Managing server DRAM configuration to optimise ROI within hosting environments

Transcription

1 Managing server DRAM configuration to optimise ROI within hosting environments Richard Kanadjian Manager, Field Applications Engineering Kingston Technology Disclaimer: All information presented herein is based upon public information and is subject to change without notice Kingston Technology Corporation. All rights reserved. All tradenames and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

2 Kingston Who We Are Kingston is a privately-held company with revenues of $4,6 Billion in 2011 Largest provider of memory products and tactical services to global OEMs worldwide Over $1.4 Billion in 2011 Regional headquarters in U.S., U.K., and Taiwan Long-term, large-scale customers include Many PC and server companies Datacenter or Cloud computing companies Several Telecom/Mobile manufacturers Gaming Companies Kingston is a memory technology validation partner with Intel

3 New Intel and AMD Server Platforms Launched

4 Xeon E and E Processors Source: Intel web site, March 2012

5 DDR3 Memory The Mainstream Technology from to 1.35V Technology MHz Speed (Data) Module Classification Module Peak Bandwidth DDR3 (1.5V) DDR3L (1.35V) 800 (DDR3-800) PC MB/sec. or 6.4 GB/sec (DDR3-1066) PC PC3L (DDR3-1333) PC PC3L MB/sec. or 8.5 GB/sec MB/sec. or 10.6 GB/sec (DDR3-1600) PC MB/sec. or 12.8 GB/sec (DDR3-1866) PC MB/sec. or 14.9 GB/sec.

6 Memory Configuration Options by Processor Memory Supported Memory Configuration Xeon 5500 Series Up to DDR Triple-Channel = K3 kits Xeon 5600 Series Xeon E5 Series Xeon 6500 / 7500 / E7 Series Xeon W3500 / 3600 / E3 Series Up to DDR / DDR3L Up to DDR DDR DDR3L on E7 Series Up to DDR DDR3L on W3600 Triple-Channel = K3 kits Quad-channel = K4 kits Triple-channel = K3 kits Quad-channel = K4 kits Triple-channel = K3 kits Intel LC3500 Up to DDR Dual-channel = K2 kits Opteron 8400 / 2400 Series Up to DDR2-800 Dual-channel = K2 kits Opteron 6100 / 6200 Series Up to DDR / DDR3L Quad-channel = K4 kits Opteron 4100 / 4200 Series DDR3 / DDR3L Dual-channel = K2 kits

7 Memory Loads (aka Ranks) Ranks by Module Capacity Unbuffered ECC Registered 1GB 1R (SR) 1R (SR) 2GB 1R (SR) or 2R (DR) 1R (SR) or 2R (DR) 4GB 1R (SR) or 2R (DR) 1R (SR), 2R (DR), or 4R (QR) 8GB 2R (DR) 2R (DR) or 4R (QR) 16GB 2R (DR) or 4R (QR) Ranks = Loads on Memory Bus (72-bit wide rows = 64 data + 8 ECC bits) SR = Single Rank DR = Dual Rank QR = Quad Rank Single Rank = 1 Load POWER Dual Rank = 2 Loads Quad Rank = 4 Loads

8 Platform Configuration Best Practices Unbuffered ECC DIMM Registered DIMM Load-Reduction DIMM E5 & 6200 Series Only You can configure a server memory with either: Unbuffered ECC DIMMs up to 8GB each* For entry-level servers Registered DIMMs up to 32GB each* For mid-range and higher-end servers Load-Reduction DIMMs up to 32GB each For maximum capacity platforms Balanced Configuration: Configure all processors the same way for most bandwidth (best performance) Install either all RDIMMs or all ECC UDIMMs or all LR-DIMMs, cannot mix! Mixing DDR3 (1,5V) and DDR3L (1,35V) will default the memory to 1,5V. * Platforms may limit the number of Unbuffered ECC or Quad Rank modules that can be installed.

9 Memory Module Types Unbuffered ECC DIMM - Desktop module with ECC - Up to 8GB today - Better value up to 4GB; more expensive at 8GB Registered DIMM - Server module with ECC, 2GB-16GB - At 8GB, less costly than Unbuffered ECC DIMM - Greater RAS than Unbuffered ECC DIMM adds ECC checking of Address/Command/Control signals Load Reduction DIMM E5 & 6200 Series Only - New module technology for Buffer on module hides Memory Ranks (Loads) from memory controller - Supports greater capacities at higher speeds than Quad Rank Registered DIMMs - Generally more expensive than RDIMMs up to 32GB

10 LR-DIMM Architecture Source: Intel IDF, September 2011

11 Efficient Clouds: Open Compute Platform Review

12 New on Servers in 2012 Cost-effective Server SSDs Features emlc NAND with 30K Endurance Built-in Power Fail capacitors Enhanced firmware for servers Greater IOPS and Bandwidth vs. 15K Hard Drives Can be RAIDed Use Cases Boot drive Caching drive(s) Direct-attach storage array/raid vsphere 5 Swap to Host Cache Details in Backup Slides

13 Summary: Memory Decisions Impacting ROI Capacity 8GB RDIMM 16GB DR RDIMM 16GB QR RDIMM 32GB QR RDIMM 16GB LRDIMM 32GB LRDIMM Power Efficiency 4GB LV RDIMM 8GB LV RDIMM 16GB LV RDIMM 16/32GB LRDIMM 4GB 1600MHz RDIMM 8GB 1600MHz RDIMM 16GB 1600MHz RDIMM SSDs will increase server performance Performance

14 What is Swap to Host Cache Host Cache New vsphere 5 feature Swap files are not created on SSD Instead, SSD is used as Cache for host swap. It is set up on a per- ESXi basis Page Table Swap File 14

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