I don’t want to sound like a cheerleader for Oracle, but after looking at some comparative benchmark tests, the competition just can’t stack up (pun intended). While not everything is perfect, the power and precision of Oracle’s Exadata and Exalogic is worth at least a peek (especially those out there seeking to cut real estate and costs at the data center). While the prices may be a little daunting, the benefits have caused a major “wow” factor.
- Mid-tier organizations should pay attention to the opportunities Oracle brings with its Exadata and Exalogic machines. This explosive combination creates a powerful and complete data center solution with fewer boxes, resulting in less real estate and cost savings.
- Exalogic is a different beast from Exadata boxes, but they are both highly complementary. While Exadata is geared towards Oracle 11g RAC as a powerful database machine, Exalogic is a pure application machine running on Linux and Middleware software. The Exalogic box gives you capacity on demand. It also comes with Weblogic, JRockit, HotSpot VMs and Oracle Coherence. The combination of a robust storage solution and a software/hardware application machine is an unbeatable best- of- breed solution that outperforms the majority of what’s out there on the market. You get more performance for your money on both. IDG’s Chris Kanaracus reviews Exadata.
- WebLogic is the cornerstone for creating the ultimate strategic platform. Anyone running Oracle e-Business Suite will need to run an app server. By the time Oracle 12 comes along, it is highly likely that an app server will be mandatory – and what would work better than using WebLogic Suite enterprise edition, which has been known to outperform others in its class based on recent performance benchmarks. Any organization running Exalogic has Weblogic and only need to upgrade its license.
- Support: With Oracle’s application stack on its own boxes, support will come naturally with maintenance and support. Oracle will have little to no interest in providing support to other hardware vendors as seen when the company withdrew support for Itanium.
- Leveraging Oracle’s Fusion Middleware to connect custom and packaged apps, while utilizing Weblogic as the App Server creates a strategic platform that:
- Outperforms any in the market
- Replaces the need for an Internet app server – like the former JAVA edition
We’re not saying that Oracle is the best solution for everyone, but with the new combos – especially after some of the major acquisitions in the past couple of years – there’s a lot of firepower there. The three most important things to determine and manage closely whether any solution is right are:
1- Price: Not just the cost of the software/hardware or the human resources, but the cost of NOT creating the best value through licensing. If you don’t get the licensing right, you lose on many or all three of these points.
2- Performance: ‘Nuff said.
3- Productivity: Aside from the obvious definition of productivity, the main point here is that productivity also means getting the architecture right. So many companies make the right purchases, but muck up the execution.