What is Mainframe?

chandkoduri · New User Joined: 22 Nov 2007 Posts: 1 Location: Chennai

Hi to All

My question is: What is a Mainframe?

I want to know different views on Mainframe.
Waiting for u r replies.

murmohk1 · Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2007 6:29 am

Chandu,

UmeySan · Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2007 3:17 pm

>> What is a Mainframe <<

A big piece of iron in the basement.

Regards, Umeysan :-)

Anuj Dhawan · Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2007 4:31 pm

Well, If I'm not mistaken there is a good article published by McMillian on this site. Please check on the 'Mainframes FAQ link' of this site.

kish · New User Joined: 17 Nov 2007 Posts: 20

Hi
In generally we can say :

It’s a computer that supports dozens of applications and input/output devices to serve tens of thousands of users simultaneously.
What separates the mainframe from other computers is not just its processing capabilities. A mainframe has redundant features and system health awareness capabilities that enable it to deliver 99.999% availability. Throughout this text, the general term “mainframe” refers to large computers like those in the IBM System z9™ and eServer™ zSeries processor families....
But with search in google and search sites you can find more usable difinations..

Regards.

Anuj Dhawan · Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 9:56 pm

Hi,

Anyhow I'm not being able to open the mainframes FAQ Link..I got something about frames to share about..might help you.

yogeshsanap · New User Joined: 21 Aug 2007 Posts: 2 Location: Hyderabad

Mainframe is
Mainframes (often colloquially referred to as Big Iron) are computers used mainly by large organizations for critical applications, typically bulk data processing such as census, industry and consumer statistics, ERP, and financial transaction processing.

The term probably originated from the early mainframes, as they were housed in enormous, room-sized metal boxes or frames. [1] Later the term was used to distinguish high-end commercial machines from less powerful units which were often contained in smaller packages.

Today in practice, the term usually refers to computers compatible with the IBM System/360 line, first introduced in 1965. (IBM System z9 is IBM's latest incarnation.) Otherwise, systems with similar functionality but not based on the IBM System/360 are referred to as "servers." However, "server" and "mainframe" are not synonymous (see client-server).

Some non-System/360-compatible systems derived from or compatible with older (pre-Web) server technology may also be considered mainframes. These include the Burroughs large systems, the UNIVAC 1100/2200 series systems, and the pre-System/360 IBM 700/7000 series. Most large-scale computer system architectures were firmly established in the 1960s and most large computers were based on architecture established during that era up until the advent of Web servers in the 1990s. (Interestingly, the first Web server running anywhere outside Switzerland ran on an IBM mainframe at Stanford University as early as 1990. See History of the World Wide Web for details.)

There were several minicomputer operating systems and architectures that arose in the 1970s and 1980s, but minicomputers are generally not considered mainframes. (UNIX arose as a minicomputer operating system; Unix has scaled up over the years to acquire some mainframe characteristics.)

Many defining characteristics of "mainframe" were established in the 1960s, but those characteristics continue to expand and evolve to the present day.

yogeshsanap · New User Joined: 21 Aug 2007 Posts: 2 Location: Hyderabad

HI,
A very large and expensive computer capable of supporting hundreds, or even thousands, of users simultaneously. In the hierarchy that starts with a simple microprocessor (in watches, for example) at the bottom and moves to supercomputers at the top, mainframes are just below supercomputers. In some ways, mainframes are more powerful than supercomputers because they support more simultaneous programs. But supercomputers can execute a single program faster than a mainframe. The distinction between small mainframes and minicomputers is vague, depending really on how the manufacturer wants to market its machines.

CICS Guy · Posted: Sat Dec 01, 2007 1:36 am

"Mainframe" defined

The IBM Dictionary Of Computing defines "mainframe" as "a large computer, in particular one to which other computers can be connected so that they can share facilities the mainframe provides (for example, a System/370 computing system to which personal computers are attached so that they can upload and download programs and data). The term usually refers to hardware only, namely, main storage, execution circuitry and peripheral units."