HP, Oracle Develop Data Warehouse Appliance
The system will be based on the HP BladeSystem c7000 and incorporate Oracle software, including the Oracle 10g Enterprise Edition database, Real Application Clusters database clustering software, and automatic storage management and partitioning systems.
Data warehouse systems, once utilized only by large companies, are increasingly being installed by smaller businesses as they collect ever-larger volumes of data and use business intelligence tools to analyze the information. Data warehouse appliances, from vendors ranging from IBM and Teradata to Netezza and DATAllegro, are designed to be quicker and easier to implement using preconfigured computer and storage systems and preinstalled database software and other infrastructure applications.
The HP BladeSystem for Oracle Optimized Warehouse will target midsize to large companies and be offered in 1-, 2-, 3- and 4-Tbyte configurations, said Rich Ghiossi, marketing director of HP's business intelligence portfolio. The system will incorporate InfiniBand interconnect technology for processor, storage and I/O communications. HP is emphasizing the system's energy efficiency, saying it reduces power consumption by 65 percent compared to competing products.
HP will ship the preconfigured hardware to Avnet and the distributor will load the software provided by Oracle, Ghiossi said. Avnet is expected to begin selling the systems through select VARs in July, initially in the Americas and then in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
"I think it represents a significant selling opportunity," said Rick Alvarez, vice president and general manager, HP Solutions Group, Avnet Technology Solutions Americas, in Phoenix. He said the HP BladeSystem for Oracle Optimized Warehouse should find a ready market both among businesses that are looking for an Oracle-based data warehouse solution or already have Oracle software and need a more cost-effective way to run it.
Avnet will make the HP-Oracle system available to all its Oracle and HP resellers. But Avnet's initial efforts will focus on a dozen or so HP Solution Elite VARs that sell into the Oracle solution market Alvarez said. He expected the entry price for the hardware for the data warehouse appliance to be in the range of $250,000.
Pricing will be set by the solution providers, Ghiossi said. While HP and Oracle sales representatives also may sell the systems, all fulfillment will be through channel partners, he added.