1. IBM Systems and Technology
HP Itanium Migration to
IBM System x
Why move from HP Itanium to IBM?

2. 2 HP Itanium Migration with IBM System x
Highlights
G Oracle is the third software vendor, after Red Hat and
Microsoft, to announce that they will no longer develop
software for Itanium processors and will cease to support
their products on Itanium
G HP has responded to declining support for Itanium by
announcing Project Odyssey, a path for migrating mission
critical workloads to Intel Xeon-based blades—“within the
next two years.”1
G IBM offers an x86-based solution for mission critical
workloads today: The eX5 portfolio, designed for analytics,
transaction processing, virtualization, and ERP applications
G IBM can provide an assessment through the
IBM Xinfrastructure Optimization (XIO) program
to develop a low risk migration strategy
Migrate to IBM System x to secure your
future “ If workload analysis determines that
HP Itanium products face a bleak future now that Oracle has
x86 multicores can do the job, we suggest
announced that they will no longer develop software for Itanium
processors. This recent development has HP clients wondering that IBM’s System x line be evaluated.
what they should do next. The future of HP Itanium is in ques- We find it superior in terms of breadth
tion, but HP does not offer an x86 solution for mission-critical and depth to Hewlett-Packard and Oracle
workloads today. With a proven, innovative IBM x86 solution
available now, it is time to begin a conversation about how
x86 offerings for a variety of reasons—
IBM can help secure your long-term IT strategy as well as save particularly in system design, configuration
you time, money and resources with a partner you can trust. offerings, and related systems software.”
IBM is offering HP Itanium clients a low risk migration
—Joe Clabby, President, Clabby Analytics
solution. Customers can switch to IBM eX5 servers with
intelligent Intel Xeon processors through a minimal cost
migration with an assessment from IBM® System x® Lab
Services provided through the IBM xInfrastructure Optimization
(XIO) program. Clients will benefit from IBM’s award winning Key benefits of xInfrastructure
consulting services and industry-leading server systems
Optimization
to achieve better performance, virtualization and energy
Some of the possible benefits of performing the xInfrastructure
utilization than comparable HP Itanium based systems.
Optimization assessment are:
G Establish a business and technical justification for pursuing
initiatives and migrations within your environment
G Establish a financial roadmap for the timeline and effort
required to meet your goals
G Identify major technical challenges early on and develop
mitigation strategies
G Benchmark the current environment with industry peers

3. IBM Systems and Technology 3
Why should I choose IBM System x to run With the eX5 enterprise servers, IBM’s fifth generation of the
my business? industry leading enterprise x86 servers, IBM engineers have
IBM System x solutions are the result of our approach redefined X by radically expanding the capabilities of x86 servers,
to building proven IBM innovation around industry-standard leveraging the deep history of IBM innovation. The new
components. These solutions span feature-rich, scalable enter- eX5 servers emphasize three crucial design goals:
prise x86 servers to rack-optimized servers designed for business
productivity to entry-level tower servers. IBM differentiates G Maximize memory: eX5 systems offer memory capacity
itself in the crowded x86 marketplace by offering high value, beyond the constraints of industry standard servers. The
enterprise offerings that are easy to deploy and manage, unique System x capability to expand memory independently
leadership quality and service, and leading technology. of the processor has unlocked an unprecedented amount of
configuration flexibility. You no longer have to add another
(underused and expensive) processor simply because you need
more memory for your existing applications. In fact, if your
“ To us, the biggest difference is in the amount applications (or your need for virtualization) require huge
quantities of memory—more than the chassis can hold, in
of memory that can be accessed by the operat- fact—eX5 allows you to expand the chassis with an external
ing environment (to enable more virtual MAX5 memory chassis, for the most memory in the industry
machines to be run), and by applications in each of these classes of servers.
that want to place more data in memory eX5 systems also offer the industry’s only solution for high
in order to process that data more rapidly.
G
performance internal storage. IBM eXFlash technology is an
IBM’s system design and its innovations internal storage solution based on 1.8 inch solid state drives
lead to the ability to install and exploit and performance-optimized disk controllers. A single eXFlash
unit supports up to eight solid state drives, 240,000 random
more memory than comparable HP’s read IOPS, and 1.6 TB internal storage. This exclusive
servers. IBM’s 4 socket blades and its storage solution delivers significantly higher analytics
x86 rack designs show the same type of performance at a drastically lower cost when compared to
traditional hard disk drives.
characteristics—access to more memory,
better memory management, better G Minimize cost: With the 2-socket System x3690 X5, System x
(in our opinion) redundancy and availability has lowered the acquisition cost of enterprise servers, while
preserving the ability to expand to much greater capabilities
characteristics, and denser designs.” if and when needed. IBM doesn’t force you to buy everything
up front, as some competitive systems do. You can extend
—Joe Clabby, Clabby Analytics memory as you need it. And more memory means you can
run more virtual machines (VMs) per processor, which helps
lower your per-processor software licensing costs. See up to
50 percent savings in software licensing for the same number
of VMs or database users or nearly twice the number of VMs
(82 percent more) for the same license cost.2
G Simplify deployment: With single points of management
and remote administration, eX5 systems are built for simpler
qualification, faster deployment and easier administration.
eXFlash SSD technology allows you to drastically reduce
cables and drives. IBM innovation helps set you apart from
the competition. More affordable IT allows you to take cost
out of IT and use those resources to fuel innovation in your
own projects.

4. “ IBM offers a steady drumbeat of strong
innovations across all segments—from
the x86-based System x systems to the © Copyright IBM Corporation 2012
higher-end Power Systems to the System z IBM Corporation
mainframe business—and solid product Storage and Technology Group
294 Route 100
roadmaps in which customers can put Somers, NY 10589
their faith.” Produced in the United States of America
January 2012
—Rod Adkins, IBM Systems and Technology Group, Sr. VP IBM, the IBM logo, ibm.com, and System x are trademarks of International
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IBM has experience moving thousands of clients from information” at ibm.com/legal/copytrade.shtml
competitive platforms with minimal risk or disruption with
Intel and Intel Xeon are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel
our proven migration methodology as well as our long history Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.
of commitment to protecting clients’ investments and open
Other company, product or service names may be trademarks or service
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tion, IBM has successfully migrated 5700 clients in the last five 1
http://h30507.www3.hp.com/t5/Mission-Critical-Computing-Blog/
years. IBM is willing to work with your other vendors to deliver Got-Questions-About-HP-Project-Odyssey-Single-Platform-Mission/
a solution right for your business needs. ba-p/103473
2
http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/migratetoibm/hp
For more information
To learn more about the IBM System x, please contact your Please Recycle
IBM marketing representative or IBM Business Partner, or
visit the following website: ibm.com/systems/x
Additionally, IBM Global Financing can help you acquire the
IT solutions that your business needs in the most cost-effective
and strategic way possible. We’ll partner with credit qualified
clients to customize an IT financing solution to suit your busi-
ness goals, enable effective cash management, and improve your
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choice to fund critical IT investments and propel your business
forward. For more information, visit: ibm.com/financing
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