Oracle must continue to make software for HP servers that use Intel’s Itanium server chip, a judge ruled last week. Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge James Kleinberg said Oracle violated a contract in refusing to do so. A second trial is expected to follow to determine whether Oracle must pay damages. HP called it a major victory and Oracle, of course, plans to appeal and said it would pursue counterclaims. The bitter battle arose after HP pushed-out former CEO Mark Hurd, who jumped to Oracle. HP was the only major vendor that successfully sold Itanium-based servers and last year Oracle said it would stop making the software. Oracle argued that HP's partner Intel planned to move customers to its Xeon chip, an assertion Intel disputed. Things got ugly from there, especially with HP moving into software and Oracle into hardware. Related Links: