Monday March 12, 2007
Monday March 12, 2007 Staying on the Cutting Edge: Hardware Subscription Service
I just learned about the Sun Refresh Service, a 42-month hardware subscription service for Sun Blade 8000 and Sun Blade 8000 P systems. Basically, Sun promises to automatically upgrade each of the 10 server modules in the chassis at least three times over the course of the subscription term. Upgrades will be to the latest and greatest blades as they become available.
It seems like an interesting idea for HPC customers, who are often worried about keeping their system performance as competitive as possible. I would guess this is a lot less disruptive than fork-lift upgrades to entirely new systems over the same period.
(2007-03-12 13:20:34.0) Permalink Comments [2]
Trackback URL: http://blogs.sun.com/simons/entry/staying_on_the_cutting_edge
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Well, maybe. The trouble is, whenever a human touches a box, there is a significant probability of error. Really significant. Higher than the probability of a hardware failure.
I think that Black Box is a more promising direction. Drop off a container-full of systems (blades, Thumpers, whatever) in my back yard; let me run it 24/7/365, with any failing modules bypassed and powered off; when I'm done with it, just send in a truck to take it away. In fact, Black Box doesn't go far enough: there's a door, and a gangway for a human to get into it. Seal that door and use the gangway space for more racks or better air management. The only time a Black Box should be opened up is at the factory.....
Posted by Geoff Arnold on March 12, 2007 at 11:59 PM EDT #
It's a good point. I think we do want to get to the point where a Blackbox could be viewed as a FRU (Field Replaceable Unit) and not opened during its service deployment.
I walked through a Blackbox last night. It has very hefty doors indeed. And they need to be closed for air to circulate clockwise through the unit.
Posted by Josh Simons on March 13, 2007 at 08:49 AM EDT #