Home
Blog
New server hardware: Intel processors and AMD video cards

New server hardware: Intel processors and AMD video cards

4 March 2024

This article will discuss in detail the main novelties – Intel processors and AMD GPUs.

Processors

Below are brief characteristics of server processors:

Model	Cores	Threads	Base frequency	Maximum frequency	Cache	TDP
E-2488	8	16	3.2 GHz	5.6 GHz	24 MB	95 W
E-2478	8	16	2.8 GHz	5.2 GHz	24 MB	80 W
E-2468	8	12	2.6 GHz	5.2 GHz	24 MB	65 W
E-2486	6	12	3.5 GHz	5.6 GHz	18 MB	95 W
E-2456	6	12	3.3 GHz	5.1 GHz	18 MB	80 W
E-2436	6	12	2.9 GHz	5.0 GHz	18 MB	65 W
E-2434	4	8	3.4 GHz	5.0 GHz	12 MB	55 W
E-2414	4	4	2.6 GHz	4.5 GHz	12 MB	55 W

GPU

AMD Instinct MI300X

AMD released the MI300X GPU based on the CDNA3 architecture – premier solution for AI and high-performance computing applications. Main characteristics:

192 GB of HBM3 video memory;
bandwidth of 5.3 TB/s;
304 CUs execution units;
AMD Infinity Fabric bus (4th generation) to connect a number of MI300X devices;
8 devices in a cluster (maximum).

Comparison of MI300X with Nvidia H100 (main competitor):

1.5 times higher bandwidth (5.3 vs. 3.35 TB/s);
2 times more video memory (192 vs 80 GB);
1.6 times better performance in inference tasks;
the highest level of performance in FP16 and BF16 operations – 10.4 petaflops (7.9 petaflops more than the result of Nvidia's HGX platform with H100).

AMD Instinct MI300A

AMD also has released the Instinct MI300A – Accelerated Processing Unit, which is designed for data centers and includes a processor and GPU. This solution will become a direct competitor to Nvidia Grace Hopper superchips.

APU Instinct MI300A main characteristics:

x86 “Zen 4” processor with 24 cores and 48 threads;
GPU module:
- 128 GB of HBM3 video memory,
- bandwidth of 5.3 TB/s,
- 228 CUs execution units.

According to AMD, the Instinct MI300A processor can achieve the following performance indicators:

in FP64 operations – 61 teraflops,
in FP32 operations – 61 teraflops.

Platforms

Platforms for Instinct MI300X

Gigabyte

Below we will consider three models of servers on the AMD hardware platform developed by Giga Computing (Gigabyte). These servers have been specially created to work with the new video accelerators – Instinct MI300X and APU Instinct MI300A.

Model	G383-R80	G593-ZX1	G593-ZX2
Applicability	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	AMD Instinct MI300X GPU	AMD Instinct MI300X GPU
CPU	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	2 x AMD EPYC 9004	2 x AMD EPYC 9004
GPU	4 x MI300A	8 x MI300X	8 x MI300X
Form factor	3U	5U	5U
RAM	—	24 DDR5 connectors	24 DDR5 connectors
Power supply	3+1 x 2200W	4+2 x 3000W	4+2 x 3000W
Storage	8 x 2.5″ Gen5 NVMe	8 x 2.5″ Gen5 NVMe	8 x 2.5″ Gen5 NVMe
Root ports	—	8	4

Supermicro

Next, three models of servers on the AMD hardware platform from Supermicro will be considered. These servers are required to run the Instinct MI300X GPU and Instinct MI300A APU.

Model	AS-2145GH-TNMR	AS-4145GH-TNMR	AS-8125GS-TNMR2
Applicability	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	AMD Instinct MI300X GPU
CPU	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	2 x AMD EPYC 9004
GPU	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	4 x AMD Instinct MI300A	8 x MI300X
Form factor	2U	4U	8U
RAM	—	—	24 DDR5 connectors
Cooling system	liquid cooling	air cooling	air cooling
Power supply	4 x 1600 W	4 x 1600 W	6 x 3000 W
Storage	8 x 2.5″ NVMe/SATA	24 x 2.5″ NVMe/SATA	18 x 2.5″ NVMe/SATA

It's also worth noting that Dell and AMD are planning to release Dell PowerEdge XE9680 servers with eight AMD Instinct MI300X accelerators. This decision has already been announced, but the project itself is still in development.

Platforms for Intel Xeon Scalable 5th Emerald Rapids

TYAN

TYAN is a member of MiTAC Computing Technology Corporation (MCT). The company has announced the release of its first platforms based on the new Intel Xeon Scalable 5th Emerald Rapids processors. Among the company's solutions there are platforms of various form factors (including tower systems and motherboards).

