Dual-Core AMD Opteron(tm) Processor-based Cluster Broadens AMD Developer Center Resources, Provides Solid Example of Partnering
SUNNYVALE, CALIF. - Nov. 15, 2005-AMD (NYSE: AMD) today unveiled its
Emerald cluster installation. The AMD Developer Center's Emerald is its
newest and largest system, as well as its first publicly-available
cluster based entirely on Dual-Core AMD Opteron(tm) processors with
Direct Connect Architecture. AMD is offering use of Emerald to industry
partners, developers, customers and end users as a cutting-edge,
multi-core test and development platform.
"Supercomputing is all about performance. The combination of AMD
dual-core processors with AMD64's Direct Connect Architecture not only
delivers leading-edge performance, but also excels in energy efficiency
and performance per watt, key issues in datacenters today." said Joe
Menard, corporate vice president, software strategy, AMD. "AMD is
helping set the standard for commercial computing, so Emerald allows
customers, partner companies and end users to test and optimize
applications across hundreds of dual-core processors. To make Emerald
happen, we worked with an outstanding group of industry associates that
showcase their extraordinary products alongside our multi-core
technology."
"As AMD continues to offer innovative solutions for multi-core
computing, Rackable Systems' Dual-Core AMD Opteron processor-based
servers help offer the scalability to achieve such impressive results,"
said Colette LaForce, vice president of marketing, Rackable Systems. "As
AMD successfully responds to the need for multi-core testing and
development in compute-intensive environments, Rackable Systems is fully
aligned with and proud to be part of the AMD Emerald cluster."
This cluster is comprised of 144 Rackable Systems nodes, each containing
two
Dual-Core AMD Opteron processors model 275, for a total of 576 cores.
For the HPC Challenge benchmark suite, using a 512-core Emerald
configuration, AMD was able to
achieve the #1 score in the Random Access (GUPs) benchmark and also
measure 1.865 TFlop/s for an efficiency rate of 82.8 percent
(http://icl.cs.utk.edu/hpcc/hpcc_results.cgi). The HPC Challenge
benchmark is designed to measure a variety of factors influencing
application performance, including sustainable memory bandwidth and
latency. These benchmarks are highly sensitive to memory update
performance and the speed of network communications, and showcase the
clear advantages of AMD64's Direct Connect Architecture.
The Emerald cluster has 1,152 GB RAM, and includes Cyclades TS3000
Console Server; a Force10 Networks E300 Series Switch; Iwill DK8-HTX
motherboards; Panasas ActiveScale Storage Cluster; Pathscale InfiniPath
HTX InfiniBand Adapters; Rackable Systems servers leveraging DC Power
technology; Samsung Electronics 2GB DDR400 memory modules based on
single-rank 1Gbit technology; and a Silverstorm 9120 InfiniBand Switch.
The AMD Developer Center has helped hundreds of leading innovators test
and optimize their products, enterprise configurations and clusters for
AMD64 technology. Located in Sunnyvale, Calif., the AMD Developer Center
provides on-site technical support and global virtual access to the
AMD64 environment - enabling scheduled sessions onsite or remotely at
https://devcenter.amd.com.
More than 85 of the top 100 of the Forbes Global 2000 companies or their
subsidiaries, representing the world's most competitive industries, now
rely on AMD Opteron(tm) processor-based systems. The AMD64 processor
platform with Direct Connect Architecture is the gold standard for
64-bit computing, evolving industry standards to deliver break-through
performance by reducing bottlenecks inherent in traditional front-side
bus architectures and enabling a more efficient approach to
virtualization. Single- and Dual-Core AMD Opteron processors deliver the
highest performance and performance-per-watt in the market because they
were designed from the ground up for multi-core computing.
About AMD
AMD (NYSE:AMD) designs and produces innovative microprocessors,
Flash memory devices and low-power processor solutions for the computer,
communications and consumer electronics industries. AMD is dedicated to
delivering standards-based, customer-focused solutions for technology
users, ranging from enterprises and governments to individual consumers.
For more information, visit http://www.amd.com