Xserve Technology Overview December 2006
Technology Overview Xserve Contents Page 4 Introduction Page 5 Product Overview Key Features Advanced 1U Rack-Optimized Server Design Page 8 Performance Overview Processor Performance Memory Performance Storage Performance Server Performance Page 13 Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processors Quad Xeon Performance Next-Generation Microarchitecture 64-Bit Processor Architecture Multiple Cores and Mac OS X Server Page 16 High-Bandwidth Server Architecture Dual Independent 1.
Technology Overview Xserve Page 28 Mac OS X Server Version 10.4.
Technology Overview Xserve 4 Introduction What’s new? • 64-bit Dual-Core Intel Xeon “Woodcrest” processors running at up to 3.0GHz • High-bandwidth server architecture including 4MB of shared L2 cache and dual independent 1.33GHz system buses per processor running at up to 10.
Technology Overview Xserve 5 Product Overview Key Features Xserve Xserve packs quad Xeon computing power and fast, affordable storage into a 1U rack-optimized enclosure. With a single base configuration and a wide range of built-to-order options, customers can configure an Xserve to meet their specific needs.
Technology Overview Xserve Built-in lights-out management. As long as the electrical power cord and Ethernet cable are plugged in, built-in remote management capabilities allow control of an Xserve system from anywhere on the network—even if the system isn’t turned on. Easy-to-use Server Monitor software provides remote monitoring and control of Xserve with an easy-to-use graphical interface. 100 percent native Mac OS X Server v10.4.8 runs 100 percent natively on Intel-based Mac systems.
Technology Overview Xserve 7 Xserve System 1 3 2 Front view 5 4 Back view 6 12 11 10 9 1 Indicator lights. Indicator lights show system activity and also provide continuous feedback on health and status, including power, enclosure lock, drives, Ethernet links, and processor. 2 FireWire and USB ports. Two back-panel FireWire 800 ports and one front-panel FireWire 400 port provide high-speed connectivity to storage, backup devices, and other servers. Two back-panel USB 2.
Technology Overview Xserve 8 Performance Overview The Xserve system is designed to deliver phenomenal performance with industryleading ease of use and massive internal storage capacity. Thanks to its 64-bit quad Xeon processing power, advanced memory technology, and high-bandwidth architecture, Xserve easily handles demanding server operations. To assess its performance gains, Apple compared preproduction Xserve units with Xserve G5 systems.
Technology Overview Xserve 9 Performance-per-watt Performance-per-watt is a measure of power efficiency, calculated by dividing the SPECint_rate_base2000 results by total TDP watts. With the 2.0GHz and 2.66GHz processors running at 65W per socket and the 3.0GHz processor running at 80W per socket, the Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5100 processor provides nearly four times the performance-per-watt versus the Xserve G5.
Technology Overview Xserve 10 HMMER HMMER is a set of popular bioinformatics applications that implement Hidden Markov Models—statistical models of multiple sequence alignments used in computational biology to search for patterns in DNA sequences. To test processor and memory performance in the new Xserve, hmmcalibrate was run on Xserve G5 and Xserve against the same sample data set, then runtimes were compared. hmmcalibrate performance: Almost three times the performance of Xserve G5 Xserve Quad 3.
Technology Overview Xserve 11 STREAM The STREAM benchmark is a simple synthetic benchmark program that measures sustainable memory bandwidth in megabytes per second (MB/s). It measures sustained bandwidth, not burst or peak performance. Since the STREAM benchmark is specifically designed to work with data sets that are much larger than the available processor cache on any given system, the results are more indicative of the performance of applications using very large data sets.
Technology Overview Xserve 12 When configured with the 750GB 7200-rpm SATA drive, Xserve delivers an outstanding 76MB/s per drive while supporting up to 2.25TB in a three-drive 1U enclosure. When configured with the 300GB 15,000-rpm SAS drive, Xserve delivers a breakthrough 126MB/s per drive with an average random access seek time of 3.5ms—ideal for high-workload applications like databases and mail servers.
Technology Overview Xserve 13 Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processors Inside every Xserve are two powerful new Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors running at up to 3.0GHz. Informally known during development as “Woodcrest,” they are the first 64-bit processors based on the next-generation Intel Core microarchitecture. Combining high performance and power efficiency, the new dual-core Xeon processors are ideal for a wide range of server workloads.
