Special
Features:
INTEL
DISCUSSES INNOVATIONS
DRIVING ENTERPRISE AND GRID
Rapid industry innovation is speeding the rate at which new enterprise and
communications infrastructure technologies become mainstream server and
communications products, setting the stage for future industry growth,
according to Intel Corporation executives. Grid evolution will also be
significantly impacted through such trends.
Speaking to an audience of technology industry engineers, developers and
designers, Intel Senior Vice President Mike Fister and Executive Vice
President Sean Maloney explained how innovations such as WiFi, PCI Express,
Intel Itanium architecture, Hyper-Threading Technology and Advanced
Telecommunications Computing Architecture (AdvancedTCA) are helping to quickly
drive new products to market. The adoption of these technologies then sets the
stage for future industry growth.
"More than anything, aligning the industry around key technologies leads to
innovation on a grand scale," said Fister. "Intel's building block approach is
driving innovation at a pace that other models can't match, and that
translates to new technologies, introduced more quickly, at lower prices.
Corporations can then adopt the new technologies and use them for competitive
advantage," said Fister.
Intel Innovation For Enterprise Data Centers
Fister showcased one of Intel's key innovations in enterprising computing
with the company's first public demonstration of PCI Express technology. The
early silicon, operating at 2.5 gigabits per second (Gbps), illustrates the
type of technology that will help lead the industry toward new, cost-efficient
enterprise products.
Intel is planning top-to-bottom support for PCI Express in its enterprise
chipsets beginning in 2004, and new Intel storage and communications products
incorporating PCI Express are expected at the same time. New enterprise
chipsets planned for 2004 with support for PCI Express technology and DDR2
memory include a four-way Intel Xeon processor MP chipset and a Xeon processor
chipset for two-way servers. These products help round- out Intel's enterprise
chipset portfolio.
PCI Express solves challenging enterprise I/O bandwidth issues and lowers
system design costs, as it requires fewer overall chips to implement. It also
provides a unified way for enterprise interconnect technologies such as
InfiniBand and Ethernet to work together. Combined, these features help lower
system costs and increase reliability.
Intel's continued innovation in manufacturing will come to the enterprise
front later this year as the company moves to Xeon processors for dual-
processor servers and workstations built on Intel's 90 nanometer (nm) process
technology. Intel has accelerated its Xeon processor roadmap, and new products
for dual-processor server and workstations with 1MB of cache are due in the
third quarter of 2003.
In 2004, Intel will offer two new additions for multi-processor servers
including a Xeon processor MP with 4MB of cache and a new processor built on
Intel's 90-nm process technology. Itanium 2 processor plans include the
introduction of a low-voltage version of the product (Deerfield) in the second
half of this year. It features similar performance to today's Itanium 2
processors for dual-processor high performance computing and targeted front-
end applications, but at half the power. Future products include Itanium 2
processors with 9MB of L3 cache in 2004, followed by dual-core processors in
2005 (Montecito).
Reducing Costs For Communications Products
Maloney discussed Intel's role in providing communications building blocks
used throughout the Internet infrastructure. This includes communications
products for homes and offices, equipment for access and edge operations of
the Internet and equipment for the Internet's optical backbone.
"Intel is a leading supplier of communications building blocks, ranging
from WiFi products to network processors, used throughout the Internet
infrastructure," said Maloney. "By working with Intel and embracing modular
communications platforms, the industry will be able to deliver communications
products for homes and businesses in increasingly rapid fashion at lower
costs."
For homes and offices, Intel announced three new network processors, the
Intel IXP420, IXP421 and IXP422. These network processors are optimized for
applications such as WiFi, wireless fidelity technology that allows wireless
Internet access. Linksys, a leader in networking for homes and small/medium
businesses, announced that it is using the IXP422 in its new generation of
Linksys Wireless Access Points. Additionally, broadband, security and voice-
over-IP applications share a common architecture and development environment
with the previously announced IXP425 network processor.
To further simplify design, reduce costs, provide increased performance and
improve time to market for equipment makers, Intel is focused on creating
modular communications platforms. Intel's network processors and IA-based
processors are designed to work within these modular communications platforms
based on the AdvancedTCA specification. AdvancedTCA defines the size and shape
of boards and other elements used in communications equipment and helps reduce
design cycles.
For the optical backbone of the Internet, Maloney disclosed new details
regarding Intel's tunable laser technology. This technology promises to
deliver significantly lower costs and increased flexibility in deploying dense
wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) solutions. DWDM can allow service
providers to significantly increase network bandwidth as needed.
About IDF
The Intel Developer Forum is the technology industry's premier event for
hardware and software developers. Held worldwide throughout the year, IDF
brings together key industry players to discuss cutting-edge technology and
products for PCs, servers, communications equipment, and handheld clients.
Intel, one of the world's largest chip maker, is also a leading
manufacturer of computer, networking and communications products.
http://www.intel.com
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