K210 to K260 upgrade

[Patrick Krueger]

What is needed to upgrade a K210 to something like a K250 or K260. I need to be able to run 64 bit HP-UX and spend as little as possible

[Eugeny Brychkov]

Do you think it will be cheaper than to trade-in your K210 with L2000 server (for example)? To upgrade K210 to K260 you need to replace all PA-RISC processors with PA8000 at least. I'm not sure about power supply and motherboard. I would consider a good investment into future not upgrading old with old, but changing old with modern
Eugeny

[Patrick Krueger]

I would love to!! But I am trying to demostrate to a group of MS-SQL/VB developers that HP-UX/Oracle is as good a solution, if not better. And my 32 bit version of HP-UX/Oracle just can't quite cut it again when completing again dual 1GB SQL servers with 4GB of memory. So until they are convinced, little or no more for servers.

[A. Clay Stephenson]

If it were me, I would talk to a used HP equipment dealer. HP K-boxes are now dirt cheap and you could probably work a trade with them. The upgrade is a little involved and requires that ss_config (Stable Storage config) be run in addition to board changes. Ss_config can only be run by an authorized HP Mr. Goodwrench.
I'm betting that a swap with a used equipment dealer will by far be your cheaper option.

The bad news is that going to 64-bit with 4GB (the maximum for a K2xx) is not going to be that impressive. The PA-800 will be a bit faster (maybe 1.4x if you are very lucky) but 64-bit code does not execute faster than 32-bit code. The real advantage of 64-bit code is larger data structures (e.g. shared memory segments). You should really think of 64-bit as a resource enabler rather than a performance enhancer. In the cases where more data can be cached (e.g. much larger SGA's) then you will see better performance but if your compare raw CPU throughput 32-bit wins in almost every case.

You will see big gains when you move to a box with faster data paths and much faster CPU's but in your case I would save my money and assume that a K260 will be maybe 1.4x faster unless you really need shared memory segments bigger than 1GB or so. If that is the case then the 1.4x MIGHT be as much as 3x faster.

[Bill Hassell]

Another way to demo 64bit coputing on a modern PARISC processor (such as the A or L class machines) is to rent one for a couple of months. Be sure to get at least 4Gb RAM, load Oracle 64bit and have your DBA configure SGA to about 2-3Gb in size. Using a test database and a fairly slow SQL query, the DBA's will be blown away by the speed of the new machines compared to the K210.

[Tony Bacon]

You would need a 180MHz CPU and Power Supply to Upgrade your system to a K260. I can help you with this upgrade. It is only $400 for both items.

Regards,

Tony Bacon
North American Systems
tbacon@nasi.com
800-927-7474 ext.6511

[Dave Wherry]

A single processor rp2405 bundle will give about three times the TPM of a 2 way K260. And you can get it for under $5k. You may be able to get the K upgrades for less than that, but when you look at what you would pay in maintenance for the K versus warranty coverage on the rp2405, I'm sure you would come out ahead. You also gain a lot of space back in your cabinet and lower your power consumption. Then go blow that SQL server away.