[ Thanks to Matt for
this link. ]
“High-availability clustering is too compelling to ignore.
Typical clustering models for Unix have one server doing the work,
with another standing by idle in case of failure. This
active/passive approach can double hardware costs and add time and
expense to deployment and management. That’s a fair amount of
capital to sink into unused computing resources. But the confluence
of three factors may change the way clustering is approached.“First, Intel’s Xeon processors offer a one-two punch of lower
price and competitive performance when compared with RISC chips
running Unix.“Second, the emergence of Linux for Intel servers, coupled with
low-latency interconnects to bind servers together using Gigabit
Ethernet or Infiniband technology, means better server
communication.“Finally, storage decoupled from servers and the acceptance of
storage-area networks and Fibre Channel technology make it possible
to aggregate servers that then can act as one large machine…”