OREANDA-NEWS. March 15, 2012. NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) announced today that its appliance server for the SAP HANA(R) platform has been certified by SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) to run SAP HANA. The server features fast processing performance for the real-time analysis of big data and other applications.

NEC's appliance server runs SAP HANA on its Express5800 Scalable Enterprise Servers. NEC obtained certification today for the 8-CPU L size servers, with future plans to expand the lineup of compatible products to the 2-CPU S size that will offer upward scalability towards the 4-CPU M size, or horizontal scalable configuration with high-availability features.

SAP HANA dramatically improves the speed at which business data is processed and enables high-speed, real-time analysis of that data. For example, based on data such as quantity sold, change in sales, warehouse inventory at distribution centers, fluctuations in market price, and previous day trend values for each product at that point in time, a business will be able to instantly identify the optimum order sizes and quickly determine its next moves.

One of the most distinctive features of NEC's appliance for SAP HANA is the adoption of FlashMax(TM) from Virident Systems (*1) for the transaction log space of its in-memory infrastructure. FlashMAX(TM) is a PCI-E based SSD (*2) that offers fast and stable write performance, so it further maximizes the performance of SAP HANA. Certification of NEC's appliance server for SAP HANA was supported by SCSK Corporation (*3); a distributor of FlashMAX(TM) in Japan. SCSK Corporation helped NEC successfully integrate its appliance with SAP HANA.

In addition to the NEC appliance server for SAP HANA, NEC also provides comprehensive solutions that include evaluations of various functionalities of SAP HANA, including installation and/or operation. This series of new solutions from NEC contribute to real-time decision making for businesses processing an exceptional amount of "big data."

 The NEC appliance server - in support of SAP HANA - and the solutions that support its introduction, offer the following features:
Server Features
High-performance Express5800 Scalable Enterprise Servers, which leverage NEC's long heritage in the development of supercomputer and mainframe technologies to achieve high fault tolerance and flexible system expandability, are applied as the platform for NEC's appliance servers for SAP HANA. This model is mounted with eight Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors from the E7-8800/4800 product family series; the latest product from Intel Corporation. Furthermore, its dense design enables 80 cores and 2TB of memory to be loaded in a single 7U chassis. In addition, sophisticated configuration control and fault-management functions are available through the EXPRESSCOPE(R) Engine SP2, an operational control chip independently developed by NEC based on its accumulated UNIX server development technologies. Express5800 Scalable Enterprise Servers have a track record of deployment in an array of mission-critical systems.

Comprehensive Installation Support for Users of SAP HANA
NEC has established a verification environment that allows it to quickly verify and evaluate the latest features of SAP HANA, including functions that link the data of the SAP(R) ERP application in real-time, such as SAP Landscape Transformation software. After verification and evaluation, NEC is then able to introduce these features to users.

NEC was one of the first Japanese distributors of SAP BusinessObjects(TM) business intelligence (BI) solutions, the front-end tool for visualizing SAP HANA data. NEC maintains a sales and support structure both as an SAP global technology partner and an SAP gold channel partner, and boasts a track record of installations at roughly 500 sites.

In addition to providing evaluation services when installing SAP HANA, NEC offers total support that covers the entire system associated with SAP HANA, including data linking with SAP ERP and other packages, as well as development and operation to help ensure customers can view that data more effectively.

Fast Support for SAP HANA Direct from Germany
In 2008, NEC opened a Global Competence Center next to SAP's headquarters in Waldorf, Germany. NEC has positioned the center as the core hub of its global business related to SAP solutions, and uses the center to pursue the creation of new solutions based on the development and verification of SAP platform solutions built for server, storage and middleware products. NEC also provides support for SAP HANA through direct communication with SAP engineers at the center in Germany. Through its partnership with SAP, NEC can quickly deliver related services that cover installation, verification and application, and offer across-the-board support to address emerging user needs.

 NEC will strive to enhance its lineup of products geared toward the era of big data and will expand sales of the new product as a solution to the business challenges facing users.

Moreover, through its global partnership with SAP, NEC will continue to accelerate the expansion of its worldwide IT solutions business.