Mainframe is now platform for mainstream

Enterprise Networks & Servers, Sep 2005 by Shacklett, Mary

Unisys adds features to ClearPath

Unisys announced in July that it is adding new features to its ClearPath mainframes that will enable Java vendors and IT developers to deploy J2EE applications in a mainframe environment. Other mainframe suppliers have made similar moves, with three central goals:

* Reinventing the mainframe in today's enterprise from a remnant legacy system to an active deployment platform for modern applications with industrial-strength security systems, tools and reliability that are unapproachable by client/server platforms;

* Improving return on investment (ROI) figures for the mainframe by providing pay-for-use scenarios that allow enterprises to scale their costs as well as their computing;

* Reforming mainframe perceptions in younger application developers and decision-makers, who will now have a clearer understanding of where mainframes can really benefit their companies - above and beyond the support of legacy applications.

"The IT market has changed with a move toward J2EE-packaged solutions and more service-oriented architecture that employs Java-based development," said Rod Sapp, director of marketing for Unisys ClearPath. "At the same time, there is an industrial void that we have been hearing about from both our customers and our ISVs, Larger companies are coming from mainframe environments. They are comfortable with mainframe attributes such as robust security, scalability and superior service levels, and they are not at ease with deploying their Java applications in other operating environments. Our challenge in filling this need was to ask ourselves how we could provide the best of both worlds. The result is a new set of ClearPath features that allows corporate IT to deploy Java in the ClearPath environment, taking advantage of mature computing. We can make this affordable by offering companies pay-per-use options on the mainframe."

The real differentiator for Unisys is the pay-per-use mainframe service option. Under the program, Unisys will ship a fully-provisioned ClearPath mainframe to a purchasing customer, who pays only for the CPUs, I/O and network connections actually used.

"We have two payment models for the option," Sapp said. "The first operates a bit like a cellphone payment plan, where you pre-pay a monthly amount, and are billed for any excess resources that you utilize which exceed your pre-paid quantity. The second payment model involves a prepayment for a stated term, say of five years. These payment models also take into account the size of the company, as measured by the number of accounts (banks), policies (insurance) or other criteria."

Pay-per-use assists companies with mainframe return-on-investment calculations because they are no longer paying for computer capacity that they are not using. Unisys equips its ClearPath mainframes with what Sapp describes as "governors" that meter resource use, and which companies can regulate in order to move performance up or down. With pay-per-use, Sapp estimates that the average ClearPath customer will save 30 percent on computing costs.

"Pay-per-use is something that none of our competitors offer, and we feel it is a strong response to our customers' need for computing flexibility and total control - without excessive financial exposure," Sapp said. "With pay-per-use, Unisys' success is tied directly to the success of its customers."

Early results indicate strong customer acceptance of the pay-per-use approach. Sapp said that nine months after Unisys first announced the pay-per-use initiative, more than one-third of its ClearPath customers have switched to pay-per-use. "Today, 80 percent of new ClearPath proposals are going out with the pay-per-use option."

Delivering a cost-effective mainframe solution favorably positions Unisys at the same time that companies are struggling with large and complex server farms that they are trying to consolidate. With object-oriented and Javabased solutions, the average enterprise now has three tiers of servers: for the web, for applications and for databases. What once appeared to be an inexpensive computing model that could be incremented on demand, has now become less cost effective because all of those multiple licenses get expensive.

This builds a powerful argument for centralizing application deployment on the mainframe, where licensing costs are less, resource management is simplified and production-enabled applications have the benefit of a mature computing environment. "The biggest challenge that we run into when we visit sites is that there truly are two distinct IT cultures-Java and the mainframe," Sapp said. "We continue to find that there is not a lot of collaboration between these two camps, so there is still an education process that needs to occur so that both can appreciate each other's environment. On the Java/network side, the sensitivity leans toward service-oriented architectures and flexible computing. Priorities on the mainframe side are manageability, security and service levels."