Hewlett-Packard (HP) has extended an alliance with BEA
Systems, offering BEA's WebLogic Server software on additional HP
hardware and software platforms.
WebLogic Server is now available on HP's AlphaServer line
running the OpenVMS operating system, and on its Proliant servers,
which are based on Intel processors, running Linux.
HP expected to offer WebLogic Server on its fault-tolerant
NonStop servers in June.
Since killing off its own family of middleware products last
year, HP has been promoting WebLogic Server as the Java application
server of choice. In September it began bundling WebLogic with
HP-UX along with a trial licence good for six months.
HP has said it plans to phase out its Alpha processor, along
with its PA-Risc chip, with the hope that customers will switch to
servers based on Intel's Itanium processor, which it helped
develop. The lastest Alpha chip is due early next year, although HP
has said it will continue to sell AlphaServers for some time after
that.
Offering WebLogic Server on OpenVMS will allow customers to
continue running applications on existing systems while making use
of the J2EE functionality in BEA's middleware, HP said. In the
future those customers be able to move their applications to
Itanium "seamlessly".
HP's NonStop server line was also gained through its purchase of
Compaq. The systems were known by the name Himalaya until HP
renamed them after the merger.
The companies announced a joint support agreement for customers
running BEA's software on the NonStop systems. The agreement
creates "a formal support relationship between HP and BEA that
outlines call management processes to be used to resolve
interoperability concerns on behalf of joint customers", HP
said.
Customers can call either BEA or HP with a problem and they will
work together to identify the cause and then assign it to the
appropriate support group. Support for HP servers running HP-UX,
OpenVMS, Windows, Tru-64 Unix and Linux are planned to be available
within 90 days.