Xserve G5 ; single and dual 2 ghz and the node for cluster
They are here and they are clocked at 2 ghz. dual gigabit ethernet , 80 gb sata drive, cd rom reader, ddr 400 ECC memory.
ECC memory is the key word. I think it's may be the first time that Apple use ECC memory. It's also the first time they are interested in the cluster market : they made especially a model.
I am ready to bet that apple may be coming the new leader in supercomputer technology.
ECC memory is the key word. I think it's may be the first time that Apple use ECC memory. It's also the first time they are interested in the cluster market : they made especially a model.
I am ready to bet that apple may be coming the new leader in supercomputer technology.
Comments
Jeepers!
Originally posted by Ebby
Am I correct to assume this is a row of 7 fans in front of the processor?
Jeepers!
Right and i am ready to bet that the G5 are the 90 nm ones. (if it's true, all my predictions about the xserve will be correct ... )
Originally posted by Powerdoc
Right and i am ready to bet that the G5 are the 90 nm ones. (if it's true, all my predictions about the xserve will be correct ... )
Correct! 90nm! Says so here.
Originally posted by Ebby
Correct! 90nm! Says so here.
Thanks however it was not a difficult bet :
For heat reasons the 90 nm chip was needed :
from your link
"The PowerPC G5 is fabricated in IBM?s new $3 billion, state-of-the-art facility in East Fishkill, New York.To get electronics so small requires miniaturization breakthroughs, and IBM?s dedication to scientific research has made these advances possible.With industry-leading build, assembly, and test technology, IBM uses a 90-nanometer process to produce the PowerPC G5. More than 58 million silicon-on-insulator (SOI) transistors and eight layers of copper interconnects enable this new processor to deliver tremendous performance.The use of these advanced technologies also means the PowerPC G5 draws less power and produces less heat?allowing Apple to pack two 64-bit 2GHz processors in a 1U form factor. 32-bit processing Postcard = 24 in. 2 (155 cm2)"
For marketing reasons IBM should not ship a server faster than a tower
The server market is small. The initial amount of G5 90 nm avalaible will be slow, but sufficiant for this niche market. The others G5 can be stockpile for future apple products.
The biggest new is the DDR ECC memory. It's a big step for "serious" server, and was absolutely necessary for supercomputing.
The biggest new is the DDR ECC memory. It's a big step for "serious" server, and was absolutely necessary for supercomputing.
It's not always necessary, as Big Mac at Virginia Tech's G5 cluster can't use ECC. You can get away without it if your application isn't catastrophically affected by (very rare) localised failures due to memory errors.
Originally posted by Stoo
It's not always necessary, as Big Mac at Virginia Tech's G5 cluster can't use ECC. You can get away without it if your application isn't catastrophically affected by (very rare) localised failures due to memory errors.
Yes but Varadajian (sorry for the spelling) said that it was an inconvenient, even it affect only very long calculations.
IBM is on a roll and Apple is riding with them.
Originally posted by Ebby
Am I correct to assume this is a row of 7 fans in front of the processor?
No: eight!
Intelligent Heat Dissipation
Built with silicon-on-insultator transistors and copper interconnects, the G5 processor both delivers tremendous power and at the same time draws less power and produces less heat. To dissipate the heat it does produce, eight different blowers draw air from the front of the machine, across the processor(s) and out the back. You can monitor the temperature of your Xserve G5s from the Server Monitor software, which also displays the status of the eight fans. In the case of a single blower failure, the other fans speed up to compensate, allowing your server to keep running.
From: http://www.apple.com/xserve/design.html
That's USD$6m, or USD$1m more than the 1100 Dual PMG5s at Virginia Tech.
Just imagine what will happen in the clustering game in the next 12 months, (aside from other company rip-offs)... m.
http://www.apple.com/xserve/cluster/wgcluster.html
I imagine this will be very popular.
For the same $2999, you can get either one or two processors. To get two processors at $2999, you give up two drive bays, give up a CD-ROM drive as well as the capacity to add one internally, and you get the 10-client rather than the unlimited-client OS X Server.
To keep all of that stuff and still have two processors, you have to pay $3999 for the top-of-the-line Xserve, $1000 more than the Cluster Node model. Even considering that you get another 512 MB RAM thrown in with the deal, is what you get really worth the additional $1000?
There's a $500 difference between the 10-client and unlimited-client OS X Server software. A plain old CD-ROM drive is worth maybe $30. At Apple's inflated memory prices, an extra 512 MB would costs you $250, but you can easily get that much PC3200 EEC RAM for under $120. That's $650 of extras in the $3999 model so far.
What's left is the cost of the support components for being able to add an optical drive and two more hard drives. I can't see that cost closing the gap between $650 and $1000. I think $3749 would have been a more reasonable price for the top-of-the-line Xserve, and it would be easy enough to give buyers a break on the OS client-count part of the price and sell the top dual-processor model for $3499.
[Edit: Typed $2749 where I meant $3749, and $2499 where I meant $3499. D'oh! I wasn't trying to be that unreasonable about where I thought the pricing should be.]
that's an unpleasant surprise.
i am glad it's out though.
Seriously, I've showed people the new Xserve. People who are used to high-end stuff. Their jaws drop, and none of them can believe the price is that low.