9x7 customers ponder A-Class replacements

Low-end refresh gets some sites’ attention, but total cost must be considered

Customers who own 9x7 HP 3000s have been faithful to the platform a long time. For many, however, the system has been a stable performer that needed no budget to maintain its workload. HP hopes its new A-Class offerings in the e3000 line will transform the HP 3000 at these sites into something eligible for expenditures, instead of steeped in stasis.

In a survey of 9x7 owners pulled from the 3000 NewsWire’s database, we found healthy interest in the new entry-level line of servers. Some owners were concerned about extra costs in upgrading, involving peripherals — most will have to be replaced — and charges from software suppliers. Others just don’t have the budget to replace anything with the HP 3000 nameplate on it. And some are still waiting to see how the used market shapes up this year.

HP estimates that about half of its customers have an HP 3000 of 9x7 vintage or older. It’s a massive installed base to sell toward, and A-Class advantages over lower-powered 9x7s machines are easy for some to observe — as clear as seeing Platform Planning Manager Dave Snow walk up the aisle at the recent Solutions Symposium with an A-Class box tucked under his arm.

They’re buying

Some 9x7 systems have been left over as safety valves from Y2K efforts, making them easy replacement sales. “We are in the process of getting a quote from our reseller right now to upgrade our 967 to an A500 2-way server,” said Rich Telfer of Jennison Associates. “We had held onto the 967 as a third 3000 box, just for Y2K, but have continued to find a use for it, even after the end of last year. We were debating whether we needed to replace it. The A-class seems like a good, low-cost alternative.”

A need for the latest 7.0 version of MPE/iX to power Web applications is driving one sale, since HP disabled 7.0 for the 9x7 line. VP of IS Chris Pluchinsky at Alliant Food Services said, “We’ve talked about the possibility of one larger N-Class machine to consolidate two [9x7] systems, and getting an A-Class machine to replace the 957 as a development machine.

“We know for sure that some of the Web applications will need 7.0, Pluchinsky said, “which obviously isn’t going to be supported on the 9x7.” The company will be deploying a Java application that will take advantage of the HotSpot Virtual Machine in the 7.0 release.

Replacing the top end of the 9x7 line requires a larger machine than any A-Class, for Alliant. “We’re maxed out on the 987,” Pluchinsky said. About 150 people access the applications. Reusing disk is an option for the firm, since it’s using the Model 20 RAID arrays. It will be six months before anything new goes to work at Alliant, however.

At Alliant all the 3000 peripherals have been moved away from HP-IB, but they’ll need an external case for the DDS drive already in use. They’re considering adding a DLT backup device to the configuration as well.

Ray Myers of Vera Water and Power has already sent out quote requests for the new A400. The timing for him was lucky, since he was planning on upgrading to a 939KS020 prior to the announcement of the new systems.

“The A400 will cost about half as much as the 939, and the annual support costs are one-quarter what was quoted for the 939,” Myers said. “I’m very pleased with the increased reliability and consequently, lower purchase price and support cost.”

There is a cloud on the horizon for Myers. “My only gripe is that my third-party software vendors all want a piece of the upgrade action, too,” he said. “I’m seriously looking at dropping some of my third-party utility software or converting to one of their competitor’s software.” (See related story, page 8.)

Staying open to N, options

Other 9x7 customers surveyed said they’d prefer N-Class e3000s or used systems. Ben Thorman of Flint Industries said, “The A500 A-Class appears to have less performance than our 987/100, but we are looking at the bottom end of the N-Class. If we upgrade, we would like to get at least a 50-percent increase in performance for growth over the next three years. We have not ruled out the possibility of buying a used 979 or 989 if the prices drop below $60,000.”

Costs have come down for his upgrade options. The company was considering a Series 979, which he estimated at a $100,000 investment for a 100-user license. A new 3000 at the new prices might also let him take his disaster recovery services in-house, and save fees he’s paying to HP.

At the high-end of the 9x7 line, owners are deciding between N-Class and used systems. Bob Lewandowski of ASAP Software runs a Series 987/150, and said, “I will see what happens on the used market before I buy a new machine. I am not sure that an A-Class will fit my needs and may need an N-Class. I may just use my 987/150 as a development machine without support until it dies.”

