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~written by Jeff Goldenbaum, Dataram Memory Blog Team Member

Last week Intel announced their long anticipated Xeon E5-2600 processors, also known as Sandy Bridge-EP, for dual-socket servers.  In turn, all of the major OEMs released details for their next generation systems that will use these processors.  In addition to the new processors and servers come new memory technologies, specifically DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) as my associate Paul Henke blogged about earlier this month.

Hewlett-Packard debuted their next generation of HP ProLiant servers (Generation 8)  including the server blade BL460c G8 (16 DIMM slots; 512GB max), rack-optimized DL360p G8 and DL380p G8 (24 DIMM slots; 768GB max), expansion-optimized ML350p G8 (24 DIMM slots; 384GB max), and scalable systems SL230s G8 and SL250s G8 (16 DIMM slots; 256GB max).

IBM is touting new x86 servers with their System x3500 M4 tower server (24 DIMM slots; 768GB max), x3550 M4 and x3650 M4 rack servers (24 DIMM slots; 768GB max), iDataPlex dx360 M4 scale-out server (16 DIMM slots; 256GB max), and HS23 blade server (16 DIMM slots; 256GB max).

Dell is keeping pace with their new 12^th generation PowerEdge R620 and R720/R720XD rack servers, M620 blade server, and T620 tower server—all with 24 DIMM slots and up to 768GB of memory.

Cisco offers up their 3^rd generation UCS servers with the B200 M3 blade server (24 DIMM slots; 384GB max), C220 M3 (16 DIMM slots; 256GB max) and C240 M3 (24 DIMM slots; 384GB max) rack servers.

And Fujitsu announced new Xeon E5-2600-based systems in desktop, rack and blade with their Primergy RX200 S7, RX300 S7, RX350 S7, BX924 S3, and TX300 G7 servers.  All feature 24 DIMM slots and accept up to 768GB of memory.

Dataram is supporting all of the new systems I mentioned with a full complement of DDR3-1333 (PC3-10600) and DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) memory options.  Additionally, Dataram is providing a new 32GB DDR3-1333 (PC3L-10600) LRDIMM (Load Reduced DIMM) which is required for these servers to achieve a maximum memory capacity of 768GB.

~written by Paul Henke, Dataram Memory Blog Team Member

On the eve of Intel’s release of Sandy Bridge-EP, the next generation of Xeon processors for servers, the memory industry has geared up for another uptick in memory speed.  Following Moore’s law– speed and performance are increasing while costs for memory are at historic lows.   Configuring servers for maximum power and performance has never been more affordable.

By selecting the latest DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) speed DIMMs that deliver a data rate of 12.8 GB/s, you will realize about 20% more throughput than existing DDR3-1333 (PC3-10600) speed memory which delivers a data rate of 10.66 GB/s.   PC3-10600 RDIMMs, the most commonly used RDIMMs in today’s Xeon 5600 CPUs based servers, will give way to the faster PC3-12800 speed memory.

Just an FYI for the novice reader—the terms “DDR3-1333” and “DDR3-1600” are DRAM speeds, and “PC3-10600” and “PC3-12800” are MODULE (DIMM) speeds, as defined by JEDEC.  However many times, the DRAM speed nomenclature is used universally as both DRAM and DIMM speed indications.

AMD also has adopted the faster DDR3-1600 speed memory for servers with the introduction of Opteron 6200 “Interlagos” CPUs.   Servers and workstations will see significant performance improvements over prior generation Opteron 6100, which also featured DDR3-1333 as the top memory speed.

This discussion is all about speed and performance–since these DDR3-1600 applications will be offered at standard DDR3 1.5V power only.   Low voltage 1.35V (PC3L), and future 1.25V lower voltage dimms, will not be enabled at DDR3-1600 speed in this new generation of servers.   They will however continue to support DDR3L-1333 (PC3L-10600R) memory speeds at low voltage (1.35V), for those wishing to extract maximum power savings from their server infrastructure in lieu of the highest possible performance.   The trade-off decisions continue between maximum power savings vs. maximum compute performance.   The “tug-of-war” between “Going Green” vs. “My Servers are my Strategic Weapons” groups continues, with the power users configuring for maximum speed and competitive advantage by delivering the fastest response times.

Whatever your compute challenges –Dataram has a full complement of memory options enabling your servers to achieve your IT objectives!   All with superior reliability, a lifetime warranty, guaranteed compatibility, service, and priced to deliver significant cost savings for your organization.

~written by Jim Hampshire, Dataram Memory Blog Team Member

At Dataram, we use a “Device Qualification Program” for DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) components, as well as all other active components used on our product.  In this process we place only approved specific manufacturer part numbers into our PLMS (Parts Logistics Management System). Only those defined manufacturer part numbers are permitted to be used.

These devices are qualified by Design Engineering using processes which parallel the original design validation.  This method guards against using unauthorized devices.  Manufacturer part numbers are verified against the Dataram PLMS at the time of receipt and then again at each production lot’s first piece inspection where a component ID is performed.  Although this process requires constant monitoring and verification testing, this system provides protection against any possible approved DRAM part number design variations.

The process is a three-stage program, (1) review of the manufacturer’s technical data sheet, (2) qualification testing on DATARAM products, and (3) review/re-qualification of any changes to the DRAM.

The program begins with an engineering review of the manufacturer’s data sheet.  This is followed by the procurement of a sample quantity of the DRAMs for qualification.  Memory module(s) are selected for the qualification based upon their complexity and the availability of the systems to test the DRAM.  Sufficient quantities of these memory modules are assembled to fully evaluate the devices during the testing process.

