Intel revamps server processors

Intel executives have met with UK partners to explain its new naming convention for server chips and to further explain its plans to support virtual machine technologies.

Late July Intel announced that its forthcoming IA-64 Itanium chips would be launched as 9000 Series processors.

The first processor to appear in the new range has been codenamed Montecito and is a dual-core Itanium due later this year.

Forthcoming x86-compatible Xeon server chips suitable for four-way and eight-way systems will be issued as the 7000 Series, while x86 server chips for two-way servers will be called the 5000 Series. Series 3000 chips will be based on Pentium 4 processors combined with peripheral chip- sets and will be aimed at single-processor servers.

Intel's Adam Martin also gave more details about the firm's plans for dual-core and low-power-consumption server chips.

"Bensley will be one of the first dual-core Xeon chips to be launched next year. Sossaman will be the first dual-core low-power-consumption chip, and Woodcrest the first truly low- voltage core currently visible on our roadmap," he said. "We are not disclosing details of its architecture yet except to say that it will be based on a next generation micro architecture."

By 2007 Woodcrest will be used throughout Intel's range of x86 server chips designed for high-performance servers and for rack-optimised designs. However, Sossaman is still expected to be used for extremely low-power-consumption servers at that time, Martin said.

Martin also detailed Intel's plans to improve support for virtual machine technologies from independent software makers.

"Hypervisor vendors [such as VMware, Microsoft and the open-source Xen project] would need to write driver software to support storage and network hardware, but you probably won't need a special driver for graphics adapters," said Martin. He added that firms could use virtualisation for desktop systems - so a virtual machine accessible only by IT staff could be used to firewall users' desktop operating systems from the network, and to provide a protected environment for system management tools.

Intel is expected to begin selling dual-core server chips and processors with hardware support for virtual machines next year.