microservers

SeaMicro brawns up the microserver

Startup SeaMicro first packed lots of low-end Atom processors into servers to save power and space. Now Intel's beefy Xeon server chips are also getting the low-power treatment.

SeaMicro today announced its SM 10000-XE server, which it claims is the most energy-efficient Xeon server ever built. It consumes one half the power of a server with comparable computing muscle, takes one third of the space, and increases the available bandwidth twelve times, the company said.

The company is one of few companies that have taken a radical approach to server design by using arrays of less powerful processors, called &… Read more

Intel microserver chips dial down the power

Intel is preparing to ship two low-powered Xeon processors for the high-density microserver market, and will deliver similar chips based on its Sandy Bridge and Atom architectures within the next two years.

The additions to the Xeon E3-1200 family, the E3-1260L and E3-1220L, along with the Sandy Bridge and Atom additions, have been designed for microservers, Intel announced at a press event yesterday. A microserver comprises multiple small, one-socket servers sharing the same chassis to provide high-processing density in a relatively small amount of space.

The new Xeons have a thermal design power (TDP) rating of between 20W and 45W … Read more

Intel seeks new 'microserver' standard

SAN FRANCISCO--In September, Intel introduced its back-to-the-future idea of tiny "microservers." Now the company wants to make the design into a standard others can use, too.

The chipmaker will offer its design specification to the Server System Infrastructure Forum by the end of the year, said Jason Waxman, general manager of Intel's high-density computing group. If the group's board votes its approval for the specification, group members may use the designs royalty-free, he said in a meeting with reporters here.

"Before the end of the year, it will happen," Waxman said.

The computer industry … Read more