IT-Форум The technological leader

Evgenie Rudometov

authors@rudometov.com

In March, 2006 in San Francisco has taken place next IntelDeveloper Forum on which technical experts and bosses of Intel, have told about reachings of corporation and have shared long-term plans of development of IT branch

Next Forum IDF has transited under the slogan «Power-Optimized Platforms. Leap Ahead» («Energosberegajushchie platforms. Break on new level»). Central event IDF traditionally are key reports of bosses.

Performance Dzhastina Rettnera (Justin Rattner), the high deserved engineer-contributor of Intel and the executive director of corporation of Intel on processing techniques was the first.

Photo 1. Performance Dzhastina Rettnera

In the report he has told about a number of reachings of corporation of Intel, and also about some problems appeared in IT branch the last years.

One of the main problems facing to designers of difficult, high-frequency chips, is high energopotreblenie, and, therefore, and teploobrazovanie. Now teploobrazovanie has closely come nearer to limiting values after which inevitable corrupting of semiconducting crystals follows. Really, the density of energy for modern kernels of processors is already comparable to density of energy of nuclear reactors. And with growth of clock rates energopotreblenie, teploobrazovanie and energy density tend to growth.

Solving this problem, experts of Intel have refused increase in productivity of processors at the expense of overgrowth of clock rates. Main objectives have as a result varied also. Now experts of Intel already speak not about clock rates, and about a productivity relation on watt, as main criterion of efficiency. However all it should be provided without productivity reduction, providing on each clock tick a maximum of various operation, but without an excessive heat release. For performance of all these purposes experts of Intel have decided to concentrate on appropriate perfection of processor architectures.

And as the main expert in processing techniques of Intel has confirmed, in the report, for a basis it was accepted to take the solutions which have been checked up in products, created on the basis of kernels Banias and Dothan. The new architecture has received the name of Intel Core and partially has already transited approbation in transportable processors with kernel Yonah. However the given kernel is, as a matter of fact, a transitive link to even more interesting solutions in which basis the new architecture lays.

The architecture of Intel Core allows to improve a relation of productivity and energopotreblenija. It banks in herself in herself variety of innovative processing techniques. Among them processing technique of Intel Wide Dynamic Execution which allows to handle more commands for clock tick of the processor: to four instructions simultaneously, using the pipeline from 14 stages. Besides, processing technique of Intel Intelligent Power Capability which reduces energopotreblenie, activating or switching off separate logical subsystems, completely disconnecting not used blocks. One more innovation is the processing technique of Intel Advanced Smart Cache which controls the cache memory of 2nd level. It in addition snizhet energopotreblenie, reducing to a minimum data exchange with memory, and essentially raises productivity. To the enumerated processing techniques it is necessary to add Intel Smart Memory Access raising productivity of system, and Intel Advanced Digital Media Boost with its possibilities of processing of 128-bit SSE commands, SSE2 and SSE3, used in multimedia applications.

The specified newest processing techniques will be applied as in transportable, and desktop, and server platforms. For transportable solutions soon, in second half of 2006, there will be processor Merom, productivity and energoekonomichnost which will be essentially above, than for current solutions. It will be reached by such innovations, as usage of the common L2 cache and separate regulation energopotreblenija for each of two kernels.

Photo 2. Relative productivity of transportable processors

It is necessary to mark, that the newest architecture will find the application netolko in transportable processors. On a basis to the architecture of Intel Core for desktop computers processor Conroe will be released. Its productivity will be on 40 % above at simultaneous reduction energopotreblenija on 40 %. And it means, that users of the future systems will receive not only high-powered, but essentially less noisy computers.

Photo 3. Processors of the main segments of the market

Server platforms will not be forgotten also. On the basis of the specified architecture there will be processor Woodcrest. It also will get of advantage of Intel Core. As it is declared, the new processor will be on 80 % proizvoditelnee and on 35 % is more economic than current processors.

Besides Dzhastina Rattnera, at Forum IDF many known heads of Intel, well-known not only to a narrow circle of experts, but also millions nonprofessional users of computers have appeared with reports.

Among numerous performances it is necessary to select Patrick Gelsingera's performance (Pat Gelsinger), the high vice-president of corporation of Intel and the general manager of its division Digital Enterprise Group. On an example of products of Intel, he has told about evolution of desktop and server systems.

Photo 4. Patrick Gelsinger shows perspective processors

By way of illustration substantial increase of productivity of processors for desktop PCs was has shown the two-nuclear processor with the code name Conroe, consuming on 40 % there is less than energy and possessing thus on 40 % more high efficiency.

