Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Subscribe
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Subscribe
    Home Latest News
    • Networking

    Small Coprocessor Promises Big Server Boost

    Written by

    Mark Hachman
    Published October 14, 2003
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      Startup ClearSpeed Technology on Tuesday is expected to announce a coprocessor for x86-based servers that the company said could help shrink massive clustered systems down into a server chassis or two.

      ClearSpeeds 32-bit CS301 coprocessor runs at only 200MHz but outputs up to 25.6 gigaflops per processor. The companys chief designers envision the chip perched on a PCI daughtercard, assisting the main CPU with computation-intensive parallel tasks, such as those used in the biotechnology and scientific communities.

      “Were seeing an unbelievable amount of compute-intensive operations today, and were seeing a dramatic increase in compute requirements, between whats capable of being processed today and whats required to be processed today,” sad Mike Calise, president of ClearSpeed, which has offices in Los Gatos, Calif., and Bristol, U.K.

      The chip will be disclosed at the Microprocessor Forum in San Jose, Calif.

      The coprocessor is relatively small—41 million transistors take up 72 square mm using an IBM 0.13 silicon-on-insulator process—but the processing power comes from the combination of an array of 64 processing elements organized across the surface of the chip. Instead of being fed by an individual cache, each element contains its own register file and program-execution memory.

      “We could be doing 64 different proteins or drug molecules processed simultaneously at that level,” said Simon Macintosh-Smith, the director of architecture at the company. The ClearSpeed CS301 calculates which operations can be parallelized, rather than forcing a compiler to do the work, as Intels Itanium chips do.

      The chips 25.6-gigaflop output is more than double the 12 gigaflops produced by a 3.0GHz Pentium 4. By comparison, the National Center for Supercomputer Applications was using a 1,512-processor, 660-gigaflop SGI Origin2000 array up until November 2002. Running the chip at a low clock speed also means that the CS301 consumes very little power: only 2.5 watts, meaning that the chip produces 8.5 gigaflops per watt, compared with just 0.1 gigaflop per watt for the Pentium 4.

      By 2004, the company said, a CS301-assisted cabinet of Opteron or Itanium processors could generate 48 teraflops, more than the 36 teraflops currently produced by Japans Earth Simulator, an estimated $350 million investment that required its own building.

      The CS301 will sample in the fourth quarter, executives said.

      Discuss this in the eWEEK forum.

      Mark Hachman
      Mark Hachman

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.