Other owners of larger 9x7s see the A-Class as underpowered. “I plan to evaluate both, but I feel that the N-class is a more appropriate choice,” Jim Haeseker of General Chemical Corp. said, “Our 987/200 is already over the top of the line A-class in performance and has more IO expansion already built into it. I’d certainly enjoy getting more memory capacity (a major limitation on the 9x7s), but not if the business performance requirements can’t justify it.”

HP’s hardware end-of-support date isn’t motivating Haeseker. “The loss of HP hardware support on these boxes doesn’t concern me too much, since numerous third-party vendors have already said that they’ll be glad to pick up HP’s slack,” he said. “I’m most concerned about software support and the recent cut-off for MPE/iX 5.5 support.” All of his 9x7s are still on 5.5.

Haeseker feels he’s being pressured to upgrade. “I don’t like the idea that HP 3000 boxes that perform well and are doing the required job must be discarded,” he said, “because HP’s revenues aren’t as good as they’d like them to be. Plus, there’s a whole lot of work involved in evaluation, justification, installation, and transition to a new hardware. The challenges just keep on a-comin’.”

Platforms in jeopardy

At some sites, the A-Class option is on the table after the 3000 has been routed out of the company. Portion Pac upgraded its 9x7 to a leased 979/300 last summer, and it may be the last 3000 in the shop. “I haven’t looked at the specifics on the new boxes,” said Glenn Corbin, “since our parent company is moving us to BPICS, which runs on an AS/400. A smaller HP with lower maintenance definitely is a plus. If that was available last year, we would have looked at it.”

Frannie Casella at non-profit Northern California Cancer Center has been using the HP 3000 for about 14 years. But sticking with the 9x7s is the only thing that would keep the platform alive there. “They are the most reliable computer I have ever worked on,” she said. “But the feds have told us they are not going to give us money to purchase these big, expensive machines any more. I would just stay on the 957 if I could, but since HP is stopping the support, I am being forced to move down to a PC platform. Farewell, HP.”

At another site, an NT migration is vying with A-Class attention. “We have been migrating to NT for the last four years,” said George Willis of Sarofim, “and who really knows how long it will take before we’re off the HP 3000s. However, management will have to deal with the ticking clock of supportability and their vows to not spend any more money on our 987s. This will be interesting.”

HP’s elimination of the 9x7 is moving the 3000 out of Lockheed Martin. “I have a Series 957 that does more work than most of the 70-plus HP-UX servers we have,” said IS coordinator Joe Wood. “But because it is the only HP 3000 they are going to eliminate it and convert the applications to Unix. HP’s obsolescence plan only helped to quicken its demise. The HP 3000 is easier to administer than HP-UX and is better for OLTP. Unfortunately in this case, the company doesn’t see a benefit for the existing HP 3000 we have.”

Not moving yet

Tight budgets are delaying some sales. “Had we the money, we would have gone to a 939KS a while ago,” said one manager. “I haven’t done the numbers on hardware and software support on an A-series machine, but we’re just barely making it CPU-wise with a 947.”

Another manager at a large site, who wished to remain anonymous, said “It’s possible that we’ll replace some of our 9x7 systems with the new A-Class, but we probably won’t even look at the possibility until early 2002. The A-class looks interesting, and I’d really like one here ASAP to start testing — but that’s not too likely.”

Third-party support options are keeping one 9x7 in service indefinitely. “We have not even looked at the new A-Class,” said Paul Meyerhofer of Wilson Greatbatch Ltd. “We have been using a 937 since 1994, and it is running just as nice as the day we got it. When we got it, I thought for sure it would be on its last legs by now — just as our Series 48 was then. However, we have no complaints. We have just started a hardware support contract with a third party and have no plans to replace the 937.”

For others, the 9x7 obsolescence will trigger serious A-Class consideration. “I’m trying to get off the 937,” said Alan Stine of Surety Company of the Pacific. “I won’t make any final plans until, say, six months prior to the obsolescence date. Then I’ll assess where we are, what it costs, and how to proceed.”

Timing can be crucial for such business expenses. And other options, like the L-Class systems released for the HP 9000 line, aren’t on the table for e3000 sites. Rich Rankin had already upgraded to Series 969s two years ago. “I feel the announcement of the A- and N-class machines was good,” he said. “Too bad they are too late [for us]. I would liked to have seen the L-Class announcement along with it.”