IBM 325 Sales Manual

Sales Guide

August 2003 

IBM 

^ 325

Groundbreaking 32/64-bit performance in a 1U  server         

[Target Customers: Businesses requiring a High-Performance Computing server with 32-bit

(and, optionally, 64-bit) capabilities in a space-constrained data center, or Scientific/Technical

computing clusters.] 

In today’s world, replacing hardware is expensive. The challenge for your customers is to stretch

their IT dollars as far as possible. The 2-way IBM 

^ 325 lets them do exactly that by

offering affordable 32-bit computing today with growth to 64-bit computing when needed. It

supports the latest AMD Opteron processors with HyperTransport technology. HyperTransport

technology is a high-speed, point-to-point link between the processor and the memory, graphics

and I/O controllers that provides outstanding performance by bypassing many key bottlenecks

that afflict other processor architectures. Opteron is capable of running both 32-bit and 64-bit

software with blazing performance. This provides customers with the flexibility to start with 32-bit

applications and grow to 64-bit software over time, without having to replace their servers to do

so. In fact, using a 64-bit operating system, both 32-bit and 64-bit applications can be run

concurrently.

In addition, the e325 uses leading-edge industry-standard ECC (Error Checking and Correcting)

PC2700 333MHz double data rate (DDR) memory with Chipkill™ technology—for high

performance and reliability. Dual integrated Gigabit Ethernet

1

 controllers are standard, providing

high-speed data transfers and saving valuable adapter slots. 

All models offer impressive scalability for a 1U server, including dual-processor support, up to

12GB of memory and two high-performance hard disk drives with an internal storage capacity of

up to 293.6GB

2 

(hot-swap SCSI) or 240GB (fixed IDE). The built-in SCSI controller supports

RAID-1 mirroring. Additional RAID support is available via the optional IBM ServeRAID™ family

of Ultra160 and Ultra320 SCSI controllers. The ultradense 1U form factor allows businesses to

increase their computing power and spread their workload without outgrowing their current data

center. Up to 42 of these servers can be installed in a single 42U rack, for a total of up to 84

processors, offering your customers tremendous deployment flexibility. Optional Advanced

Connectivity Technology (ACT) interconnect cabling technology minimizes cable clutter, reduces

cable ost and minimizes installation time when cabling many e325 servers in a single rack. 

Standard in the e325 is an integrated systems management controller, optimized for HPC cluster

manageability, that enables the user to manage and control the server easily—both locally and

remotely. These advanced features help maximize application availability by increasing server

uptime, as do hot-swap redundant HDDs and variable speed fans.

With the inclusion of unique manageability features, such as IBM Director and support for the

optional IBM Remote Supervisor Adapter II (both planned for Q4/03) the e325 is designed for

superior uptime. In addition, IBM Cluster Systems Management can help to reduce the total

cost of ownership for cluster environments by streamlining and simplifying the management of

large numbers of servers from a single point of control.

If your customer needs leading-edge 32-bit performance in a 1U rack-optimized package, with the

added power of 64-bit computing, at a much lower cost than Itanium 2 servers currently

offer—and without replacing hardware, the e325 is the ideal system. To illustrate, in the

SPECfp_rate2000 benchmark

3

, the e325 (in a dual AMD Opteron 246 processor configuration)

Product Overview

CONTENTS

18

Legal Information . . . . . . . .

18

For More Information . . . .

14

Competitive Analysis . . . .

14

Product Positioning . . . . .

12

Easy Configurator . . . . . . .

11

Selling Features . . . . . . . . .

9

e325 Specifications . . . . . . .

8

e325 Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

7

Key Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2

Key Features . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1

Product Overview . . . . . . . .

Outstanding 32/64-bit price/performance in a rack-dense 1U, 2-way server for HPC

applications

IBM Confidential

1.

3

HP DL360 results: 

http://www.spec.org/cpu2000/results/res2003q3/cpu2000-20030630-02353.html

; HP rx2600 results: 

http://www.spec.org/cpu2000/results/res2003q3/cpu2000-20030630-02322.html

; IBM 

^ 325 results

will be available as of

2

GB equals 1,000,000,000 bytes when referring to hard disk drive capacity. Accessible capacity may be less.

1

Actual data transfer speed will vary and is often less than the maximum possible. Gigabit Ethernet transfer speed requires support on

both system and server, and appropriate network infrastructure.