Intel's E5 - 2660 processor solution is great for building entry-level and mid-range servers. This chip was released in 2012, and to this day solutions based on it continue to be relevant. It is to this model of CPU that this material will be devoted.
CPU Niche
Servers based on Intel processors are divided as follows:
- Entry-level budget solutions are based on only one chip. Typically, such a semiconductor crystal includes 8, 10, or even 12 cores. Support for proprietary NT technology allows you to increase by 2 times the logical flows.
- Mid-tier servers are already based on 2-processor devices with a similar number of cores from 8 to 12 cores.
- Premium servers, in turn, can include 4 or more chips.
According to technical specifications, Intel E5 - 2660 can operate in a single-chip or dual-processor configuration. As a result, on its basis it is only possible to assemble servers of the initial or middle level.
Contents of delivery
The following delivery option is typical for the Xeon E5 - 2660:
- The processor unit in transparent shipping packaging.
- CPU logo sticker.
- Cooler.
- Certificate of conformity.
- Warranty card.
- Thermal grease.
- Cardboard box.
- User's manual.
The above list is enough to start using it for its intended purpose after purchasing this silicon solution. The remaining components of the server system are bundled with either the system board or the computer case. You can also meet extremely rarely such a chip in the TRAIL delivery option. In this case, thermal grease and cooler were excluded from the above list.
The first delivery option was of greatest interest to small and medium-sized collectors of server systems, and the second for large ones. Due to the large volume of purchased equipment in the latter case, cooling systems were purchased at wholesale prices. As a result, the VOX supply option was more expensive than TRAIL and the cooling system purchased separately.
CPU socket, chip architecture, frequencies
The E5-2660 processor is designed to be installed in the LGA2011 socket. The code name for the architecture that underlies this silicon product is SandyBridge-EP. The processor solution includes 8 real 64-bit cores, which with the help of HyperTrading technology at the software level turn into 16 threads. Due to TurboBust technology, this chip is able to change its clock frequency depending on the complexity of the processed software and the temperature of the semiconductor base. The minimum nominal frequency value in this case is 2.2 GHz. The maximum nominal frequency is 3.0 GHz.
Technology, heat pack and temperature values
CPU model E5-2660 is manufactured using technology with 32 nm tolerances. The dimensions of the semiconductor base are 52.5 mm X 45.0 mm. The thermal package of the chip is 95W. The highest temperature value was set by the manufacturer at 73 0 . Actually, in the nominal mode, this parameter does not exceed 55 0 . The voltage supplied to the processor can be in the range from 0.6 V to 1.35 V.
Cache and RAM
The Intel Xeon E5-2660 processor has a significantly increased cache size at each of the 3 levels. Due to this, it increases productivity and speed, and it is this factor that allows this processor device to cope with server tasks perfectly. The most difficult cache is organized at the first level. In this case, it consists of 8 segments of 64 kb and this is a total of 512 kb. Each such segment is physically assigned to a certain computing resource and can only directly interact with it. It is also additionally necessary to note that each such segment is divided into 2 parts of 32 kb. One of them can only store data, and the second - instructions.
The second cache level also consists of 8 parts of 256 kb. Its total size is 2 MB. As in the case of the first level, each such cluster is tied to a specific core and can only store its data and instructions. The third level of fast memory is common to all computing components of the processor and its total size is 20 MB. This chip can interact with RAM standard DDR3. Permissible clock frequencies of microcircuits are 800, 1066, 1333 and even 1600 MHz. The controller is included in the CPU by the developers and it can operate in 4-channel mode. The maximum amount of addressable RAM is 384 GB. The memory subsystem bandwidth was declared by the manufacturer at the level of 51.2 Gb / s. For the successful functioning of the server system, this value is more than enough.
Price and user opinion
Initially, the price for the E5-2660 was set by the manufacturer at around $ 1329 for the TRAIL delivery option and $ 1333 for the BOX. Since the start of sales of this chip in 2012, a lot of time has passed by the standards of computer technology and generations of processor devices and computing platforms have repeatedly changed. As a result, this chip is currently no longer relevant, and when assembling a new server, it is better to use the LGA2011 - v3 socket and the corresponding CPU models. This processor can only be used in cases where it is necessary to repair a server based on the computing platform LGA2011. Today it can be bought on the Internet, and the cost of it has dropped to 50-70 dollars. Only one significant drawback inherent in this modification of the CPU is the high price. But the advantages in this case are much greater:
- High performance.
- Excellent energy efficiency.
- The ability to scale the server to a 2-chip configuration.
Summary
Sufficient levels of performance and speed have E5-2660. But now it has been replaced by more recent chips of a new generation. You can buy it only to repair outdated servers. In other cases, the purchase of such a chip is not justified.