IBM 3090

The IBM 3090 family is a family of mainframe computers that was a high-end successor to the IBM System/370 series, and thus indirectly the successor to the IBM System/360 launched 25 years earlier.[1][2]

IBM 3090
IBM 3090
ManufacturerInternational Business Machines Corporation (IBM)
Product familyModels 120E, 150, 150E, 180, 180E, 200, 200E, 300, 300E, 400, 400E, 600E, 600J, 600S
PredecessorIBM 308X
SuccessorIBM ES/9000
WebsiteOfficial website IBM Archives
History of IBM mainframes, 1952–present
Market name
Architecture

Announced on 12 February 1985, the press releases did not explicitly mention that the two models, Model 200 and Model 400, were backwardly compatible with the 370; instead, they were simply positioned as replacements for the IBM 3033. The IBM 3090/200 version was rated at 18 MIPS and 31,000 UNIX Dhrystones.[3] This was true of the entire line, which expanded with the release of the Model 120E,[4] 150, 150E, 180, 180E, 200, 200E, 300, 300E, 400, 400E, 600E, 600J, and 600S[5] 3090 were described as using "ideas from the ... IBM 3033, extending them ... It also took ... from the ... IBM 308X."[6]

The 400 and 600 were respectively two 200s or 300s coupled together as one system and could run in either single-system image mode or partitioned into two systems.[5]

Models and features
Model Announced N-way/processor(s)
200 February 12, 1985[7] 2 central processors
400 February 12, 1985[7] 4-way (two 200s)
120E May 19, 1987[8] Uniprocessor
150 February 11, 1986[9] Uniprocessor
150E January 26, 1987[10] Uniprocessor
180 February 11, 1986[9] Uniprocessor
180E January 26, 1987[10] Uniprocessor
200E January 26, 1987[11] 2 central processors
280E January 26, 1987[12] 2 central processors
300 1987 3-way (triadic)
300E January 26, 1987[13] 3-way (triadic)
400E January 26, 1987[11] 4-way (two 200Es)
600E 1987 6-way (two 300s)
280E February 15, 1988 2-way (dyadic)
500E February 15, 1988 5-way (200E+300E)
600S 1988 6-way (two 300s)
600J 1989[14] 6-way (two 300s)

Cooling

By the late 1970s and early 1980s, patented technology allowed Amdahl mainframes of this era to be completely air-cooled, unlike IBM systems that required chilled water and its supporting infrastructure.[15] The eight largest of the 18 models of the ES/9000 systems introduced in 1990 were water-cooled; the other ten were air-cooled.[16]

Enterprise Systems Architecture/370
Main article: IBM System/390 § ESA/390 architecture

On February 15, 1988, IBM announced [17] Enterprise Systems Architecture/370 for 3090 enhanced ("E") models and for 4381 model groups 91E and 92E. In additional to the primary and secondary addressing modes that System/370 Extended Architecture (S/370-XA) supports, ESA has an AR mode in which each use of general register 1-15 as a base register uses an associated access register to select an address space. In addition to the normal address spaces that S/370-XA supports, ESA also allows data spaces, which contain no executable code.

Processor Resource/Systems Manager (PR/SM)
Main article: PR/SM

On February 15, 1988, IBM announced [18] Processor Resource/Systems Manager (PR/SM) for 3090 enhanced ("E") models This feature allows the operator to define and assign resource to a virtual machine known as a logical partition (LPAR). Initially there was a 4-LPAR limit for uniprocessors and an 8-LPAR limit for multiprocessors, but newer machines support more.

Remote service capabilities

A modem for "remote service capabilities" was standard; IBM recommended their IBM 3864 model 2.[19][20][21]

Vector facility

On October 1, 1985, IBM announced [22] an optional vector facility[23] for the IBM 3090; such a facility had not been previously available in the System/370 architecture, thus bringing integrated supercomputer capabilities to the mainframe line. IBM entered into partnerships with several universities to promote the use of the 3090 in scientific applications, and efforts were made to convert code traditionally run on Cray computers.[24] Along with the vector unit, IBM introduced their Engineering and Scientific Subroutines Library and a facility to run programs written for the discontinued 3838 array processor.[25]