The qualification test program parallels the original design verification test. The samples are subjected to initial functional testing and verification of timing and waveform integrity on the Memory Tester.  The samples are then inserted into the target system(s) and are operated from a minimum configuration to a maximum server/workstation configuration.  Wherever applicable, Dataram memory modules with DRAMs obtained from other manufacturers are also introduced with the Dataram memory modules under test in various inter-bank and intra-bank combinations from the lowest to a fully loaded capacity in order to verify compatibility.

After acceptance of a manufacturer’s DRAM PN, we continuously review all changes made by the manufacturer to that part number.  Any changes to the part and/or die revision automatically require a re-qualification prior to use.

~written by Nick Bukaczyk, Dataram Memory Blog Team Member

Often, employees throughout a company hear such words as purchase order, sales order, shortages, expediting, due dates, forecast, demand, kits, material, inventory, data and bill of material.  They all come together through MRP.

MRP (Material Requirements Planning) is the computerized ordering and scheduling system used by manufacturing and fabrication industries.  It uses bills of material, sales orders and forecasts to generate raw material requirements (components/parts).  It also gathers new order requirements as they come in, presents shortages if they exist and suggests ordering/building when necessary based on data gathered.

Many people throughout an organization contribute to the MRP process:

1. Sales – enters orders which creates a finished goods requirement
2. Production Control – reviews inventory levels and sales requirements, then provides manufacturing with work orders to satisfy demand
3. Purchasing – reviews component stocking levels, forecast and sales orders, then generate purchase orders for raw material to satisfy demand
4. Receiving personnel –  as raw goods arrive, items are received into inventory to show component availability for  manufacturing orders
5. Stockroom personnel –  kit work orders, perform transfers and cycle count to maintain inventory accuracy so purchasing and production control see up-to-date availability
6. Shipping personnel – relieve finished goods inventory and satisfy the sales order demand when shipping/closing orders

An MRP system is used to simultaneously meet three main goals:

1. Ensure material is available for production and finished goods are                           available for delivery to customers while minimizing inventory levels
2. Maintain certain stocking levels as dictated by company philosophy
3. Plan manufacturing and purchasing activities with delivery schedules, lead-times and sales

MRP is used to guide the company in its daily inventory activity. It helps us maintain our standards to consistently provide customers with on time deliveries and high quality product.

Imagine for a moment that you’re sitting at a small desk in an office somewhere… unless you’re actually sitting at a small desk in an office right now – if that’s the case imagine yourself sitting at a small desk on a tropical island. You deserve it. Now imagine that a man walks up to you and hands you a pile of unsorted papers. Each paper is colored red, blue, green or yellow, and the man demands that you sort the papers by color.

You try to do as he says, but your small desk will only accommodate one pile of paper at a time. In order to complete the task you have to sort one color at a time, hand it off to the man, and then start on the next color.

If you had a larger desk, you could sort all four colors at once, thus cutting the total time the task took in half.

Think of your computer’s RAM as its desk. With more RAM, your computer will have a larger “work area”, allowing it to perform more operations simultaneously.

To put it a bit more technically, each time you start an application to work with a file, your computer has to load the application program as well as the data file to be edited into RAM. The more memory the computer has, the more work it can do at one time, which results in increased speed and performance.

So, why should you upgrade your computer’s memory? To give it a bigger workspace, and allow it to run faster. So go ahead, get your computer a bigger “desk” – it’ll thank you for it, and you’ll thank yourself for making your computer experience a whole lot better.

~written by Nelson Rodriguez, Dataram Memory Blog Team Member

DDR3 Low voltage 1.35V RDIMMs are becoming mainstream in today’s x86 servers featuring Intel’s Xeon 5600 series CPUs—also known as “Westmere”.    Standard DDR3 DIMMs run at 1.5V.  DDR3 memory technology has evolved since it became mainstream in 2008, with a series of die shrinks each resulting in lower power consumption.

By “going green”, let’s compare power consumption in a 96GB capacity server.  First generation 50nm DRAMs would draw about 65W of power.  A die shrink to 40nm lowered power consumption to under 43W, for about a 34% reduction.  By again shrinking the die to 30nm technology AND lowering the voltage to 1.35V, this results in an additional 21% power reduction, down to under 34W.  These comparisons are from our friends at Samsung, the world’s largest maker of DRAMs.  As you calculate the power savings over an entire datacenter with large numbers of servers, the savings become substantial.  The advantages of LV (PC3L-) RDIMMs are obvious for servers, so what’s the catch?

Performance users deploy servers with one item in mind—extract the maximum application performance possible, and use IT infrastructure as a competitive advantage.  This is especially true with our customers involved in the financial services industry.  Securities trading in particular are most concerned about low-latency operation and want the fastest possible CPU and memory speeds.  After all, on Wall Street, “TIME IS MONEY”.

Users who have high performance needs of DDR3 RDIMMs must be aware of, when you populate more than one PC3L-low voltage RDIMM per memory channel, a DDR3-1333 speed DIMM will clock down to DDR3-1066 memory speed.   However, the 1.5V standard voltage DDR3 counterpart will run at the full DDR3-1333 memory speed with 2 RDIMMs per channel in Xeon 5650 or higher based servers.  Performance users are better off selecting standard 1.5V RDIMMs when populating up to 12 RDIMMs in a 2-way server.

Which is best—maximum power or maximum performance?   As the customer, you decide based on your needs.  Dataram has the full complement of memory options to enable you to go any way you choose.  Dataram’s team of memory specialists and our industry-leading customer support group will help you choose!