Microsoft and Novell Collaborate to Deliver Hybrid Options for High-Performance Computing

Editor’s note – June 1, 2010 –
the top paragraph below was updated after the page was originally
published.

REDMOND, Wash., and
WALTHAM, Mass. — June 1, 2010 — High-performance computing
(HPC) continues to gain in popularity as businesses face increasing
pressure to process data faster and with greater precision. Microsoft
Corp. and Novell Inc., working in concert with third parties, are now
making it easier for IT executives to take advantage of the benefits of
supercomputing with a technology initiative that helps customers realize
greater IT infrastructure efficiency and subsequent cost savings.
Today, Microsoft and Novell reported strong demand for their
high-performance computing interoperability solution with 33 shared
customers now deploying sophisticated server workload management across
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and Windows HPC Server.

High-performance computing offers customers the
ability to process massive amounts of data and solve computationally
intense problems, making it an optimal choice for government entities,
universities and large companies. In the past year, Microsoft and Novell
have added HPC customer accounts in a wide range of geographies and
industries, such as the financial, healthcare, higher education and
technology sectors. Examples include Deutsche Bank AG, Honeywell
International, Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. Ltd., Texas Instruments,
Tianjin Dawning Information Industry Co. Ltd. and the Tokyo Institute of
Technology.

South Africa’s Centre for High
Performance Computing (CHPC) in Cape Town, the continent’s largest
publicly funded HPC facility, is the latest company to adopt
cross-platform solutions and enterprise support offerings from Microsoft
and Novell.

“The technical collaboration
between Microsoft and Novell has enabled us to reduce overall costs
while increasing cross-platform manageability. This means we’re able to
deliver more consistent quality of service to our customers at the best
price possible,” said Dr. Happy Sithole, Ph.D., director of CHPC. “In
addition, migrating to the Linux support offered by Novell was a great
decision for us. Not only do we get the interoperability advantages of
seamless integration between our platforms, but we also have the
confidence of knowing we are supported by two world-class vendors.”

Businesses looking for ways to streamline
infrastructure management, reduce IT costs and mitigate risk have long
realized the value of interoperability as a way to optimize mixed-source
IT environments. HPC customers now can gain the critical flexibility
they need to simplify systems management through dual-boot and hybrid
cluster solutions developed jointly by Microsoft and Novell.

“The ability to deploy and manage a complex
high-performance computing infrastructure across multiple platforms has
enabled us to streamline our IT operations without having to invest in
new hardware, people or skill sets, all while delivering better and
faster results for our clients,” said Earl J. Dodd, CEO of Rocky
Mountain Supercomputing Centers Inc.

Having
the capacity to dynamically switch between the Windows or Linux
platforms empowers IT managers to balance server workloads by running
specific applications on the platform of their choosing.

“Many customers are realizing the benefits of the
Microsoft and Novell HPC technical solution that streamlines
management functions, reduces internal support requirements and enables
greater interoperability without having to dedicate time and resources
to devise workarounds,” said Joe Wagner, senior vice president and
general manager of Global Alliances at Novell. “Through our successful
initiatives in the joint Interoperability Lab, we’ve been able to
anticipate the mixed-source IT requirements necessary in today’s
business environment.”

“Companies around the
world are realizing the benefits of our joint interoperable
cross-platform technical solutions,” said Ted MacLean, general manager
for Strategic Partnerships and Licensing at Microsoft. “The fact that
we’re able to address a real need in the HPC market is evidenced by the
number of licenses we’ve issued. These solutions, coupled with Novell’s
proven technical support programs, make it easier than ever for our
customers to have confidence that their existing infrastructure
investments will serve them well into the future.”

“For HPC customers considering a dual-platform
strategy with Windows HPC Server and a widely used Linux server product,
they will come to realize that the interoperability between Microsoft
and Novell platforms offers a clear advantage,” said Nie Hua, vice
president of Dawning Information Industry. “Not only will you get the
unprecedented flexibility of running either server, but you will have
confidence in knowing that both operating systems will work seamlessly
together in the datacenter. In addition, we save time and money by
getting all of our support needs for both platforms from one resource.”

This HPC solution represents another joint
technical initiative that delivers value to customers and partners. The
partnership continues to broaden its joint technical scope and offering
to enhance datacenter optimization for customers all over the globe.

Through the Microsoft and Novell joint
Interoperability Lab in Cambridge, Mass., engineers from both companies
have been working side by side to create technical solutions that
support customers in addressing their unique challenges relative to
advancing their technical and business objectives within a mixed-source
operational environment.

Additional information about the Microsoft and Novell agreement, customer
migrations and their joint Interoperability Lab is available online at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].

About Novell

Novell, Inc. (Nasdaq: NOVL), a leader in Intelligent
Workload Management, helps organizations securely deliver and manage
computing services across physical, virtual and cloud computing
environments. We help customers reduce the cost, complexity, and risk
associated with their IT systems through our solutions for identity and
security, systems management, collaboration and Linux based operating
platforms. With our infrastructure software and ecosystem of
partnerships, Novell integrates mixed IT environments, allowing people
and technology to work as one. For more information, visit [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the
worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people
and businesses realize their full potential.

Novell and SUSE are registered trademarks of Novell Inc. in the U.S. and other
countries. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All
third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Note:

Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of
publication, but may have changed.