Sun and Oracle introduced the first database machine for online transaction processing (OLTP) called the Sun Oracle Database Machine or Oracle Exadata Version 2, which is "the world's fastest machine for both data warehousing and online transaction processing", the companies claim. Exadata Version 2 is based on Sun hardware and Oracle software. Specifically,

• Sun's FlashFire memory cards for high performance OLTP
• Intel Xeon (Nehalem) processors
• 600 GB SAS Disks at 6 Gigabits/second
• DDR3 memory
• 72 Gigabytes per database server
• 40 Gigabits/second InfiniBand
• Raw disk capacity of 100 TB (SAS) or 336 TB (SATA) per rack
• Oracle Database 11g Release 2
• Oracle Exadata Storage Server Software Release 11.2

Designed to significantly speed up OLTP, data warehousing, and mixed database workloads, the companies claim this latest version is twice as fast as Version 1 for data warehousing. The Exadata Smart Flash Cache based on Sun FlashFire technology is identified as a substantial component in the solution's performance and scalability for OLTP.

"We have a huge smart flash cache built into our storage servers. These are not flash disks, make no mistake. These are not flash disks," commented Oracle CEO Larry Ellison speaking at the Oracle and Sun product launch held September 15th. "This is a memory hierarchy made up of DRAM and our database servers and flash and our storage servers with very sophisticated algorithms, not simply LRU. We know if we are doing a sequential scan we don't blow out the cache. So this is a very smart memory hierarchy."

Exadata 2 is the successor to the Exadata system Oracle launched with HP last year. Ellison said the Exadata 2 is optimized for the random I/O associated with OLTP, as opposed to Exadata 1's sequential I/O for data warehousing.

"Exadata V2 runs virtually all database applications much faster and less expensively than any other computer in the world," Ellison stated.

Available now, Exadata Version 2 comes in four models:

• Full rack (8 database servers and 14 storage servers) for $1.15 million
• Half-rack (4 database servers and 7 storage servers) for $650,000
• Quarter-rack (2 database servers and 3 storage servers) for $350,000
• Basic system (1 database server and 1 storage server) for $110,000

More Information

Oracle and Sun Product Announcement - replay of recorded webcast featuring Ellison and John Fowler, Sun EVP for Systems (login or registration required)

Sun Oracle Database Machine - product page

Oracle Exadata

Sun Oracle Exadata - Frequently Asked Questions

Sun Oracle Exadata and Database Machine Overview - slide presentation

Oracle Database 11g

Oracle Database 11g Release 2 [...read more...]

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