New additions to IBM’s Flex System portfolio have been added, including new virtualization, networking and management tools. The offerings consist of three systems built on both IBM POWER7+ and a “double dense” x222 system built on x86 technology. IBM also said it has upgraded the Flex System Manager to enable users to monitor and manage up to 5,000 infrastructure end points and do so from any location using iOS, Android and Blackberry mobile devices.
The new toolsets consist of Flex System x222, a new double density design built on x86 architecture that supports up to 2,800 Windows 7 user images in a single chassis; and Flex System p460, which delivers POWER7+ performance for clients with larger workloads. Additional offerings include Flex System p270, a POWER7+ option that is designed for medium-sized businesses and is intended to boost performance for technical computing and data analytics; and Flex System p260, a new entry-level POWER7+ node for IBM i workloads.
IBM also has released a mobile-based console called Flex System Manager, which is designed to enable management of more systems from a single point of control and the ability to do so from any location with iOS, Android or Blackberry devices. Flex System Manager also has been expanded with the ability to manage the System x HANA-optimized x3950, and includes new switches and fabrics that help enable Software Defined Networks (SDN) and improve connectivity and performance by increasing infrastructure bandwidth up to 40Gb.
The IBM Flex System is intended to be part of the vendor's PureSystems configurations.
For more information on IBM Flex System visit www.ibm.com/flex.