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According to industry projections, by the year 2000 the vast majority of servers will be charged with the task of processing information and delivering services via the Internet or Intranet. From core technologies and services such as Web hosting, remote management, security and load balancing, to such advanced applications as electronic commerce IP telephony and virtual private networks, servers will increasingly be called upon to provide new levels of performance and functionality. This challenge means that standards-based server solutions will be sought to provide increasing performance and capabilities in the areas of I/O, security, manageability, and scalability, as well as a choice of operating environments, tools and applications that the next generation of Internet services will inevitably demand.
Intel is playing a leading role in helping to meet this broad set of requirements in today's and tomorrow's standard high-volume (SHV) servers. The Intel® Architecture (IA) has quickly grown to a strong position in the server marketplace because of the many advantages it holds in price/performance and capability, particularly in Windows NT*-based computing environments. That position promises to grow even stronger as IA-based SHV servers become increasingly popular for other Internet-friendly operating environments, such as Solaris* for Intel, Linux*, and BSDI UNIX*.
While the majority of Internet servers in the market today are IA-based, improvements in overall performance, price/performance and flexibility can be achieved to better meet the challenges faced by Internet Service Providers (ISPs)—as well as IHVs, ISVs and OEMs—today and in the future. To that effect, Intel is focusing on promoting an overall standards-based solutions approach designed to deliver the right hardware platform features, promote compelling IA-based Internet software tools and applications, and provide secure, reliable, and manageable server platforms.
Delivering the Right Server Hardware Features
Intel is making a major investment in Internet server platform technology. Efforts include the following:
- Processors and platform designs that scale up the I/O bandwidth and memory capabilities of IA-based servers;
- Creating the Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) specification as part of Intel's Wired for Management (WfM) initiative to improve server manageability;
- Leading development of the Virtual Interface (VI) architecture technology and distributed message passing to promote clustering applications;
- Server System Infrastructure (SSI) development activities designed to enable the industry with a common set of server element specifications.
These standards-based technologies lead to a robust, multi-vendor industry capable of providing SHV server solutions that meet or exceed the needs of ISPs and their clients.
Enabling Applications and Complete Solutions
Not only is Intel working to enable the right set of server hardware features, it is working directly with software vendors and other solutions providers to enable compelling Internet applications that can take advantage of those features. These efforts include:
- Working with Microsoft Windows NT to test and promote robust remote server management capability.
- Working with top tool and application solution providers such as US Web*, Silver Stream*, and others to validate and tune top Internet software for optimal performance on SHV servers.
- Working with leading Internet companies such as Yahoo!* to validate new processors and server products for use in Internet applications.
In addition, Intel has made equity investments in a number of software companies focused on the Internet. Examples are Inktomi* and Silver Stream. Inktomi is a company that develops scalable network applications to dramatically improve Internet information access and delivery, including Web caching and load balancing technology. Silver Stream is an ISV whose products allow developers and power users to easily develop and deploy sophisticated, HTML- and Java-based business applications for accessing relational databases and rich content. Intel also has a significant in-house software development effort of its own, as shown by its September, 1997 introduction of Intel® Quick Web software which enables Web pages to be served up faster than was previously possible.
Last year, Intel worked with SAP* to form Pandesic LLC*, a jointly-owned venture of Intel Corporation and SAP America, Inc. Pandesic LLC is focused entirely on E-business by providing a full-featured, low-cost, turnkey approach to conducting commerce on the Internet.
Intel Leading into the Future
Moving forward, Intel will continue to concentrate on improving Internet server hardware in the areas of raw performance, price/performance, and I/O bandwidth. Software efforts will be focused on enabling the broadest choice of operating environments, tools and application solutions for the Internet, with emphasis on remote manageability and security, along with E-commerce technologies and solutions.
With its standards-based platform technology efforts and its Internet application efforts, Intel is playing a significant role in the evolution of Internet server technology. As new processor and platform technologies continue to increase IA-based SHV server performance, and new applications are enabled that take advantage of those increases, that role will only get stronger in the future. Look for future articles in Platform Solutions that will explore the results of Intel's efforts to advance the capabilities of IA-based Internet server platforms.
Rick Echevarria is Director of Intel's Internet Server Program. He is responsible for developing Intel's Internet server strategies and managing relationships with ISPs and OEMs, as well as overseeing marketing programs designed to raise awareness of IA-based servers in the Internet.
For More Information:
Server Platform news and information
Intel Quick Web technology
Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI)
Virtual Interface (VI) Architecture technology
Latest news on Server Systems Infrastructure technology
Solaris for Intel
Pandesic LLC
Inktomi
Silver Stream Software, Inc.
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* Legal Information © 1998 Intel Corporation
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