Consider the cluster: Server clustering technology tunes in to carrier needs

Is it too early to call 1998 the "Year of the Cluster"? Well, perhaps it's a bit late because server clustering technology has been around for about 25 years. However, advancements in server clustering, most recently by Tandem Computers, directly appeal to carrier needs for server scalability and reliability.

Although server clustering might seem like a new trend, the concept of arranging and connecting servers to act as single platforms was pioneered in the 1970s by companies such as Tandem and Digital for servers running Unix. It then took root in the computing boom of the 1980s.

"It's like the overnight sensation that took 20 years," said Jonathan Eunice, analyst and information technology adviser at Illuminata, a consulting firm in Nashua, N.H. "There is no server platform today that doesn't have some clustering aspect to it. Even the mainframe companies are realizing they need it."

Still, industry banter about server clustering seems to have reached a new high. Within the last year, much has been made of Microsoft's Wolfpack clustering strategy for servers running on Windows NT, and more recently, Tandem began offering its NonStop Clusters for SCO UnixWare.

These developments come as public network operators are hunting for reliable server options that can let them keep up with fast-paced growth but that are still easy-to-manage and inexpensive.

"Clustering appeals to carriers' need to control incremental but fast-paced service growth," said Jim Johnson, chairman of the Standish Group a consulting firm based in Cambridge, Mass.

According to Tandem officials, NonStop Clusters matches these needs. "This makes many servers look like one system, and carriers can deploy small clusters today and add new servers to those clusters later on," said Bruce Walker, software architect at Tandem.

Key attributes of Tandem's NonStop Clusters include process migration, which allows server users to move in-progress jobs between servers without interrupting the projects. This feature also lets applications share memory and access files on any node.

A Single System Image feature allows broad multiple component management through a single console, said Bill Saulnier, director of product marketing at Tandem.

Saulnier also said NonStop Clusters' two-node price of less than $50,000 is low for a combination of high scalability and easy management.

"This is the fullest expression of the clustering ideal yet," said Eunice. Process migration embeds clustering technology as a native element of infrastructure design, he said.

Such endorsements give the idea of Unix server clustering new momentum. Despite the rich history of clustering in Unix environments, the NT development stole much of the hype last year after Microsoft formally announced the strategy at Supercomm '97.

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