IBM introduces a hybrid Unix/Linux system: AIX 5LArmonk 23 April 2001 IBM announced AIX 5L, tuned for Linux applications, AIX 5L provides an environment for building and managing both UNIX and Linux applications, providing a substantial advantage over fully-closed, proprietary systems.
AIX 5L boasts powerful new features, designed to enable customers to safely and rapidly grow their infrastructure with enhanced automated management tools and concurrent operation of 32- and 64-bit applications.
With this release, AIX gains APIs (application programming interface) and header files that allow popular Linux applications to run on AIX with a simple recompilation. Because the applications are running on AIX, customers are able to combine the flexibility of Linux with the advanced scalability, security, and systems management inherent in AIX. Also available with AIX 5L is the AIX Toolbox for Linux Applications. The toolbox is a collection of over 200 open source tools and applications, which together provide the development environment of choice for many Linux developers.
New tools built into AIX's Workload Manager (WLM) include the addition of an API allowing external applications to modify system behaviour. This important feature provides greater flexibility to customers in choosing their management environment. New accounting tools in WLM allow administrators to cost-effectively grow their infrastructure by tracking resource usage. Workload Manager is easily accessible via AIX's web-based system manager, which sports an intuitive, easy-to-use interface.
Great strides have been made in the area of automated systems management with the addition of Reliable Scalable Cluster Technology (RSCT). Harnessing the robust self-management capabilities available in IBM's powerful SP supercomputer systems, RSCT allows monitoring and control of system resources and events either automatically by the system or by an administrator.
AIX 5L operates on all IBM POWER-based UNIX systems including IBM eServer pSeries systems, such as the eServer p620 and eServer p660 announced today.
Linux affinity Allows customers to realise a smooth technology transition between two of the industry's most open, standards-based operating environments, AIX and Linux. The JFS2 File system enables storage of large files of up to four Petabytes. Java (tm) 2 Technology edition provides a co-operative interface between AIX and Java for increased application scalability. AIX 5L offers support for systems with up to 32 processors and 256 GB memory. Virtual IP Addressing helps applications remain available if network connections are lost. IP multi-path routing improves network reliability by providing multiple paths to a destination. Automated system monitoring and new accounting tools allow customers to collect resource usage statistics to manage costs and control resources. MIT's Kerberos V5 Authentication helps administrators simplify password authentication. In addition to providing superior application performance for POWER-based systems, AIX's potent 64-bit kernel is designed to fully exploit the speed and processing power of Intel's Itanium architecture.
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