System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6

Solution Brief

System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6 Innovative data warehouse performance and availability The world’s information is doubling every two years. IDC predicts from 2010 to 2020, the information managed by enterprise datacenters will grow by 50 times while the number of files will grow by 75 times. And yet the pool of IT staff to manage this information will only grow by 1.5 times.1 Businesses capable of extracting the competitive advantages hidden in that data—without adversely impacting their IT administration—stand to profit. To do that successfully, you need tools that can efficiently manage expanding data volumes while simultaneously providing the power required to manipulate and mine that data for business insights. Breakthrough technology provides the ability to extract value from mushrooming data volumes, even with finite capital and operational resources. Powered by next-generation System x X6 technology and Intel Xeon enterprise-class processors, the System x® Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6 provides outstanding performance and scalability for your mission-critical big data and business intelligence applications.

Beginning with servers built on the latest generation of Enterprise XArchitecture™, the standardized hardware, software and memory advancements combines with costeffective Microsoft SQL Server to provide a tested solution that is fast, agile and resilient. This gives you the power to manage your burgeoning data and uncover the business value it contains.

Fast data warehouse performance Successfully growing your business places extraordinary requirements on your mission-critical data resources, and as the volume and velocity of data explodes, those demands are compounded. Meeting continually-expanding needs calls for greater performance than ever. But maximizing the performance of your data warehouse solution—and therefore the value— requires a smarter, more comprehensive approach.

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System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6

Agile system design

Hardware built for performance

While faster performance is vital to remaining competitive, it is a business reality that you will undoubtedly require more operational capabilities next year than you do now. The System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6 can meet your current demands as well as your future needs.

100% faster X6 servers can produce

That is because both pieces of the solution—System x X6 enterprise servers and Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse— incorporate built-in scalability that provides the performance you need now that is combined with the ability to add capacity as you need it. For example, the System x X6 enterprise servers couple a unique rack design that incorporates modular component books along with FastSetup™. This combination allows you to:

TWICE the performance of previous-generation systems.2

The System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6 provides that performance. Built on Intel Xeon E7-4800/8800 v2 processors, System x enterprise servers with X6 technology provide faster database performance through better bandwidth and lower latencies. Integrating an innovative design that locates up to 12 TB of ultra-low latency eXFlash memory-channel storage close to the processor, with higher I/O bandwidth that has been relocated for increased performance, System x X6 enterprise servers provide up to: ●● ●

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100 percent faster performance than previous generation systems.2 Three times the memory capacity of previous generation systems.3 One-third the write latency of PCIe-based flash.4

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Reduce acquisition costs without compromising capacity or performance. Speed server deployment from days to minutes. Support three generations of processor technology within the same chassis. Scale from 2 sockets and 48 DIMMs to 8 sockets and 192 DIMMs. Swap components quickly, including compute, storage and full-length and half-length I/O books as well as fans and power supplies.

In addition, Microsoft SQL Server can expand data warehouses with built-in database features like Remote Blob Storage and partitioned tables that scale to 15,000 partitions. The xVelocity in-memory analytics engine allows you to extract valuable business intelligence from tens of billions of rows of data.

Microsoft SQL Server incorporates the xVelocity in-memory column store index to reduce I/O and CPU loads while improving memory utilization. In fact, the xVelocity in-memory column store index can accelerate query times by up to 100 times.5 Combining these Microsoft SQL Server advantages with the powerful X6 enterprise server, this solution will give your organization very fast access to business insights.

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System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6

In addition, advanced core recovery capabilities protect the system against consumed errors that could reach critical applications. Modules for the System x X6 enterprise server platform integrate predictive failure analysis (PFA) and microcode management as well as diagnostics.

“The IBM infrastructure gave us everything we needed in terms of reliability, scalability, performance and flexibility—and both IBM and GBM did a fantastic job on the implementation and subsequent support.”

