Core Differences Between AMD and Intel
Transcription
Core Differences Between AMD and Intel
Core Differences Between AMD and Intel How do AMD and Intel Approach Core Methodologies Differently? AMD Opteron™ 6100 Series processors have up to 12 cores so threads can be dedicated to core registers. This allows them to be scheduled and processed in a smooth, predictable manner despite the level of server utilization. In contrast, Intel Xeon 5600 Series processors only offer up to s ix cores, so Intel tries to accelerate processing using Simultaneous Multithreading (SMT) to squeeze two threads into one core – Intel has branded this Hyper-Threading (HT). While Intel will claim that HT can increase performance, competition for shared core register resources may actually hurt performance, especially in highly utilized server environments. AMD’s Approach Intel’s Approach 12 cores with 12 dedicated threads Six cores with HyperThreading is analogous to the Intel blue cars forced to merge into six lanes to pass through the toll booth, while the AMD green cars are able to pass through the toll booth without merging. 12 cores with 6 shared cores Examples of Hyper-Threading Issues1: • Microsoft ® recommends turning off Hyper-Threading when running PeopleSoft applications because “our lab testing has shown little or no improvement.” • Microsoft TechNet article recommends disabling Hyper-Threading for production exchange servers and “only enabled if absolutely necessary A as a temporary measure to increase CPU capacity until additional hardware can be obtained.” • A consultant who deals with Cognos, a leading BI software by IBM, recommends disabling Hyper-Threading because it “frequently degrades performance and proves unstable.” So, if SMT (“core sharing”) yields both positive and negative results, what is the better answer? How about more cores? When you add more cores, you add more throughput. Period. Why Choose AMD? AMD is an innovator that continually leads the way in developing processors with more cores to keep up with customer demand. Customers are transitioning faster and faster to processors with higher core counts to get the most out of their investments. History of CPU Core Count Innovation Year 1985 2005 2007 2009 2010 2011 April September June March Q3 Single Core processing First Dual Core First Quad Core on Single Die First Six Core processor First Twelve Core processor First Sixteen Core processor Intel AMD AMD AMD AMD AMD Month Event Company B52: Better manageability 50% less cost per VM 2x the VMs In addition to having more cores, another key reason to choose AMD is value. Simply put, you get more for less. This means you have more room in your budget for a higher performing processor, additional features or more services. Notice the price differences below for equivalent servers, especially for 4P configurations. Processor Model Processors supported Cores per processor Pricing range for high-end and entry-level base configurations Pricing Sources AMD Opteron™ 6100 Series Intel Xeon 5600 Series AMD Opteron™ 6100 Series Intel Xeon 7500 Series 2P and 4P 1P and 2P 2P or 4P 4P 8 or 12 Cores 4 or 6 Cores 8 or 12 Cores 4, 6, or 8 Cores Dell R710: $6,010 - $9,170 HP DL585 G7: $9,294 - $14,914 HP DL580 G7: $12,816 - $25,896 HP 385: $4,969 - $7,791 Entry-level: (2) AMD Opteron 6128 High-end: (2) AMD Opteron 6180 SE Entry-level: (2) Intel Xeon E5 620 High-end: (2) Intel Xeon X5690 Entry-level: (4) AMD Opteron 6128 High-end: (4) AMD Opteron 6180 SE Entry-level: (4) Intel Xeon E7520 High-end: (4) Intel Xeon X7560 Pricing based on Larger Enterprise at www.dell.com and www.hp.com as of May 2011 using 146GB HDD 10K 64GB Dual Rank RAM, basic configuration, and basic 3 year NBD warranty applied. Why Do More Cores Matter for Key Workloads? More cores benefit multi-threaded environments, either by having applications that can process many tasks at the same time (e.g., database or certain HPC applications) or by having several applications running at the same time on a server (e.g., running multiple VMs or databases on a server). In either case, a wealth of tasks or threads can be run simultaneously on many cores. Virtualization • Typically, customers choose to run one virtual machine (VM) per core for easy manageability and optimum performance. Highly robust VMs may require multiple cores as two cores per VM will give better performance than one core per VM. • In terms of virtualization consolidation, more cores allow you to run more VMs per core or more robust VMs, which can translate into lower server acquisition costs, operational costs, power costs and data center floor space. MD Opteron™ 6100 Series processors support more VMs per processor and ultimately •A more VMs per server for greater consolidation. Database • You can also input, process, analyze and report data on the same platform because you have the computational power to run the tasks simultaneously. • More cores allow for consolidating multiple databases on one server. • More cores help databases scale during peak periods. HPC / Technical • HPC enables complex technical computations to be broken into several elements. Each core can then solve a piece of the computation. Having a larger number of cores increases the number of parallel computations that can be done at any given time. • By driving more performance with more cores, data centermanagers are able to achieve high performance levels while using fewer servers, saving data center space and reducing operational costs. Web / Cloud • Web and cloud are transaction-heavy environments that often have need for “elastic” computing resources, or rapidly scaling up the number of cores for peak environments, yet still maintaining low power environments in times of low volume. • More cores help these environments keep response times low because the server can more efficiently handle a large number of transactions simultaneously. Infrastructure • With the growing popularity of virtualized infrastructure servers, it is important to have core resources for each VM. • More cores help the server to run more VMs simultaneously, which enables the consolidation of more file, print or email servers, saving server cost, operational cost and data center floor space. • At the same time, the power efficiency of AMD processors means that even though AMD can deliver twice as many cores, we can do so without doubling the power rating.* • Better core density per server allows for scaling during peak workloads, while generating the maximum amount of processing power per foot of data center floor space. * TDP for the Intel Xeon X5690 is 130W and per core it is 130W/6=21.7W/core (see http://www.intc.com/priceList.cfm for TDP values). TDP for the AMD Opteron™ 6180 SE is 140W and per core it is 140W/12=11.7W/core (see pg 4 at http://www.amd.com/us/Documents/43761D-ACP_PowerConsumption.pdf). Is Clock Speed the Only Indicator of Performance? Many times customers equate core frequency, or clock speed, to processor and server performance. Core frequency is only one of the factors that contribute to overall system performance, which is what performance-conscious customers really care about. Core count, core frequency, memory channels and memory speed, I/O speeds, cache sizes, and overall core architecture all contribute to system performance. Try before you buy. Don’t rely solely on benchmarks. You often hear server vendors and processor companies talk about and publish benchmark scores. While AMD Opteron™ processor-based servers lead and perform very well in many benchmarks, we encourage customers to trial their applications on a server before making a purchase rather than making a decision based on benchmarks. Often times, benchmarks don’t represent real-world customer applications (e.g. VMmark scores are based on running numerous lightly loaded virtual machines when most customers run virtual machines at high utilization levels). For information on why more cores and memory channels matter, plus learn which software applications love lots of cores, visit http://www.amd.com/morecores 1 For examples of hyperthreading, please visit: http://blogs.amd.com/work/2010/01/21/it%E2%80%99s-all-about-the-cores/ http://www.cognos-install.co.uk/articles/tips/contributor_server_performance_tips.asp http://download.microsoft.com/download/E/C/5/EC567749-20C0-4DC5-99B7-FA7C77A097EA/PeopleSoft on SQL 2008.docx http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd346699.aspx http://www.advancedclustering.com/company-blog/high-performance-linpack-on-xeon-5500-v-opteron-2400.html ©2011 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. All rights reserved. AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, AMD Opteron, AMD-V, and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Other names are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners. PID# 50005B