Patent ID: 8260923

Claim:
A computer system comprising: a plurality of computer units, each of said plurality of computer units includes a plurality of computers, and each of the computers has at least one CPU and a control device which changes configuration of computers; wherein the computer system is adapted to include different configurations of computers in each of said plurality of computer units: a first computer configuration comprises at least two computers being successively disposed and closely coupled in a same computer unit, memories and I/O devices of the closely coupled computers are shared and CPUs of said at least two computers to function as a single computer; a second computer configuration comprises at least two computers which CPUs work to allow each of said at least two computers to function as a single computer independently, the computer system further comprises a management server including SMP definition information defining allowable combinations of computers which form possible SMP combinations in a single computer unit, the management server performs: in a first case that there is a free computer which is disposed successively adjacent to a plurality of computers having the first configuration and forming a first SMP combination within a first computer unit of said plurality of computer units, instructing said free computer to operate as an element of a second SMP combination to be scaled-up to from said first SMP combination with reference to the possible SMP combinations defined in the SMP definition information to increase a number of cooperatively working CPUs; and in a second case that there is a computer having the second configuration and performing an application, which is disposed successively adjacent to a plurality of computers having the first configuration and forming a first SMP combination within a first computer unit of said plurality of computer units, instructing a computer disposed in another computer unit than said first computer unit to perform said application on behalf of said computer having the second configuration, and instructing said computer having the second configuration to operate as an element of a second SMP combination to be scaled-up to from the first SMP combination with reference to the possible SMP combinations defined in the SMP definition information to increase number of cooperatively working CPUs.