On May 27, 2012, at 5:11 AM, Erik Trimble wrote:
> On 5/27/2012 1:22 AM, Alasdair Lumsden wrote:
>> On 27 May 2012, at 04:49, Jerry Kemp wrote:
>>
>>> I double checked my calendar, and it wasn't 1 April. :)
>>>
>>> AFAIK, SPARC is the most open CPU available.
>> Oracle haven't released any specs or source for T3 or T4.
>>
>> Therefore, AFAIK, SPARC /was/ the most open CPU available.
>>
>> Without future developments being put out into the open, it's unfortunately
>> a dead end.
>>
>
> SPARC has suffered the same fate as MIPS - both are nice, open architectures,
> with several good freely-available designs, and unencumbered ISAs, but their
> primary developer is either dead or no longer contributing to the effort.
>
> The problem is the CPU design is a huge black art, and it requires a massive
> investment to create a new current-generation CPU. Since the T2 design is
> still available, I'd be interested in seeing if anyone would make it for
> embedded/appliance use. Frankly, the T2 (with some minor improvements) makes
> a really, really nice:
>
> NFS server
> Static web appliance
> SAN head
> load balancer/firewall
The cost model doesn't work out. In the IC business, the cost of a chip is a
function of:
cost = packaging (fixed) cost + die size cost (cost/die and yield)
Consider two different approaches:
1. make the biggest die you can package (about 450 mm sq) and put as
much cool tech
on the die to be compelling, but limited to current node - 1 due to
lack of IC fab ownership
2. figure out what price you want people to pay, build a processor that
fits the corresponding
die size and packaging constraint, and use the latest node because
you own the fab
As you can guess, #1 is Sun and #2 is Intel. The result is that manufacturing
an Intel processor
tends to stay at the same cost over time (perhaps $25 - $150, depending on
market+family), and
allows Intel to gain cost advantage as they rev fab technology (a very
effective strategy).
Meanwhile, the minimum cost for a T2 processor is in the $2-4k range.
So the answer is: zero change the T2 ever going to be feasible for embedded or
appliance use,
its cost model doesn't fit the embedded market. Processors with smaller die
size and less power
dominate the embedded/appliance space, eg ARM today.
-- richard
--
ZFS Performance and Training
[email protected]
+1-760-896-4422
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