Java performance on the HP Integrity NonStop server Java ...

An interview with Frans Jongma, technical consultant at HPITUG Connection readers have plenty of practicalexperience in running <strong>Java</strong> technology basedapplications in the NonStop server environment.If they have found the results to be less than optimalin the past, they will be very pleasantly surprised atthe <strong>performance</strong> of these applications on the Intel ®Itanium ® 2 processor–based HP Integrity NonStopserver. In the following interview, HP TechnicalConsultant Frans Jongma explains why.Connection: People have not always been happy withthe <strong>performance</strong> of <strong>Java</strong> on NonStop systems, sayingthat the server is too slow. Is this complaint justified?<strong>Java</strong> <strong>performance</strong>on the HP IntegrityNonStop serverFrans Jongma: Many of us who deal with NonStopcustomers that use <strong>Java</strong> may have come across thisremark. Defending against such claims has not beeneasy in the past.However, with the new HP Integrity NonStop serversbased on Intel Itanium technology, things havechanged. People who tried <strong>Java</strong> on NonStop systemsa year ago will be surprised when they try againtoday, on the new Itanium based machines.Connection: Why are things different now?Frans Jongma: In the days of the NonStop S-seriesserver, there was a significant problem: the clock speedof the processor. Compare the 550 MHz R14000processor (built by MIPS) in the S86000 server, orthe 800 MHz R16000 processor in the S88000server, to the clock speed of your current laptop.With the introduction of the processor–based NS-seriessystems, Integrity NonStop servers have steppedonto the <strong>performance</strong> path of today’s servers. The newmachines operate at clock speeds two to three timeshigher than the NonStop S-series machines.But clock speed is not the only factor that determines<strong>Java</strong> <strong>performance</strong>. We have done some <strong>performance</strong>tests based on the SciMark 2.0 benchmark and found

significant <strong>performance</strong> improvements—up to a factorof 7—between the new Itanium processor–basedsystems and previous high-end NonStop S-seriesmachines. So it’s not only about raw megahertzfigures. The CPU architecture plays an importantrole, too.Connection: What are the characteristics of thatSciMark benchmark, and how relevant is it forbusiness applications?FJ: SciMark was developed by Roldan Pozo andBruce Miller of the National Institute of Standardsand Technology (NIST). The goal was to get a betterunderstanding of the behavior of the <strong>Java</strong> VirtualMachine (JVM) and the compiler technology it usesto interpret, compile, and optimize <strong>Java</strong> code. Thetests are simple computations that are done in asingle-threaded fashion. It is quite a good test forcomparing the NonStop Server for <strong>Java</strong> JVM withother JVMs running on other platforms.It is important to bear in mind that SciMark is a verysimple test and can’t reflect the behavior of complexbusiness applications. But sometimes it can take a verybig effort to evaluate simplistic <strong>performance</strong> claims,and referral to the SciMark benchmark may be agreat help in such cases.The SciMark tests show that we do not have to shyaway from tests that are simple to execute and do notreflect real-world applications. That said, of course, realvalue certainly comes from testing real applications.FJ: Standardization of components has advantages inmanufacturing HP’s three strategic server lines; it alsohas the advantage of allowing us to perform closercomparisons of Integrity NonStop servers with otherservers than was possible before. With the hardwarebeing much more similar today, the comparison cannow concentrate on the software implementation.We have performed the same tests on Itaniumprocessor–based servers running the HP-UX operatingsystem, the NonStop operating system, and Windows ®Server 2003. We used the same clock rate (1.6 GHz)and the same CPU cache size. The results show thatthe <strong>performance</strong> of the JVM on Integrity NonStopservers is on par with the JVMs from BEA and HPrunning on HP servers with the same chipset, as isshown in the following diagram.2001801601401201008060JVM Performance test results based on SciMark 2.0In a nutshell: With <strong>Java</strong> technologyon the Integrity NonStop server youget roughly the same <strong>performance</strong>,but better service levels in terms ofreliability, availability, and security(RAS)-and you get better total costof ownership (TCO), too.Connection: So <strong>Java</strong> <strong>performance</strong> on NonStopsystems has improved dramatically versus the previousNonStop S-series machines. How does it stack upagainst other systems that are considered more“mainstream” today?40200Win64 JRockit 1.5 NonStop OS 1.5 HP-UX 1.52