Model	Form factor	Number of CPU	Storage	Memory	Power supply
Thunder HX FT65T-B5652	4U Tower	1	Hot-Swap: 2 x 2.5″, 6 x 3.5″ 1 x NVMe M.2	8 x DDR5-5600	1 PSU 1200-2000 W
Thunder HX FT65T-B7130	4U Tower	2	Hot-Swap: 2 x 2.5″, 8 x 3.5″ 1 x NVMe M.2	16 x DDR5-5600	1 PSU 1200-2000 W
Thunder HX TS75-B7132	2U	2	Hot-Swap: 2 x 2.5″, 8 x 3.5″ 2 x NVMe M.2	32 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 1000-1600 W
Thunder HX TS75A-B7132	2U	2	Hot-Swap: 16 x 2.5″ U.2, 10 x 2.5″, 2 x NVMe M.2	32 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 1000-2000 W
Thunder SX TS70-B7136	2U	2	Hot-Swap: 2 x 2.5″, 12 x 3.5″ 2 x NVMe M.2	16 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 1000-1200 W
Thunder SX TS70A-B7136	2U	2	Hot-Swap: 8 x 2.5″ U.2, 12 x 2.5″ 2 x NVMe M.2	16 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 1000-1200 W
Thunder CX GC79A-B7132	1U	2	Hot-Swap: 12 x 2.5″ U.2 2 x NVMe M.2	32 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 1000-1200 W
Thunder CX GC68A-B7136	1U	2	Hot-Swap: 8 x 2.5″ U.2, 4 x 2.5″ 2 x NVMe M.2	16 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 850 W

ASUS

16 platform models for Emerald Rapids were released by ASUS. The company's solutions include EDGE servers with small size and low energy consumption and 8 GPU servers in a 7U form factor (+ six 3000 W power supplies units) as well.

ASRock

9 server models and 11 motherboards for Intel Xeon Scalable 5th have been released by ASRock. Presented servers include single-socket models and dual-socket platforms in 1-4U form factors (+ support for up to ten GPUs).

MSI

Below we will consider two server models for Intel Xeon Scalable 5th presented by MSI:

Model	Form factor	Number of CPU	Storage	Memory	Power supply
S1205-01	1U	2	Нot-Swap: 12 x 2.5″ 2 x NVMe M.2	32 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 1300 W
S2205-01	2U	2	Нot-Swap: 12 x 3.5″ 2 x NVMe M.2	32 x DDR5-5600	2 PSU 2000 W

Platforms for Intel Xeon 2400

Gigabyte

4 models of 1U servers for Intel Xeon E-2400 processors were presented by Giga Computing (Gigabyte). Characteristics:

up to 128 GB DDR5 memory at 4800 MT/s;
550W/800 W power supply units are used;
ECC error correction is available.

ASRock

ASRock also released platforms for the E-2400. They are presented in the form of 1U servers – 1U4LW-C262/2L2T and 1U4LW-C262/2L2T RPSU. NVMe drives support and four DDR RAM slots are included. Power supply for the first server is 400 W, for the second one – 450 W. Thus, the configuration of power supplies is the main difference from the solutions of other developers.

Lenovo

Lenovo platforms designed for E-2400 processors are available in the 1U Lenovo ThinkSystem SR250 V3 rack platform and the ThinkSystem ST250 V3 tower server. Both solutions include support for a fourth DDR5-4400 memory slot and a wide range of NVMe/SSD/HDD configurations.

ASUS

The RS300-E12-RS4 server and motherboards (P13R-M and P13R-M/10G-2T with four DDR5 RAM slots) were released by ASUS. The main difference between the presented motherboards is the configuration of the imbedded network adapters and SATA-3 ports:

P13R-M – dual-port 1GbE adapter and 8 SATA-3 ports;
P13R-M/10G-2T – dual-port 10GbE controller and 6 SATA-3 ports.

Aquarius platforms for Intel Xeon Scalable 3rd IceLake-SP

Aquarius servers have been developed for use in various enterprises and data centers. Aquarius T50 D110AC characteristics:

up to 2 Intel Xeon Ice Lake-SP processors with a maximum TDP of up to 270 W are available;
32 slots for DDR4-3200 RAM modules;
2 GPU accelerators;
2 power supplies (1600/2000 W each);
up to 10 SFF form factor drives can be installed;
2 M.2 drives (in 2280 and 22110 form factors) with SATA/NVMe interfaces are available.

Seagate HDD

Seagate Technology has released a new 24TB SkyHawk AI hard drive designed for data centers. The main task of the device is to process and analyze images using AI (artificial intelligence) and deep learning algorithms and methods.

Model ST24000VE002 characteristics:

SATA-3 interface;
Cache – 512 MB;
Stated MTBF is 2.5 million hours;
CMR magnetic recording technology is used.

Storage systems

QNAP PCIe JBOD expansion modules

QNAP Systems has introduced three new expansion modules designed for network attached storage (NAS). These modules are implemented as rack PCIe JBOD and can accommodate up to 24 disks. One system is capable of accommodating up to 12 such modules.

SSD and HDD with SATA 3 interface, as well as hot swapping are supported by new devices. New modules use the SFF-8644 host interface, but need QXP-3X8PES or QXP-3X4PES for connecting.

The function of remote switching on and off of modules via the NAS is also available.

Model	TL-R2400PES-RP	TL-R1600PES-RP	TL-R1200PES-RP
Form factor	4U	3U (shortened chassis)	2U (shortened chassis)
Number of drives	24	16	12
Maximum volume	4.1 PB	2.9 PB	2.0 PB
Power supply	2 x 550 W	2 x 550 W	300 W
Fans	3	3	2