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| AMD Goes Quad-Core  AMD intros its new quad-core x86 server processor, achieving four x86 processing cores on a single die of silicon. At the annual AMD Industry Analyst Forum, a server powered by four upcoming Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors (codenamed Barcelona), manufactured on 65nm silicon-on-insulator process technology, was shown utilizing all 16 cores. By delivering a consistent thermal envelope while adding two more processing cores, along with micro-architectural enhancements, AMD expects to significantly advance the performance-per-watt capabilities of AMD Opteron processors.Upgradeability from dual- to quad-core processors is expected to be as straightforward as it was from single- to dual-core with AMD, with unchanged thermal and electrical envelopes. The demonstration was an example of this. The reference server platform was seamlessly upgraded to quad-core by replacing the server's existing DDR2-based AMD Opteron processors with the new Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors and updating the BIOS. The upcoming AMD Opteron processors are based on AMD's innovative Direct Connect Architecture, which reduces bottlenecks found in legacy front-side bus x86 architectures and includes AMD's proven Integrated Memory Controller. These processors are designed to enhance I/O throughput and CPU-to-CPU communication, and to deliver increased performance with low power consumption and low memory latency. As the next innovation on AMD's consistent roadmap, native Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors continue AMD's tradition of reducing the total cost of ownership for the enterprise. Current DDR2-based AMD Opteron processor-based platforms should seamlessly upgrade to native quad-core AMD processors without compromising performance, power or heat – helping to meet the changing and escalating demands of the enterprise customer. Native Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors are also planned to feature enhanced AMD Virtualization (AMD-V) technology with nested page tables, delivering world-class performance and advanced leadership in x86 virtualization, as well as energy-efficient DDR2 memory support. AMD quad-core technology was demonstrated on a reference server platform running 64-bit Windows Server 2003. The four-processor server was powered by native Quad-Core AMD Opteron 8000 Series processors. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Computing News :: home page |