Understanding IBM eServer xSeries Benchmarks

Many models of the IBM eServer® xSeries® family maintained a leadership position for benchmark results for several years. These benchmarks help clients position xSeries servers in the marketplace, but they also offer other advantages to clients including driving the industry forward as a whole by improving the performance of applications, drivers, operating systems, and firmware.

There is a common misconception that industry benchmark results are irrelevant because they do not reflect the reality of client configurations and the performance and transaction throughput that is actually possible in the “real world”. This Redpaper shows that benchmarks are useful and relevant to clients and that benchmark results are useful when attempting to understand how one solution offering performs over another.

The purpose of this Redpaper is to explain what benchmarks are and how to interpret the benchmark results so you can understand how they relate to their own server plans. The major industry benchmarks from the Transaction Processing Performance Council (TPC) and the Standard Performance Evaluaction Corporation (SPEC) are described, explaining how they relate to specific client application types.

This paper is for clients, IBM® Business Partners, and IBM employees who want to understand benchmarks on xSeries servers.

Chapter 1. Benchmarks 101
Chapter 2. IBM and benchmarks
Chapter 3. Industry benchmarks
Chapter 4. Understanding benchmark results
Chapter 5. Client-related benchmarks

Related product families

Product families related to this document are the following:

• 2-Socket Rack Servers
• 4-Socket Rack Servers