But Intel is not limited to release exclusively computer completing, let and the major. Expanding sphere of the interests, corporation the increasing attention gives to development and release of the platforms the newest processors become which basis, chip sets and other hi-tech units.

Patrick Gelsinger has declared, that the newest processor Conroe will be a part of a professional business platform of Intel with code name Averill. In its basis except dvuhjadernogo the processor, the new chipset with code name Broadwater, processing technique of Intel Virtualization Technology and processing techniques of Intel Active Management Technology of the second generation will enter.

For dual-processor servers and workstations in 2006 Intel corporation will release three new processors. Processors Sossaman with ultralow energopotrebleniem, processor Dempsey and processor Woodcrest become them.

Telling about the nearest schedules of corporation of Intel concerning development of the advanced multinuclear processors, Gelsinger also for the first time has presented the information about chetyrehjadernom the processor with code name Clovertown for dual-processor servers. Its release is planned on the beginning of 2007. This processor will possess the raised computational capability and to correspond to requirements of multithreaded applications, such as a DBMS, financial solutions and management systems of a chain of deliveries. Also in the beginning of 2007 Intel corporation plans to release chetyrehjadernyj the processor for desktop PCs of the higher class. This processor has code name Kentsfield.

Subject of multinuclear processors has continued SHon Melouni (Sean Maloney), the executive vice-president of corporation of Intel and the general manager of division Mobility Group. He has shared the information on schedules of Intel concerning development of transportable systems. In the course of the report it has shown a number of samples of transportable systems which handheld computers traditionally concern, and multifunctional phones. For this market there is the new processor Monahans differing as high efficiency, and energoekonomichnostju.

Photo 5. Productivity and energopotreblenie processors for a handheld computer

Various models of notebooks among which was supercompact models much have been shown also. Such models are constructed on the basis of transportable one-nuclear and two-nuclear processors and possessing in the weight less than 0,5 kg.

Except supercompact solutions, the big attention in the report has been devoted evolution of current platforms Sonoma and Napa. Appearance of the transportable two-nuclear processor Merom supporting 64-bit calculations, will allow to expand possibilities of existing platform Napa. Added with matching components, this processor becomes a basis of the new platform known as Santa Rosa. Its basic elements become chip set Crestline with the integrated resources of a drawing, the unit of wireless communication Kedron with implementation IEEE 802.11n and the special NAND unit of the flash-memory realising processing technique Robson. The given processing technique urged to provide the accelerated loading of the operating system and program applications. The demonstrating led in the course of the report has shown, that system loading in a notebook on platform Santa Rosa has been fulfilled for 3,5 c against 15 with for notebook Napa. Usage of this and other not less interesting processing techniques will allow not only to expand functionality of the future notebooks, but also it is essential to increase offline work time as it is supposed till 8 o'clock.

Photo 6. Units of platform SantaRosa for the future notebooks

Don McDonald (Don MacDonald), the vice-president and the general manager of division Digital Home Group, has told, how the processing technique of Intel Viiv facilitates creation of the digital house, providing to users access to entertaining tools at any time in any place by means of the most different arrangements. He has marked, that Intel corporation, traditionally paying the big attention to rise of productivity of processors, watches closely tendencies of the market and formed demand.

It is necessary to mark, that as a result of evolution of the architecture of computer systems there was such criterion, as "satisfaction" on watt. Generally speaking, strangely enough, the given criterion not seems such strange. The matter is that experts of Intel after a number of researches have realised, that potential users are excited with not so much metrics of productivity, as satisfaction with the computer system solving quite specific targets. Them concern both purely computing tasks, and processing of multimedia, and a beam coupling. And one more criterion is convenience of application of computer resources and simplicity of reconfiguring of system at the expense of hooking up and disconnecting of various arrangements. And high comfort should be provided at high level energoekonomichnosti, that allows to simplify cooling of high-powered units, having reduced usage of fans to a minimum. And it essentially improves consumer properties of used computer resources.

In the course of the report Don McDonald has shown voice-activated control by the computer complex, and also simplicity and speed of automatic inclusion of additional arrangements in a local wireless network.

In summary it is necessary to mark, that many declared innovations have been shown at a traditional exhibition where the leading computer companies have presented the hardware-software solutions.

Certainly, frames of small article do not allow to tell about all novelties announced in reports, made on Forum IDF. Many of them demand separate consideration, as will be made in the subsequent publications.