IBM serves up Opteron.(IBM eServer 325)

The IBM eServer 325 is the first major-brand server to use AMD's new 64-bit Opteron processor. Introduced in July 2003 and having first shipped in October, this is the only mainstream Opteron server that I'm aware of.

The Opteron processor, and the IBM eServer 325, represent arguably the most efficient means to transition from 32 bits to 64 bits. Applications such as databases and data mining benefit from the larger address size and 64-bit math operations of a 64-bit processor.

Thanks to Opteron's ability to simultaneously run 64-bit and 32-bit apps with a proper 64-bit OS, IT shops can leverage 64-bit applications where necessary (and where they exist) while continuing to run the 32- bit applications, utilities, and tools they already have natively on the hardware, without emulation. That's simply not possible with the Itanium 2, for example.

eServer 325 offers a unique 64-bit platform for running Windows, …