Article: Intel decides Pentiums are good enough for servers too, at least the low-end ones

You can't make micro servers out of them ... But may be a mini server.

Intel decides Pentiums are good enough for servers too, at least the low-end ones
http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/24/intel-decides-pentiums-are-good-enough-for-servers-too-at-least

 - Dima

Intel Invests in Insyde Software

Intel Capital invests in (keeping alive?) Inside Software, a BIOS vendor focused on the UEFI based BIOS.

Investment is around $10 million.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/insyde-software-announces-latest-investment-by-intelcapital-2011-11-22

Phoenix Technologies Buys General Software

Phoenix Technologies is buying General Software, who's BIOS is mostly used for the embedded applications.

Article in PC Wire: Link

Phoenix announces an actual application of HyperCore

Phoenix Technologies partners with CyberLink to deliver an application for the HyperCore, Phoenix's BIOS based hypervisor. It "will allow people to see videos or play music or other multimedia content within seconds of turning on their laptop".

CyberLink Products

This is one of the first few use cases of HyperCore is actually getting implemented.


Article in PC Magazine

Phoenix may have influenced Windows Vista Virtualization

Apparently, a complaint that involved Phoenix Technologies and their HyperSpace and Hyper Core products that aim to virtualize at the BIOS level, caused Microsoft to allow running Microsoft Vista as a guest OS.

The issue was only in the End User License Agreement, not with OS itself.

"In January 2008, Microsoft needed only to modify the EULA to implement the changes; there had never been a technical barrier to virtualizing either version of Windows.

"The complaint concerned a restriction in Microsoft's Vista EULA, which purported, for less expensive versions of Vista (Home Basic and Home Premium), to bar the user from running those versions of Windows on virtualization software"

"Phoenix, which had recently announced a virtualization product, complained that Microsoft's EULA restrictions would deter OEMs from including its product on new PCs and also deter consumers from using virtualization software made by Phoenix and other companies"

Vista virtualization rules relaxed to quash antitrust probes

Phoenix HyperCore and SupportSoft integration

Phoenix Technologies and SupportSoft announced integration of the HyperCore (Phoenix's virtualization environment that allows running a parallel OS) and SupportSoft agent.

No particulars on how the solution will work, only general statements about managing and maintaining user OS. The claim is that HyperCore and SuperSoft's agent will enable PC diagnostics and repair when user OS crashes.

Phoenix Technologies and SupportSoft Team to Develop Breakthrough in Remote PC Management and User Continuity via HyperSpace(TM)

ASPLOS ( Architectural Support for Programming Languages and Operating Systems)

Thirteenth International Conference on Architectural Support for Programming Languages and Operating Systems.

http://research.microsoft.com/asplos08/registration.htm

March 1-5, 2008 in Seattle, WA

By February 11th - $585
February 12th - 28th - $675
On Site - $700

• Architecture of the Windows Vista Kernel (tutorial)
• Memory System Performance and Correctness 2008 (workshop)
• Does multicore change the way we should design caches? (tutorial)
• Research Accelerator for Multiprocessors (tutorial)
• Using the Singularity Research Development Kit (tutorial)
• Hands-On Pin for Architecture, Operating Systems, and Program Analysis Research (tutorial)
• Using the M5 Simulator (tutorial)
• NVidia GPU programming (tutorial)
• Learning and Inference Tutorial (LIT) for Large Design and Parameter Spaces (tutorial)

Dilbert goes BIOS

Click to see larger image

1.6TB Solid State Disks - BitMicro

BitMicro announced a new solid state disk, an "E-Disk Altima"

• Capacity 16GB - 1.6TB
• 4Gb FC
• Sampling Q1-2008
• Shipping volume Q2-2008
• 230MB/s, 55,000 I/O (I think this is comparable to other solid state disks)

Company news release, November 12th, 2007
Company news release, November 13th 2007 (Supercomputing, Reno, Nevada)

Hitachi jumps on the "Hypervisor in our firmware" bandwagon

It seems like the trend continues. Here's an article about Hitachi's offering of their firmware based hypervisor on the Xeon platform.

“ASIC coupled with embedded firmware”.

“Other attempts to embed virtualization within a server don't do so in hardware. In September, XenSource Inc. announced an embedded virtualization platform called XenExpress that integrates into servers via flash or on the hard disk. Similarly, VMware's ESX Server 3i fits on 32 MB of flash memory.”

“Virtage can partition physical server resources by building multiple isolated logical partitions (up to 16 partitions per server module) capable of running independently and supporting independent operating environments on each logical partition. It also provides a secure environment for each virtual machine and fault isolation through hardware boundaries.”

“BladeSymphony's SMP interconnect backplane supports two-socket Itanium processor blades that can be scaled up and/or out for up to two eight-socket (or 16-way) servers in a single chassis or eight two-socket (or four-way) servers.”

Hitachi blades virtualize without VMware