Microsoft’s Windows Server 2003 Compute Cluster Edition Will Not Sport IA64

Thảo luận trong 'Tin tức Công Nghệ - IT News' bắt đầu bởi mathiencusi, 15/11/04.

  1. mathiencusi

    mathiencusi 1 phần chính 9 phần tà!

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    While the world’s most powerful supercomputers run Intel Itanium 2 multiprocessing units, Microsoft Corp. does not want to support Intel’s Itanium-series chips in its operating system designed for clusters, instead, the company qualifies its forthcoming product for x86-64 chips, namely AMD Opteron and Intel Xeon.


    A report over CNET News.com claims the Redmond, Washington-based software maker said its Windows Server 2003 Compute Cluster Edition for clusters that contain up to 128 processors will not run on Intel Itanium 2 chips without disclosing the exact reasons for the move, but noting that it had something to with “demand for the product”. It is unclear, whether future incarnations of Windows for clusters will support Intel Itanium 2 chips.

    Cluster is an array of servers that work in collaboration, but are physically independent. Intel positions Itanium processors for high-end servers and supercomputers – huge machines that consists from numerous building blocks that may be considered as independent, but that still form a single complex. The main difference between high-end servers and clusters is that the former employs top technologies, while clusters can be formed from numerous low-end machines. Typically clusters use Linux operating systems, supercomputers and high-end servers employ various OSes, including Microsoft Windows Server 2003.

    Microsoft’s move will also likely prompt many analysts to speculate as to whether Microsoft will eventually pull its support for Itanium 2 in general in the future, CNET News.com notes. The company has pulled it support for different server chips in the past, due to slack demand. Years ago, Microsoft produced, or committed to produce, a version of Windows for Digital Equipment’s Alpha processor; the MIPS processor, originally developed by Silicon Graphics; and IBM’s Power chips. All of these projects were ultimately scotched.

    Since Intel Itanium 2 chips require software to be especially written for the IA64 architecture, software makers like Microsoft will hamper availability of appropriate software, market share gaining for the Itanium 2 chips may slowdown.

    Microsoft is expected to release beta version of Windows Server 2003 Compute Cluster Edition in the first half of 2005, the final version is said to be ready in the second half of the year.


    nguồn : xbit
     
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    mathiencusi, 15/11/04
    #1
  2. thuongkiet82

    thuongkiet82 Active Member Thành viên BQT

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    Dell gives AMD another look
    11/11/2004 10:17:22 PM, by Eric Bangeman

    Since its release in early 2003, AMD's Opteron server CPU has made great inroads almost everywhere... except with Dell. The CEO of Dell, Kevin Rollins, says that may very well be about to change, as the company is considering selling Opteron servers sooner rather than later.

    "My guess is we're going to want to add that [AMD] product line in the future," Rollins said in an interview on Wednesday with InfoWorld editors.

    "They've been getting better and better. The technology is better. In some areas they're now in the lead on Intel. That is what is interesting us more than anything," he said.

    This isn't the first time Dell has made noises about selling machines with AMD processors. In the past, such statements have been aimed primarily at extracting concessions from Intel, which currently supplies the CPUs for all of Dell's products. What leads many to believe that Dell isn't just blowing smoke this time is that the Opteron rules the commodity 64-bit server space, a fact not lost on Dell, which is the lone holdout among the major computer manufacturers when it comes to AMD.

    While there could very well be Opteron servers in Dell's future, Athlon desktops probably are not. However, Rollins did leave open the possibility that the PC maker could sell gaming boxes powered by Athlon 64s, as the AMD platform has become more popular with gamers due to its solid price-to-performance ratio.

    If Dell does begin offering AMD systems, even if they are confined to servers and high-end gaming boxes, it would be a still be major accomplishment for AMD. It looks as though four straight profitable quarters plus some sound architectural decisions (especially when compared to Intel) have finally caught Dell's eye.

    nguồn: artechnica.com
     
    thuongkiet82, 15/11/04
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