Mainframes

The main frame computer is a very powerful type of computer (only supercomputers are more powerful). They can perform millions of instructions per second (MIPS) They can process large volumes of data simultaneously. They are large - room size or more, they generate a great deal of heat so they need large air conditioned rooms. They cost several million pounds.

They are mostly owned by large comercial companies such as:

• Banks
• Insurance Companies
• utility companies (Like gas and electricity)
• Large manufactoring companies (for example car builders)

A mainframe can control an entire factory including robots on the assembly line, ordering and movment of resources, paying bills and so on.

Mainframes are operated by specialist staff. They are kept in air conditioned rooms well away from the office or the factory floor. Most users access the mainframe by means of a terminal. The main frame will be connected to many periforal devices like line printers, tape drives, terminals, and disk drives. Mainframes can run several operating systems at one time, but the traditional definition of a mainframe (from the 1970s) that it had more than one CPU is no longer valid even low end servers have several.

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