Photos
UK's A3090 (highway) leads to an access road for IBM's Hursley laboratory

See also

Notes

    References
    1. "IBM Archives: 3090 Processor Complex". www.ibm.com. 23 January 2003.
    2. Tucker, S. G. (1986). "The IBM 3090 system: An overview". IBM Systems Journal. 25 (1): 4–19. doi:10.1147/sj.251.0004. ISSN 0018-8670.
    3. Chen, Allan, "The 486 CPU: ON A High-Performance Flight Vector", Intel Corporation, Microcomputer Solutions, November/December 1990, page 2
    4. "IBM 3090 PROCESSOR UNIT MODEL 120E, IBM 3092 PROCESSOR CONTROLLER MODEL 3". www.ibm.com. 19 May 1987.
    5. "IBM 3090 Processor Complex: Planning and Installation Reference (GG66-3090-1)" (PDF).
    6. "Mainframes IBM 3090".
    7. "IBM 3090 PROCESSOR COMPLEX - 3090 PROCESSOR UNIT MODELS 200 AND 400 - 3092 PROCESSOR CONTROLLER MODELS 1 AND 2 - 3097 POWER AND COOLANT DISTRIBUTION UNIT MODEL 1 - 3089 POWER UNIT MODEL 3". Announcement Letters. IBM. February 12, 1985. 185-014.
    8. "IBM 3090 PROCESSOR UNIT MODEL 120E, IBM 3092 PROCESSOR CONTROLLER MODEL 3". Announcement Letters. IBM. May 19, 1987. 189-176.
    9. "IBM 3090 PROCESSOR COMPLEX MODELS 150 AND 180". Announcement Letters. IBM. February 11, 1986. 186-028.
    10. "IBM 3090 PROCESSOR COMPLEX MODELS 150E AND 180E". Announcement Letters. IBM. January 26, 1987. 187-002.
    11. "IBM 3090 PROCESSOR COMPLEX MODELS 200E AND 400E". Announcement Letters. IBM. January 26, 1987. 187-003.
    12. "Enterprise System/3090 Processor Complex Model 280E". Announcement Letters. IBM. January 26, 1987. 188-038.
    13. "Enterprise System/3090 Processor Complex Model 300E". Announcement Letters. IBM. January 26, 1987. 187-004.
    14. "ENTERPRISE SYSTEM/3090 J AND JH MODELS AND ASSOCIATED UPGRADES". Announcement Letters. IBM. October 24, 1989. 189-176.
    15. Giants of Computing: A Compendium of Select, Pivotal Pioneers, by Gerard O’Regan (2013), ISBN 1447153405. "IBM's machines were water-cooled, while Amdahl's were air-cooled"
    16. "IBM Archives: ES/9000 Characteristics". IBM. 23 January 2003.
    17. "ENTERPRISE SYSTEMS ARCHITECTURE/370 (TM) AND MVS/SYSTEM PRODUCT". Announcement Letters. IBM. February 15, 1988. 288-059.
    18. "IBM 3090 PROCESSOR RESOURCE/SYSTEMS MANAGER (PR/SM) FEATURE". Announcement Letters. IBM. February 15, 1988. 188-039.
    19. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/24418022954032714 - identified 2017 as a "vintage" modem
    20. http://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/IBM-ProdAnn/3863.pdf "IBM 3864 is a 4800 bps synchronous modem. They are offered in two models: .. in point-to-point or multipoint mode
    21. "Mainframes IBM 3090". www.chilton-computing.org.uk. Retrieved 2021-10-13.
    22. "VECTOR FACILITY (VF) FOR IBM 3090 PROCESSOR UNITS". Announcement Letters. IBM. October 1, 1985. 185-121.
    23. IBM System/370 Vector Operations (PDF) (Third ed.). IBM Corporation. August 1986. SA22-7125-2. Retrieved Sep 20, 2018.
    24. Kent, Allen; Williams, James G., eds. (1994). "Supercomputing in Education and Research". Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Technology. Vol. 30. CRC Press. p. 319. ISBN 9780824722838. In October 1985, IBM introduced a vector feature to its high-end processor family, the IBM 3090.
    25. Connolly, James (1985-10-07). "Vector processor takes aim at mid-range mart". Computerworld. p. 1. Retrieved 2016-03-31.

    Further reading
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