Microsoft SQL Server AlwaysOn incorporates wizards that reduce customer-required set-up and tuning, and provides dashboards that allow at-a-glance insight into system health. The result of these built-in system protections is outstanding system availability and dependability for mission-critical database applications. By integrating these technologies into the system platform, the System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6 helps you:

—Gabriela Espinoza, IT Director, Ministerio de Hacienda de Costa Rica

When combined with the System x X6 enterprise server’s ability to scale RAM up to 12 TB, the xVelocity in-memory analytics compression algorithm and column-oriented storage provides you outstanding expandability. With that capability, you will be confident your data warehouse solution can quickly adapt to future demands, regardless of how quickly that future arrives.

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Perform maintenance and serviceability faster due to the modular design. Eliminate restarts and ease serviceability by minimizing the number of system “touches.” Reduce downtime due to self healing architectures for CPU failures.

Resilient enterprise platform

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You know speed and scalability are crucial to preserving your competitive edge. But because unanticipated or excessive system downtime can offset any performance and agility gains, system dependability is just as vital.

Fast. Agile. Resilient. It is no secret your data warehouse solution and its ability to deliver actionable information when and where you need it is crucial to your success. You can depend on the System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6 to provide the speed, scalability and resilience you need to supply that information, along with the bottom line results your business demands.

The System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6 is built on the proven resilience of the System x platform. As an example, advanced memory recovery capabilities monitor and identify fail-prone memory pages and quarantine them to avoid outages.

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Featuring System x X6 enterprise servers that are powered by Intel Xeon processors, and incorporating next-generation X6 technology, the solution’s hardware is fast enough to meet your current needs and agile enough to adapt as your needs grow. And Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse takes advantage of that hardware to reliably provide the data warehousing and business intelligence power you demand now, along with the performance scalability future data volumes will require.

Why System x System x is the leading provider of x86 systems for the data center. The portfolio includes rack, tower, blade, dense and converged systems, and supports enterprise class performance, reliability and security. System x also offers a full range of networking, storage, software and solutions, and comprehensive services supporting business needs throughout the IT lifecycle.

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IDC, “Extracting Value from Chaos,” June 2011, http://www.emc.com/leadership/programs/digital-universe.htm

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100% performance improvement is based on preliminary results of SPECint*_rate_base2006, SPECfp*_rate _base2006, and TPC-E benchmarks, plus performance gains from eXFlash DIMM storage. SPEC and TPC benchmark results will be available at www.spec.org and www.tpc.org, respectively, after 2/18/14. Configurations: 4-socket x3850 X6 server using Intel Xeon processor E7-4890 v2 vs. 4-socket server using the previous top-of-the-line E7-4870 (v1).

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6TB maximum memory vs. 2TB or less for previous-generation competitive 4-socket servers.

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Laboratory testing shows eXFlash DIMMs can deliver 3 times lower latency (5 µs) than PCIe based flash (15-19 µs).

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Microsoft. xVelocity in SQL Server 2012 Delivers Order-of-Magnitude Gains for Data Warehouse Queries. March 2012. http://download.microsoft.com/ download/7/2/E/72E63D2D-9F73-42BB-890F-C1CA0931511C/ SQL_Server_2012_xVelocityBenchmark_DatasheetMar2012.pdf

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For more information To learn more about the System x Solution for Microsoft SQL Data Warehouse on X6, please go to: ibm.com/X6

Availability: Offers, prices, specifications and availability may change without notice. Lenovo is not responsible for photographic or typographic errors. Warranty: For a copy of applicable warranties, write to: Warranty Information, 500 Park Offices Drive, RTP, NC, 27709, Attn: Dept. ZPYA/B600. Lenovo makes no representation or warranty regarding third-party products or services. Trademarks: Lenovo, the Lenovo logo, ThinkServer are trademarks or registered trademarks of Lenovo. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Intel, the Intel logo, Intel Core, Core Inside, Xeon and Xeon Inside are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. Other company, product, and service names may be trademarks or service marks of others. Visit www.lenovo.com/lenovo/us/en/safecomp.html periodically for the latest information on safe and effective computing. IBM x86 products are now products of Lenovo in the U.S. and other countries. Learn more at ibm.com/lenovo-acquisition

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