilities are highly valued by HP's customers. The HP 3000 was rated No. 1 in overall customer satisfaction in the April 1994 Datapro survey of major U.S. midrange systems.
Hewlett-Packard is the second-largest computer supplier in the United States with computer-related revenue in excess of $25.3 billion in the 1995 fiscal year.
Hewlett-Packard Company is a leading global manufacturer of computing, communications and measurement products and services recognized for excellence in quality and support. HP has 105,200 employees and had revenue of $31.5 billion in its 1995 fiscal year.
Information about HP and its products can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.hp.com.
(1) PA-RISC stands for Precision Architecture, reduced-instruction-set computing.
