A Xeon is a Xeon is a Xeon.
This is a very true statement.
Unfortunately for many, the commonality ends where the processor and socket meet. There is a great deal of deviation in motherboard designs. Some are much better than others and it is not always based on the location of the factory (China versus Japan, USA, etc).
Intel, as an example, releases a reference design and bios definition that is usually the gold standard for a particular type of platform. Many companies will take this design and modify it to fit their needs and in the process streamline the design. That is usually a cost driven exercise.
The end result is usually a decent server platform that performs well in a file/print or even enterprise space. Unfortunately for those who have been bitten, we all know there is a difference between how a well tuned HPC environment can put demands on hardware, challenge tolerances and expose any of the cost driven "changes" made to a motherboard.
I have seen HPC sites that can make a Dell 1950 stumble with little difficulty. Granted, that requires a well tuned environment and skilled savvy users that can place demands on machines where the various shortcomings are exposed. A fair number of the previously mentioned sole-source contracts end up being penny-wise and dollar-foolish as well as detrimental to the people actually relying on the hardware for productive research.
-- Best Regards, Jeff Johnson President / CTO Western Scientific, Inc [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.wsm.com 5444 Napa Street - San Diego, CA 92110 Tel 800.443.6699 +001.619.220.6580 Fax +001.619.220.6590 "Braccae tuae aperiuntur" _______________________________________________ Beowulf mailing list, [email protected] To change your subscription (digest mode or unsubscribe) visit http://www.beowulf.org/mailman/listinfo/beowulf
