olemus
arvutite klass, jõudluse ja gabariitide poolest
superarvutitest väiksem ja miniarvutitest suurem

ISO/IEC 2382, ISO/IEC/IEEE 24765:
ulatuslike võimaluste ja ressurssidega, tavaliselt arvutuskeskuses asuv arvuti, millega saab ühendada teisi arvuteid ta vahendite ühiskasutuseks
= a computer, usually in a computer center, with extensive capabilities and resources to which other computers may be connected so that they can share facilities

Wiktionary:
a large, powerful computer able to manage very many simultaneous tasks and communicate with very many connected terminals; used by large, complex organizations (such as banks and supermarkets) where continuously sustained operation is vital

ülevaateid
https://blog.share.org/Article/a-brief-history-of-the-mainframe

https://www.ibm.com/ibm/history/exhibits/mainframe/mainframe_FT1.html

http://ptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/images/9780131738560/samplechapter/0131738569_01.pdf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mainframe_computer

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_mainframe

https://www.precisely.com/blog/mainframe/mainframe-industry-ten-years

vt ka
- kapparvuti