NonStop
Encyclopedia
NonStop can refer to the line of HP Integrity NonStop computers, the line of Tandem NonStop computers that preceded them, or the NonStop OS operating system
that is designed for them. NonStop systems are based on an integrated hardware/software stack. They are self-healing systems designed with redundant component
s and automatic reconfiguration in the event of a component failure, to prevent against "single-point failures" (see Reliability engineering
). The systems run the NonStop OS operating system
and the database management system
s NonStop SQL
and Enscribe
.
These systems are often used by bank
s, stock exchange
s, telecommunication providers and other enterprises requiring very reliable computer systems.
Inc., the line was later owned by Compaq
(from 1997) and Hewlett-Packard
(since 2003). In 2005, the current product line of HP Integrity NonStop servers, based on Intel
Itanium
microprocessors, was introduced.
Early NonStop applications had to be specially coded to be fault-tolerant. That obstacle was removed in 1983 with the introduction of the Transaction Monitoring Facility (TMF), which handles the various aspects of fault tolerance on the system level, transparent to the application.
Due to the integrated hardware/software stack and a single system image for even the largest configurations, system management requirements for NonStop systems are rather low. In most deployments there is just a single production server, not a complex server farm.
Most customers also have a backup server in a remote location for disaster recovery. There are standard products to keep the data of the production and the backup server in sync, hence there is fast takeover and no data loss also in a disaster situation with the production server being disabled or destroyed.
NonStop systems are inherently very secure, no security breach by outside hackers has been reported so far.
HP also developed a data warehouse and business intelligence server line, HP Neoview
, based on the NonStop line. It acted as a database server
, providing NonStop OS and NonStop SQL
, but lacked the transaction processing
functionality of the original NonStop systems.
The line was retired
, and no longer marketed
, as of January 24, 2011.
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
that is designed for them. NonStop systems are based on an integrated hardware/software stack. They are self-healing systems designed with redundant component
Redundancy (engineering)
In engineering, redundancy is the duplication of critical components or functions of a system with the intention of increasing reliability of the system, usually in the case of a backup or fail-safe....
s and automatic reconfiguration in the event of a component failure, to prevent against "single-point failures" (see Reliability engineering
Reliability engineering
Reliability engineering is an engineering field, that deals with the study, evaluation, and life-cycle management of reliability: the ability of a system or component to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time. It is often measured as a probability of...
). The systems run the NonStop OS operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
and the database management system
Database management system
A database management system is a software package with computer programs that control the creation, maintenance, and use of a database. It allows organizations to conveniently develop databases for various applications by database administrators and other specialists. A database is an integrated...
s NonStop SQL
NonStop SQL
Nonstop SQL is software that is developed and sold by Hewlett Packard. Nonstop SQL is a commercial relational database management system that is designed for fault tolerance and scalability. The latest version of the product is SQL/MX 3.0. This was released in February 2011.The product was...
and Enscribe
Enscribe
Enscribe is the native hierarchical database in HP NonStop servers. It supports the five file structures: unstructured, key-sequenced, entry-sequenced, relative and queue. Enscribe supports partitioned files which spans across multiple physical disks. It supports locking at file and record levels...
.
These systems are often used by bank
Bank
A bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...
s, stock exchange
Stock exchange
A stock exchange is an entity that provides services for stock brokers and traders to trade stocks, bonds, and other securities. Stock exchanges also provide facilities for issue and redemption of securities and other financial instruments, and capital events including the payment of income and...
s, telecommunication providers and other enterprises requiring very reliable computer systems.
History
Originally introduced in 1976 by Tandem ComputersTandem Computers
Tandem Computers, Inc. was the dominant manufacturer of fault-tolerant computer systems for ATM networks, banks, stock exchanges, telephone switching centers, and other similar commercial transaction processing applications requiring maximum uptime and zero data loss. The company was founded in...
Inc., the line was later owned by Compaq
Compaq
Compaq Computer Corporation is a personal computer company founded in 1982. Once the largest supplier of personal computing systems in the world, Compaq existed as an independent corporation until 2002, when it was acquired for US$25 billion by Hewlett-Packard....
(from 1997) and Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard Company or HP is an American multinational information technology corporation headquartered in Palo Alto, California, USA that provides products, technologies, softwares, solutions and services to consumers, small- and medium-sized businesses and large enterprises, including...
