Sybase Jumps into the Content Processing Appliance Fray
May 13, 2008
Sybase announced on May 12, 2008, the roll out of its Sybase Analytic Appliance. The hardware is an IBM Power System preconfigured with Sybase IQ, Sybase PowerDesigner, and MIcroStrategy 8. The idea is to eliminate the fiddly tasks associated with setting up a data and content processing system. The idea is that a customer will get the benefits of a custom-built enterprise data warehouse in a ready-to-deploy device.
Sybase IQ is the column-oriented Sybase database engine. Column databases offer a performance boost over traditional relational databases. Sybase PowerDesigner is a model-driven tool intended to reduce the pain of building report requirements, models, and related tasks. MIcroStrategy 8 is a business intelligence system.
The cost for the system is based on the data volume. The information I saw quote an introductory price of $27,000 per terabyte of data. The design of the appliance allows “snap in” scaling. There are three versions of the appliance, and the prices rise as you move from the starter to standard to enterprise version. You can buy the device from Sybase, MIcroStrategy, or mLogica (a systems integrator).
Appliances can be criticized for their limited functionality. Sybase has done a good job of providing a bundle that gives the licensee considerable freedom to configure the device and manipulate data. Compared to other industrial-strength appliances, Sybase has an attractive launch price point. You will need to determine your data volume and data change rate in order to determine which appliance version is appropriate for your organization.
Stephen Arnold, May 13, 2008
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