IBM POWER9 – Is this the best Microprocessors ever?
Big data, artificial intelligence (AI), social media, disruptive start-ups, mobile commerce and the Internet of Things. Yet, as new technologies emerge, organisations still need to keep core systems running smoothly and reliably. Technology-driven change is transforming the face of business as we know it, and this even impacts organisations that do not yet have plans beyond their core systems. Today’s organisations must cope with ever-increasing transaction volumes, more data-intensive workloads, and demand for new services and delivery channels. And amid all of this change, the IT function must still meet enduring expectations for strong performance, availability and cost-efficiency.
It can be a tall order for IT to deliver new capabilities while ensuring that existing systems remain secure, reliable and responsive. In particular, AI and machine learning workloads are known for being intensely demanding on server infrastructures, requiring powerful parallel processing, high bandwidth and extreme scalability—demands that traditional computing architectures increasingly struggle to meet.
Enter the IBM POWER9 processor. Designed specifically for enterprise AI – but also ideal for supporting traditional IBM AIX, IBM i and Linux workloads – POWER9 is the only processor with state-of-the-art I/O subsystem technology, including next-generation NVIDIA NVLink, PCIe Gen4, and OpenCAPI, technologies that maximise data bandwidth across the entire system stack.
Compared to x86 systems, POWER9 offers four times more threads for high-performance cores, more than five times greater I/O bandwidth and over two times more memory bandwidth, making it the premier platform for accelerated computing.
With these boundary-pushing performance and bandwidth capabilities, organisations can take computing beyond today’s limits—analysing massive data sets in revolutionary ways, building new applications faster, and powering AI and machine learning workloads to unleash unprecedented insights.
And even if your organisation has no plans yet for new capabilities, POWER9 can dramatically accelerate your existing core systems and significantly reduce your cost per transaction. POWER9 continues to provide an ideal platform for supporting IBM AIX, IBM i and Linux workloads. Compared to the previous generation of Power servers, POWER9 offers the same transactional performance in less than half the physical footprint—helping you keep critical systems running at their best while shrinking costs and complexity.
Whether your organisation is looking to take the next steps on its enterprise AI journey or just to keep business running as usual, Northdoor is here to help.
As an IBM Platinum Business Partner and recognised IBM Power Systems specialist, Northdoor has a wealth of experience in deploying, maintaining and managing Power infrastructures. We can help you select and size the appropriate POWER9 systems, deploy them in the scenario that best fits your needs—on-premises or in a hybrid cloud configuration—and provide ongoing management and support that helps you get the most out of your investment in this game-changing technology.
Why Northdoor?
Northdoor plc is a Platinum level IBM Business Partner recognised as a Specialist for IBM Power Systems and Expert for IBM Storage product families. Recognised by IBM as a Centre of Technical Excellence for IBM Hardware, Northdoor has deep skills in IBM AIX, IBM i and Linux for IBM Power Systems. We are also experts in storage sizing and configuration, and in providing high-availability and business continuity solutions based on IBM PowerHA. Whether you are seeking to update and consolidate your existing Power Systems landscape, extend your footprint into the cloud, or bring new analytics workloads over from inefficient x86 server farms, Northdoor has the technical skills and successful track-record to help.
For more information or to speak to one of our experts, contact us today.
