ScaleMP, the folks whose Versatile SMP (vSMP) architecture aggregates multiple x86 systems into a single virtual x86 HPC system, has enhanced the performance of its flagship vSMP Foundation software with a 2.0 rev that supports the Intel Nehalem chips that are due to start appearing at the end of the month.

The software is used to replace the custom hardware and components that make traditional symmetric multiprocessors expensive. The widgetry also simplifies clustering infrastructure with a single operating system.

With the update ScaleMP says HPC customers can create a shared memory system with 128 cores and 4TB of RAM using the Nehalem processors.

The vSMP Foundation software supports aggregation of up to 16 x86 servers into a single virtual SMP system.

The company says these systems will be the largest and most powerful x86 SMP systems available in the industry.

We'll have to wait and see when the Nehalem chips it's talking about come out.

It's also increased the widgetry's high availability and making it possible to partition a single virtual system to multiple smaller isolated partitions each of which can run a different OS. It

extended remote management, enhanced profiling capabilities to improve application performance and added support for Emulex' LightPulse Fibre Channel HBAs.

With the partitioning, IT administrators can carve out a portion of the system for specific departments or applications. The 2.0 rev will support eight concurrent partitions and up to 32 LightPulse FC HBAs in a single virtual system.

Emulex support is supposed to mean secure, reliable, enterprise class connectivity within the SAN.