IBM is set to extend its PureSystems line of "expert integrated systems" with new servers designed to handle "big data" applications.

The new PureData systems, scheduled for debut Tuesday, will be capable of handling huge volumes of data for transactional and business analytics tasks, IBM executives told CRN in a pre-briefing.

"The challenge for most corporations is getting the right data to the right people at the right time. And often, corporate IT systems stand in the way of that," said Peter McCaffrey, IBM marketing director for PureSystems, discussing the new servers' targeted capabilities.

[Related: IBM Adds To PureSystems Partner Ranks, Expands Financing Options]

IBM launched the PureSystems line of converged infrastructure servers back in April, combining computing, networking, data storage and systems management components into a single system. The products are designed to reduce IT system complexity and be easier to install and manage.

PureSystems compete with Oracle's Engineered Systems, the company's line of servers that bundle Oracle hardware and software into turnkey appliances. The new IBM products will compete head-to-head with Oracle's Exadata Database Machine.

The original PureSystems included the PureFlex server for general computing tasks and PureApplications for running Web and database applications.

The three systems in the new PureData line are designed to tackle various big data online transaction processing (OLTP) and business analysis tasks.

The new PureData System for Transactions, for example, is designed to consolidate multiple operational databases into a single system that's optimized for processing large volumes of transactions. It will incorporate the PureScale clustering technology that's based on IBM's DB2 relational database.

The other two are architected for business analysis applications. The PureData System for Operational Analytics system can pull in thousands of transactions for real-time analysis, such as for fraud detection or spotting trends in financial trading, said Nancy Kopp, IBM Big Data strategies director.

And, the new PureData System for Analytics is based on the data warehouse appliance technology IBM acquired when it bought Netezza in 2010, Kopp said. That system is capable of working with structured and unstructured data.

IBM has touted the attractiveness of the PureSystems to the company's channel partners -- McCaffrey said the integrated architecture has been a "big channel play" -- and in August the company said more than 700 solution providers, ISVs and resellers have been working with PureSystems. More than 60 ISVs have specifically committed to supporting the new PureData systems, according to IBM.

McCaffrey said IBM's 136 Netezza partners "will be an important channel" for the PureData System for Analytics product.

The PureData Systems are slated to ship at the end of this month.

PUBLISHED OCT. 8, 2012