The CHARON-VAX Family
This product family creates a virtual VAX inside a standard Windows-based or OpenVMS/Integrity host system. For almost every VAX that was ever manufactured, Stromasys offers a CHARON-VAX equivalent. Continue to use your VAX applications as if nothing ever happened; no migration, or re-training, or reorganization is required. The only thing the users will notice is the incredible increase of performance!
Stromasys provides a range of medium-to-very-high-performance (currently 400+VUPs) replacement platforms for Digital Equipment Corporation's (now HP) VAX computers, by means of virtualization and "hardware abstraction layers" (HAL), running on industry standard systems. These hardware emulators run all VAX Operating System and application software (even the original hardware diagnostics) which previously were running on those platforms in their existing binary form. No application source code is needed, no conversion is required; no matter which VAX your software was running before! And our emulator products run much faster than the original VAX computers.
The CHARON-VAX family of products are VAX replacement systems, running as a software application on industry standard systems. They present to the VAX software the exact copy of a VAX hardware system, and will run unmodified VAX operating systems, layered software and applications. The compatibility is so exact that we run the original VAX hardware diagnostics during the design, and the CHARON products were certified using the original AXE hardware verification test suite of Digital Equipment Corporation's VAX engineering group.
VAX emulation concept
You can install your VAX operating system (such as VAX/VMS, NetBSD or VAXELN) directly from its original distribution kit on the virtual VAX created by CHARON-VAX, or in many cases even copy a system disk image from the original VAX. The applications can be copied in binary format via the network, tape, floppy disk or CD. You can transfer your LMF license keys in the same way. Due to the fact that the VAX hardware is replaced and not the VAX operating system, all original software functionality is maintained, and CHARON-VAX runs even the VAX diagnostic bootstrap at system start-up at a very high speed. For a detailed product overview, go to Product Overview.
HP provides extension licenses for the CHARON-VAX environment, which provide a continuation of the existing HP software warranty agreements when running on CHARON-VAX. For more details look here.
To learn how to access the CHARON-VAX online demonstration (70+ VUPS and 150 GB of storage) click here.
Benefits
- Rapid implementation on industry standard hardware with increased performance
- Replaces old and expensive hardware and reduces cost of ownership
- Saves floor space and less electricity consumption in the computer room
- Runs much faster then the original VAX hardware
- Preserves the current application investments
- No change in current business processes or operational skills
- Extend on new platforms, create room for future growth
- Product variations available to match different application needs
- Accepted as a legitimate VAX replacement at affordable cost
- Adaptable product design and flexible support, licensing and pricing conditions to satisfy the defense industry, OEM or high-volume end-user needs