SGI reinvents itself through data warehousing

The system combines Oracle’s database software with SGI’s Altix Server hardware and its InfiniteStorage systems.

SGI was previously best known for its 3D graphics systems, but having undergone an enforced transformation, it is hoping to reinvent itself has a high-end enterprise computing vendor.

The Adaptive Data Warehouse is based on technology originally designed for data intensive work such as battlefield intelligence, energy exploration and weather forecasting, said SGI’s director of enterprise data management Ken Won.

With businesses increasingly handling high-volume transactions or running sophisticated pattern-matching algorithms to catch identity thieves, such powerful number-crunching systems are increasingly attractive to enterprise buyers, he added.

SGI was delisted from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in November 2005. It filed for Chapter 11 bankrupcy protection in May 2006, which it came out of in October 2006.

It is producing systems mainly based on Intel Xeon x86 hardware, although it also produces Itanium systems. SGI previously focused on computer hardware based on MIPS’ RISC processors.

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