[jyl]

I'm trying to understand some things about a current trend in computing - clustered or "scale-out" architecture using large numbers of 1-2 way x86 servers, typically running Linux.

Does anyone have expertise in this area? I'd love a chance to ask my question by PM.

In case this was too vague, I'm basically trying to understand the limitations of this scale-out strategy for enterprise computing (i.e. corporate, as distinguished from academic). What sort of computing tasks is it best suited for - web serving vs application serving vs database serving? How much overhead and complexity is added by the need to manage the cluster, e.g. cabling, load-balancing. Does the practicality of scaling out diminish at some point, e.g. at 100 servers, 1,000 servers, 10,000 servers?