What is mainframes?
A mainframe (also known as "big iron") is a high-performance computer used for large-scale computing purposes that require greater availability and security than a smaller-scale machine can offer. Historically, mainframes have been associated with centralized rather than distributed computing, although that distinction is blurring as smaller computers become more powerful and mainframes become more multi-purpose. Today, IBMemphasizes that their mainframes can be used to serve distributed users and smaller servers in a computing network.
The mainframe is sometimes referred to as a "dinosaur" not only because of its size but because of reports, going back many years, that it's becoming extinct. In 1991 Stewart Alsop, the editor of InfoWorld, predicted that the last mainframe would be retired by 1996. However, in February 2008 IBM released a new mainframe, the z10. Steve Lohr wrote about the mainframe as "the classic survivor technology" in The New York Times ("Why old technologies are still kicking"):
I.B.M. overhauled the insides of the mainframe, using low-cost microprocessors as the computing engine. The company invested and updated the mainframe software, so that banks, corporations and government agencies could still rely on the mainframe as the rock-solid reliable and secure computer for vital transactions and data, while allowing it to take on new chores like running Web-based programs.
The original mainframes were housed in room-sized metal frames, which is probably where the name derives from. In the past, a typical mainframe might have occupied 2,000 - 10,000 square feet. Newer mainframes are about the same size as a large refrigerator
Why mainframes?
Mainframes may seem an odd subject for a Justice Dept. antitrust probe, but these seemingly outdated machines could play a key role in cloud computing
On its face, news of the Justice Dept. probe of IBM (IBM) seemed odd. Government trustbusters had opened an inquiry into IBM's business practices in the market for mainframes, those ultrapowerful computers that help banks crunch numbers and telecom providers process large volumes of information.
Yet the $6.5 billion mainframe market—about 85% controlled by IBM—is considered by many to be in decline, says Jeffrey Hewitt, who covers the mainframe market as research vice-president for IT consulting firm Gartner (IT). IBM's second-quarter mainframe revenue plunged 39%. For more than a decade many companies have moved from mainframes that can cost more than $250,000 and sometimes millions of dollars to smaller, less expensive servers. There's a widely held belief in the industry that servers—even if you need more of them—are less expensive, overall.
Why then would the feds care about mainframes? Fact is, the machines may be far cheaper to run than servers, making them more relevant to cutting-edge computing than meets the eye, says Susan Eustis, the president of WinterGreen Research who has spent three years comparing the costs of servers and mainframes.
MAINFRAMES CAN SAVE A LOT OF MONEY
Her conclusion, after studying large organizations in retail, banking, and insurance, is that in some cases mainframes can cost one-tenth the cost of running servers. Put simply, mainframes handle big workloads more efficiently than the data centers that house sometimes thousands of servers. For instance, with a data center, a company may have 3,000 applications running on 30,000 servers, Eustis says. But a company could instead run 3,000 applications on one mainframe.
Mainframes can be particularly useful in cloud computing, the increasingly popular trend for companies to shift computing tasks off their own machines and onto computers handled elsewhere, often by other companies. Data centers that distribute tasks over several different servers may not be reliable enough for applications that need to be run around the clock, Eustis says. Anyone who's suffered from a Gmail outage in recent weeks may be inclined to agree. "By the time you calculate the people, the test and development servers, and the security needed to run smaller servers, it's more expensive," she says.
In fact, when IBM moved from distributed servers to mainframes for its internal use, Eustis says the company was able to justify the costs based on the amount it saved in electricity to power all the smaller servers in the data center. Indeed, soaring energy prices have meant that it'snearly as expensive to run a server for a year as to purchase one in the first place. One mainframe consumes much less electricity than 30,000 servers.
COMPANIES WARY OF IBM'S MARKET DOMINANCE
The potential for mainframes hasn't been lost on IBM, which recently introduced new mainframe software and in July named Tom Rosamilia, a 26-year Big Blue veteran, general manager of the mainframe business. Job One for Rosamilia has been making it easier for corporations torun new software applications on mainframes.
But critics say IBM operates unfairly in the business. The Computer & Communications Industry Assn., which urged the Justice Dept. to launch its probe, alleges that IBM makes it difficult for customers to switch computing platforms or use competing mainframe software or components. IBM has said it intends to cooperate with any inquiries from the Justice Dept.
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