Technology Overview Xserve Increased energy efficiency After labor, electricity and cooling create the highest costs for data centers. The 65-nanometer technology used in manufacturing Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors incorporates strained silicon to improve transistor performance and decrease power consumption. Less energy consumed means less heat dissipated—for increases in reliability and decreases in cooling system costs.
Technology Overview Xserve 15 the speed of execution for these instructions. It accelerates a broad range of video, speech and image, photo processing, encryption, financial, engineering, and scientific applications. 64-Bit Processor Architecture Working with Mac OS X, the 64-bit Intel Xeon architecture breaks through the 4GB memory limit of 32-bit processing. In fact, it’s able to access virtually unlimited physical memory.
Technology Overview Xserve 16 High-Bandwidth Server Architecture The Dual-Core Intel Xeon processor is only part of the Xserve performance story. Dual independent frontside buses keep data moving in and out of each processor, and a super-efficient system controller keeps data moving between all subsystems. Bandwidth is further enhanced by a 256-bit-wide memory controller and a PCI Express I/O architecture.
Technology Overview Xserve 17 Dual Independent 1.33GHz Frontside Buses Xserve features dual independent 64-bit frontside buses—one bus per processor—to support a wide and fast path to system memory. The parity-protected buses feature a unique power-saving capability that powers down part of the bus when full bandwidth is not being utilized. Each channel runs at 1.33GHz independent of processor speed; combined they provide up to 21.3GB/s bandwidth.
Technology Overview Xserve 18 channels for synchronized 256-bit memory transactions, further increasing performance. By comparison, Xserve G5 systems have a 128-bit memory controller and use 400MHz DDR1 memory. 4GB DIMM support Xserve supports 4GB DIMMs, allowing the system to accommodate up to 32GB of main memory. Memory capacity up to 32GB Xserve provides twice the memory capacity—up to 32GB—of the Xserve G5.
Technology Overview Xserve 19 High-Performance PCI Express Expansion Xserve features PCI Express expansion slots with up to four times the bandwidth of Xserve G5—ideal for connecting to high-performance networking, storage, cluster interconnect, graphics, and backup devices using optional expansion cards. Two independent eight-lane PCI Express slots provide 2GB/s of bandwidth each.
Technology Overview Xserve 20 Internal graphics Administrators often need a quick way to plug in a display and access their servers. Xserve now offers built-in graphics as standard, no longer requiring the addition of a card that takes up a valuable expansion slot. The built-in graphics controller provides 64MB of RAM with a mini-DVI output and supports—over DVI—up to a 23-inch Apple Cinema HD Display.
Technology Overview Xserve 21 Industry-Leading Storage Flexibility 0 to 750 with perpendicular recording The “bits” that constitute data have typically been recorded end to end, or longitudinally in a single plane on the surface of a hard drive’s recording platter. The new 750GB SATA drives offered with Xserve use state-ofthe-art perpendicular recording technology to stack the bits vertically and in multiple planes, thereby achieving much greater capacity in a given area.
Technology Overview Xserve 22 Because SAS has the same physical interface as SATA and leverages the hot-plug Apple Drive Module carrier, Xserve users can make a per-bay choice between the SATA or SAS drive. This unusual degree of flexibility means that Xserve can be configured for a broader range of applications and specific requirements, making the platform a better long-term choice for corporations and data centers. Apple Drive Modules In Xserve, the three 3.
Technology Overview Xserve Xserve RAID, industry-leading price/ performance leader 23 • RAID 1, or mirroring. Provides a high level of data protection by creating a real-time, exact duplicate of the contents of one Apple Drive Module on a second drive. With the volume promotion feature in Mac OS X Server v10.4 or later, you can upgrade a single drive to a RAID 1 mirror without needing to reformat the drive and reinstall the operating system.
Technology Overview Xserve 24 Xsan Xsan is a 64-bit cluster file system designed for small and large computing environments that demand the highest level of data availability. This specialized technology enables multiple Xserve systems, as well as Mac Pro workstations, to share RAID storage volumes over a high-speed Fibre Channel network. Each client can read and write directly to the centralized file system, scaling storage bandwidth while improving workgroup collaboration.