(since 2003). In 2005, the current product line of HP Integrity NonStop servers, based on Intel
Intel Corporation
Intel Corporation is an American multinational semiconductor chip maker corporation headquartered in Santa Clara, California, United States and the world's largest semiconductor chip maker, based on revenue. It is the inventor of the x86 series of microprocessors, the processors found in most...
Itanium
Itanium
Itanium is a family of 64-bit Intel microprocessors that implement the Intel Itanium architecture . Intel markets the processors for enterprise servers and high-performance computing systems...
microprocessors, was introduced.
Early NonStop applications had to be specially coded to be fault-tolerant. That obstacle was removed in 1983 with the introduction of the Transaction Monitoring Facility (TMF), which handles the various aspects of fault tolerance on the system level, transparent to the application.
NonStop OS
NonStop OS is a message-based operating system designed for software fault tolerance. It works with process pairs and ensures that backup processes in different CPU's take over in case of a process or CPU failure. Data integrity is maintained during those takeovers, no transactions or data are lost or corrupted.NonStop Hardware
The HP Integrity NonStop computers are a line of fault-tolerant server computers, optimized for transaction processing and providing an extreme level of availability and data integrity. Average availability levels of 99.999% have been observed. NonStop systems feature a massive parallel processing (MPP) architecture and provide linear scalability. Each CPU (systems can be expanded up to over 4000 CPUs) runs its own copy of the OS. This is a "share nothing" arrangement and no "diminishing returns" occur as more processors are added.Due to the integrated hardware/software stack and a single system image for even the largest configurations, system management requirements for NonStop systems are rather low. In most deployments there is just a single production server, not a complex server farm.
Most customers also have a backup server in a remote location for disaster recovery. There are standard products to keep the data of the production and the backup server in sync, hence there is fast takeover and no data loss also in a disaster situation with the production server being disabled or destroyed.
NonStop systems are inherently very secure, no security breach by outside hackers has been reported so far.
HP also developed a data warehouse and business intelligence server line, HP Neoview
HP Neoview
HP Neoview was a data warehouse and business intelligence computer server line based on the Hewlett Packard NonStop line. It acted as a database server, providing NonStop OS and NonStop SQL, but lacked the transaction processing functionality of the original NonStop systems.The line was retired,...
, based on the NonStop line. It acted as a database server
Database server
A database server is a computer program that provides database services to other computer programs or computers, as defined by the client–server model. The term may also refer to a computer dedicated to running such a program...
, providing NonStop OS and NonStop SQL
NonStop SQL
Nonstop SQL is software that is developed and sold by Hewlett Packard. Nonstop SQL is a commercial relational database management system that is designed for fault tolerance and scalability. The latest version of the product is SQL/MX 3.0. This was released in February 2011.The product was...
, but lacked the transaction processing
Transaction processing
In computer science, transaction processing is information processing that is divided into individual, indivisible operations, called transactions. Each transaction must succeed or fail as a complete unit; it cannot remain in an intermediate state...
functionality of the original NonStop systems.
The line was retired
Retirement
Retirement is the point where a person stops employment completely. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours.Many people choose to retire when they are eligible for private or public pension benefits, although some are forced to retire when physical conditions don't allow the person to...
, and no longer marketed
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
, as of January 24, 2011.
Sources
- Siewiorek, Daniel P.; Swarz, Robert S. (1998). Reliable Computer Systems, A K Peters, Ltd., ISBN 156881092X. pp. 586–625.
- Horst, R.W. (February 1995). "TNet: a reliable system area network". IEEE MicroIEEE MicroIEEE Micro is a broad-based practitioner-oriented magazine of the IEEE Computer Society targeting small system and semiconductor chip professionals, including electronic engineers, designers, architects, developers, process improvement experts, testers, quality engineers, and project managers...
. - Horst, Robert W.; Harris, Richard L.; Jardine, Robert L. (1990). "Multiple instruction issue in the NonStop Cyclone processor". Proceedings of the 17th Annual International Symposium on Computer ArchitectureInternational Symposium on Computer ArchitectureThe International Symposium on Computer Architecture is generally viewed as the top-tier academic conference on computer architecture.-External references:* in the ACM digital library.* in DBLP.* ....
. pp. 216–226. - Bernick, D. (2005). "NonStop advanced architecture". Proceedings of the 2005 International Conference on Dependable Systems and Networks.
- Kim, Won (March 1984). "Highly available systems for database applications". ACM Computing Surveys.