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NEC Launches New Fault-Tolerant Server Model Featuring Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processors

- Tokyo -

NEC Corporation  today announced the launch of a new NEC Express5800/ft series fault-tolerant server (note 1) featuring up to two Quad-Core Intel(R) Xeon(R) Processors (note 2). The latest ft series model, 320Fc-MR, is the first server product designed under the joint development agreement signed by NEC and Massachusetts-based Stratus Technologies, Inc. in November 2005.

 

The NEC Express5800/320Fc-MR will first go on sale in Japan and North America on July 9, 2007, followed by Asia Pacific market launch at a later date.

 

In addition to enhancing its GeminiEngine chipset that NEC designed to ensure lockstep processing in redundant components, the 320Fc-MR features up to two Quad-Core Intel(R) Xeon(R) Processor X5355 and a 1333MHz front side bus (improved from 1066MHz in the previous models), achieving up to five times the processing power of the previous single-core processor models (note 3).

 

Supporting Microsoft(R) Windows Server(R) 2003, Enterprise Edition (note 4), the 320Fc-MR is also the first ft series model to support Red Hat Enterprise Linux v.4 (note 5).  This allows a wide range of open-source applications to run on Red Hat Linux in the high-availability fault-tolerant server.

 

Furthermore, the 320Fc-MR features Active Upgrade(TM) (note 6) to minimize system downtime associated with update activities(note 7).  The new software product enables the user to install update modules or operating system-related security patches without rebooting the system.
 
NEC's fault-tolerant servers address planned and unplanned downtime through its dual modular architecture, which enables the active and physically replicated modules to process the same instructions simultaneously.  The replicated modules include CPU, memory, I/O components, hard disk drives, power supply and cooling fans.  In the event of a hardware failure, the replicated module continues normal operation, ensuring transparent failover and system integrity. The faulty module is separated automatically, but there is no need to interrupt system operation during replacement.

 

In recent years, an increasing number of corporations are calling for operational stability to minimize the risk of business disruption due to hardware failures, along with high-speed processing capabilities to handle a massive amount of data.

 

Providing high processing power and reliability, the NEC Express5800/320Fc-MR is the optimum choice for enterprise customers -from Web service providers to medium-sized corporations running mission-critical systems and data centers with management servers running around the clock.

 

Based on NEC's new IT platform vision, "REAL IT PLATFORM" (note 8), the 320Fc-MR has been designed not only to offer ultimate availability through its hardware redundancy, but also to deliver enhanced system continuity and cost performance, along with high computing power.

 

Notes
1: A non-stop server that continues normal operation through transparent failover in the event of a hardware failure
2: Intel and Xeon are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.
3: Performance was measured by running multi-threaded applications and compared to that of NEC's previous dual-core ft series models. 
4: Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries.
5: Red Hat is a trademark or registered trademark of Red Hat Inc. in the United States and other countries. Linux is a trademark of Linus Torvalds. Linux is a trademark or registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States and other countries.
6: Active Upgrade is a trademark of Stratus Technologies Bermuda Ltd.
7: Active Upgrade is not available for Linux.
8: Announced in July 2006 for realization of next generation IT platforms. For more details, please go to: http://www.nec.co.jp/press/en/0607/1801.html

 

Other company names, logos and brand names are trademarks or registered trademarks of others.

 

About NEC Corporation
NEC Corporation (NASDAQ: NIPNY) is one of the world's leading providers of Internet, broadband network and enterprise business solutions dedicated to meeting the specialized needs of its diverse and global base of customers. NEC delivers tailored solutions in the key fields of computer, networking and electron devices, by integrating its technical strengths in IT and Networks, and by providing advanced semiconductor solutions through NEC Electronics Corporation. The NEC Group employs more than 150,000 people worldwide. For additional information, please visit the NEC home page at: http://www.nec.com  (Newsroom: http://www.nec.co.jp/press/en/)