Technology Overview Xserve 25 Integrated Lights-Out Remote Management Xserve includes built-in remote monitoring capabilities that enable network administrators to stay in touch with their Xserve systems from anywhere on the network or over the Internet. Enabled by hardware built into every Xserve system, the remote management system stays running as long as the system is plugged into power—even if the system is powered off or in a hung state.
Technology Overview Xserve 26 More than 100 embedded hardware sensors in the Xserve enclosure integrate with Apple’s sophisticated Server Monitor software to check the condition of critical subsystems, such as memory, fans, power supplies, and Ethernet links. Temperature measurements for hard drives, processors, memory, PCI, power supply, and incoming ambient temperature are processed using a microcontroller and dedicated communications buses on the logic board.
Technology Overview Xserve 27 • Network. Indicates the status of active network links, the network stack, and link settings and provides a historical line graph for each link. • Temperature. Provides the values of the 10 enclosure and processor temperature sensors, as well as a historical line graph for each sensor reading. • Blowers. Shows the revolutions per minute and status of the seven double-blade fans, including a historical line graph for each one.
Technology Overview Xserve 28 Mac OS X Server Version 10.4.8 Mac OS X Server v10.4.
Technology Overview Xserve 29 Innovative Remote Management Mac OS X Server comes with innovative remote management tools that provide a consistent, unified interface for setting up and managing the built-in services. The Server Admin application enables network administrators to securely manage services on multiple servers at the same time—all from the same easy-to-use application.
Technology Overview Xserve 30 Members of your workgroup can access their own personalized desktop, application, and files from any computer on the network, thanks to network-based home directories. Powerful file and print services, with features like quotas and access control lists, provide fine-grained management while delivering outstanding network performance.
Technology Overview Xserve 31 Service, Support, and Training Options Every Xserve comes with a one-year limited warranty and 90 days of up-and-running telephone support. In addition, the AppleCare website publishes in-depth product information, training on hardware and software installation and configuration, and technical resources, including the AppleCare Knowledge Base, discussions, and downloadable software on Apple’s Featured Software site.
Technology Overview Xserve 32 Mac OS X Server Software Support Apple offers support programs for Mac OS X Server that extend beyond the up-andrunning support provided by the AppleCare Premium Service and Support Plan. Apple technical support experts can provide consultative phone and email support for Mac OS X Server integration and migration issues, as well as help with command-line configuration.
Technology Overview Xserve 33 Product Details Capable of being tailored to a wide range of application environments, the new Xserve is the most configurable Xserve ever. Building on a base configuration that has two 2.0GHz dual-core Xeon processors, 1GB of FB-DIMM RAM, and an 80GB SATA drive module, many options are available to meet different server workloads and budgets. Xserve Base Configuration Order number MA409LL/A Processors Two 2.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5100 processors Frontside bus 1.
Technology Overview Xserve 34 Configuration Options Xserve—custom-configured to exact requirements—can be ordered from the Apple Store or an Apple Authorized Reseller. Options include the following: Processors Two 2.66GHz or 3.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5100 processors Memory Up to 32GB of DDR2 ECC memory using 512MB, 1GB, 2GB, and 4GB FB-DIMM modules Hot-plug storage Any combination of SATA or SAS Apple Drive Modules; up to 2.
Technology Overview Xserve 35 Technical Specifications Hardware Processing • Two 2.0GHz, 2.66GHz, or 3.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5100 processors featuring: – Wide Dynamic Execution – Intelligent Power Capability – 4MB Advanced Smart Cache per processor – Smart Memory Access – Advanced Digital Media Boost • Independent 1.
Technology Overview Xserve 36 Storage • Three internal drive bays with independent SATA and SAS channels, up to 3Gb/s each • Up to 2.
Technology Overview Xserve 37 • Web hosting: Apache web server, SSL/TLS (OpenSSL), WebDAV, server-side includes (SSIs), PHP, Perl, Ruby, Python, MySQL 4 • Application services: JBoss application server (EJB), Apache Tomcat (JavaServer Pages, Java Servlets), Java virtual machine (J2SE), Apache Axis (SOAP, WSDL Web Services), WebObjects 5.2 Deployment • Media streaming: QuickTime Streaming Server (H.
