LinuxInsider.com: For years, Prudential Group Insurance has clustered big, proprietary Unix boxes to power data warehouses that manage volumes of client information. However, the Livingston, N.J., company recently began testing micro clusters of smaller, standard-based systems that run Linux as a possible alternative.

As anticipated, the cluster of five dual-processor Intelbased IBM x345s, connected using an InfiniBand I/O switching fabric, is a less-expensive setup than the two sixway Unix boxes. What's been surprising, though, is the new system's performance.

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