HP Superdome Server Sets World Records in Two Key Performance Areas; Competition Noticeably Absent as HP Extends Performance Leadership with New OLTP and Data Warehousing Results

Business Wire, August 26, 2002

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 26, 2002

HP (NYSE:HPQ) today announced record-breaking online transaction processing (OLTP) and data warehousing benchmark results on its HP Superdome server running 64 PA-8700 processors, the HP-UX 11i operating system and HP StorageWorks VA7100 disk arrays.

HP now holds the distinction of being the only high-end server vendor in the industry to publish both single-system Oracle TPC-C(1) (OLTP) and TPC-H 3 terabyte(2) benchmarks, clearly demonstrating the HP Superdome server's outstanding performance and value. These results mark the next step towards HP's goal of doubling the server's performance by 2003.

The following results establish a world-leading position for both OLTP and data warehousing performance:

                         OLTP                  Data warehousing
                         ---------------       -----------------------
                         TPC-C                 TPC-H (3 TB)
                         ---------------       -----------------------
HP Superdome             423,414 tpmC          27,094 QphH @
                         @$15.64/tpmC(1)       $222/QphH(2)

Sun SunFire 15K          No published          23,813 QphH @
                         result(4)             $215/QphH(2)

IBM p690                 403,255 tpmC
Regatta                  @$17.80/tpmC(1)       No published result(4)

"Any company can publish a good result for a single benchmark, but publishing world record benchmarks across several workloads tests the limits of a server," said Mark Hudson, worldwide marketing manager, HP Business Critical Systems. "The fact that neither IBM nor Sun have published both benchmarks raises serious questions about the abilities of their high-end servers to deliver strong performance across varied workloads."

HP Superdome Server Breaks Online Transaction Processing Record

The HP Superdome server set a new world record for single-system Oracle-based TPC-C with a result of 423,414 tpmC at $15.64/tpmC (transactions per minute).(1) TPC-C simulates a complete computing environment in which a population of users executes transactions against a database. In addition to its performance leadership, the HP Superdome server delivers a lower cost per transaction with a 12 percent price/performance advantage over the IBM p690 server.

"The advantage of open systems is that vendors such as HP and Oracle can actively compete to deliver superior performance to their customers," said Richard Sarwal, vice president of server performance, Oracle Corporation. "HP's benchmark results demonstrate to customers that Oracle and open systems can deliver both superior performance and cost savings versus the competition."

Outperforming All Competitors' Data Warehousing Solutions in TPC-H 3 TB Benchmark

TPC-H simulates decision support systems that examine large volumes of data, execute queries with a high degree of complexity and give answers to critical business questions. The HP Superdome server result of 27,094 QphH (queries per hour) for a 64-processor system is 14 percent faster than Sun's 72-processor result for the SunFire 15K(2) and establishes a 28 percent performance advantage on a processor-by-processor basis.

The HP Superdome server also was able to outperform the NCR/Teradata Worldmark system, a dedicated data warehousing server with 128-processors, by 44 percent in raw performance, 195 percent in per processor performance and with four times better price/performance.(2)

In addition to demonstrating the power and scalability of HP Superdome servers and the HP-UX 11i operating system, these benchmarks illustrate the excellent performance and price/performance value of HP StorageWorks VA7100 disk arrays.

Applications Run Faster Across the Board

"When evaluating enterprise servers, it's essential to consider performance across multiple applications and varied workloads. Too often vendors cherry-pick just one or two favorable results," said Jonathan Eunice, principal analyst and IT advisor, Illuminata, Inc. "HP's latest Superdome numbers are impressive because they stress multiple dimensions and show first-rate performance on every one."

Today's record performance results add to the growing list of world records the HP Superdome server already holds. Whether using Web-based applications, enterprise-wide solutions, business intelligence or simple transaction processing, customers can expect faster response and higher value from their investments with HP Superdome servers, relative to IBM p690 and Sun SunFire 15K servers, as illustrated on the table below.

                  OLTP      Data warehousing      ERP        Java
                --------- --------------------  ---------  ----------
                 TPC-C    TPC-H     TPC-H       SAP-ATO      Spec-
                  on     (1 TB)(2) (3 TB)(2)    3-Tier(3)  JBB2000(5)
                Oracle(1)
                --------- --------------------  ---------  ----------
HP Superdome     1st       1st        1st         1st         1st

Sun SunFire15K   no        2nd        2nd         no          2nd
                 result(4)                        result(4)

IBM p690         2nd       no         no          no          3rd
                           result(4)  result(4)   result(4)