At the Fall 2002 Intel Developers’ Forum, SGI today announced a
breakthrough in advancing high-performance, scalable systems based
on the Intel Itanium 2 processor and the Linux operating system for
high-end technical application users.
SGI has attained linear scalability on a 64-processor Itanium
2-based system and world-record results among microprocessor-based
systems on the STREAM Triad benchmark, which tests memory bandwidth
performance. Demonstrating linear scalability from 2 to 64
processors, the Itanium 2-based prototype system from SGI exceeded
120GB per second on a single system image. This result, derived
from initial internal testing, marks a significant milestone for
the industry: Early Itanium 2-based SGI systems built on the
innovative SGI NUMAflexTM shared-memory architecture, have proven
that Linux can scale well beyond the perceived limitation of eight
processors in a single system image.
Additionally, results show that the upcoming Itanium 2-based SGI
system has not only outperformed the IBM eServer p690 and Sun
Microsystems Sun Fire 15K high-end microprocessor-based systems, it
has also surpassed memory bandwidth performance on the CRAY C90,
the CRAY SV1, and the Fujitsu VPP5000 CMOS vector-based
supercomputers.
SGI recently announced its expanded business strategy in which
it will incorporate systems based on the Itanium processor family
running Linux into its established line of high-performance
computing systems. By utilizing Intel components within its
NUMAflex modular architecture, SGI positions itself as the lead
source for scalable Linux systems.
Early next year, SGI will release its fully optimized Itanium
2-based systems and its final STREAM benchmark results. The new
Itanium 2-based SGI systems will enable maximum performance and
scalability for a breadth of technical applications and will be
fully compatible with two future Itanium processor family products
(code-named “Madison” and “Montecito”) to offer an unmatched
investment protection.
“With its rich legacy in technical computing, SGI is well
positioned to speed the adoption of the Itanium 2 processor in
scalable high-performance environments,” said Mike Fister, senior
vice president and general manager, Enterprise Platforms Group,
Intel. “We are delighted to see an Itanium 2-based system achieve
such high efficiency in scaling Linux to this level, clearly
demonstrating the benefits of combining the Itanium 2 processor’s
outstanding performance and scalability with SGI’s NUMAflex
architecture.”
“This accomplishment will turn the heads of those who considered
clustering a multitude of PCs as an optimal solution for
integrating Linux into technical computing labs,” said Jon “maddog”
Hall, president and executive director, Linux International. “For
those applications that need to scale, SGI has just proven that
Linux need not be synonymous with clutter.”
“This accomplishment demonstrates SGI’s unique ability to
innovate at the edge of the performance frontier,” said Paul
McNamara, vice president, Products and Platforms, SGI. “Our
NUMAflex architecture enables us to create the world’s most
scalable shared-memory supercomputers, while delivering the rich
application environment that is developing around the Intel Itanium
line of processors and the Linux operating system.”
Under its new business strategy, SGI will expand its product and
service offerings by adding its core technology into systems
running the MIPS processor and the IRIX operating system–and soon,
its Itanium 2-based systems running the Linux operating system.
NUMAflex will remain the foundation of all SGI systems. Through its
experience and expertise in high-performance computing, SGI will
offer customers of the highest quality 64-bit operating
environments.