IBM’s new BladeCenter QS22

IBM has expanded its High Performance Computing (HPC) capabilities for businesses with the introduction their new BladeCenter QS22 - a new, economical supercomputing technology inspired by advanced scientific research facilities. The heart of the QS22 is the multi-core IBM PowerXCell 8i processor, a new generation processor based on the Cell Broadband Engine (Cell/B.E.) Architecture, which is compliant with the Cell Broadband Engine (Cell/B.E.) Architecture, originally developed by IBM, Sony and Toshiba to provide the computing power for cutting-edge gaming applications. For the most challenging arithmetic operations the IBM PowerXCell 8i offers five-times the speed of the original Cell/B.E. processor and, coupled with additions like 16-times more memory (up to 32GB) than its predecessors, the QS22 can handle workloads that previously required dozens of servers.

By utilizing the PowerXCell 8i processor, the QS22 also allows IT managers to evaluate how much of an application would need the supercomputing power of the Cell/B.E. Architecture and how much could remain on a traditional system, providing the full range of options in the midst of other system priorities. For development, the QS22 boasts an open environment, utilizing the flexibility of Red Hat Enterprise Linux as the primary operating system and the open development environment of Eclipse. For energy efficiency, it increases the performance-per-watt and better manages power draw from the overall server chassis from previous generations.

IBM has also made available thousands of pages of technical documentation on the Cell/B.E. Architecture to the public, including a free, full-system simulator. IBM has released an upgrade to its Software Development Kit (SDK) for Multicore Acceleration v3, providing enhancements and templates to enable clients to utilize the new features of QS22.

The IBM QS22 will be available in early June, while the SDK for Multicore Acceleration v3 is available now.