POWER6 withdrawal and its implications

In his article posted on ‘The Register’, Feb 8th, Timothy Morgan comments on IBM’s planned withdrawl timetable for the POWER6 server range :

“…..in announcement letter 911-010, IBM says it is removing the Power6 and Power6+ machines that are still in it’s catalog. The BladeCenter JS23 and JS43 blade servers (7778-23X) are no longer going to be available after April 29 of this year. The Power 520 (8203-E4A) and the Power 550 (8204-E8A) are withdrawn from marketing on May 27, and the high-end Power 595 gets the axe on July 29. IBM says that JS23/JS43 buyers should look to the PS701 blade, Power 520 shoppers should think about a Power 720, Power 550 shops should consider a Power 740, and Power 595 tyre-kickers should ponder the Power 795 as replacement products once these old machines go off the market.”

He points out that one option for customers considering purchasing POWER6 after these dates is the Used market, but I wonder if that is the route that most POWER customers will want to consider?

So what should a POWER user being considering now, to best protect themselves going forward? The first thing to point out is that although IBM are withdrawing the ‘New’ sales of POWER6 systems, upgrade paths from them to POWER7, and CoD upgrades for installed systems will still be available for some time to come. This announcement has the most impact for customers considering new servers currently that by choice would prefer a POWER6 system, typically for software compatability reasons. The announced withdrawl dates range from April to July, with the Enterprise class 9119/FHA last to be withdrawn. Therefore, it is imperative that if a POWER6 is the only solution possible to your requirement, you need to be working on a solution plan, timetable and ultimately a Purchase Order ahead of these planned WDFM dates. Applied Technologies are well placed to evaluate all possibilities, including testing applications on both POWER6 and 7 platforms, TCO analysis and more to ensure you purchase the best solution for your needs.

Nevertheless, there is another option even after the WDFM date. Perhaps you should consider a Used system, but from IBM’s own re-marketing plant. If you have never heard of this facet of IBM, you are not alone. IBM re-marketing can supply all manner of previously owned IBM products, refurbished at their plant and supportable for maintenance, SWMA and more. If you want to compare an official IBM Used price with a new solution, or even the 3rd Party brokers, contact Applied today. You may be surprised with the savings you can make, and it may reduce the time pressure to make a decision before July.

In the rest of the article, Timothy rightly comments on the considerable number of other hardware and software technologies being withdrawn, or that are coming to the end of their support. Undoubtedly there will be a significant number of customers still using these technologies and they will be useful in the jobs they perform for years to come. There will be a number of 3rd party support and upgrades options available, but I would encourage any client currently running on systems or OS close to the end of its support/upgrade path to consider a TCO assessment from Applied. We will look at the costs of migrating to the newer technology, whilst also considering any technical barriers to adopting the new solutions. Once the analysis is complete, it may only serve to prove that the legacy technology is the best solution, but Applied will be happy to complete the work regardless.

Contact the Applied team : applied-tech.co.uk

To learn more about the original post, visit the register at : http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/02/08/ibm_kills_power_6_6_plus_servers/