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Intel Xeon Processor Vs AMD EPYC Server Processor

December 15, 2022
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If you're looking for a new server processor, you're probably thinking about both AMD EPYC and Intel Xeon processors. Both lines can handle heavy workloads thanks to their large core counts and support for cutting-edge technologies. In order to assist you better grasp the distinctions between the two and which one would be the best option for your needs, we'll evaluate the various Intel Xeon and AMD EPYC CPU models in this article.

Intel Xeon Processor

Some of the most potent and dependable solutions available for enterprise IT applications are Intel Xeon Scalable processors. The E5, E3, bronze, silver, gold, and platinum CPU families, as well as other Xeon families, will be discussed in this blog.

A server processor

Xeon E3:

On the other hand, the Xeon E3 series is intended for servers and workstations that are more affordable. These CPUs provide a reduced amount of memory and I/O as well as fewer cores and threads. They work well for less demanding tasks like web hosting and small business applications.

Xeon E5:

The high-end workstations and servers that the Xeon E5 family is intended for. These CPUs support enormous amounts of memory and high-speed I/O in addition to having a high number of cores and threads. They are suitable for demanding workloads including virtualization, scientific simulations, and data analysis.

Intel also provides Xeon CPUs in bronze, silver, gold, and platinum levels in addition to the E5 and E3 CPU families. With platinum being the top level, these various levels offer differing degrees of performance and features.

The breakdown of the various Xeon tiers is as follows:

  • Bronze: Entry-level CPUs that handle less memory and I/O, have fewer cores and threads, and are less powerful overall.
  • Silver: Midrange CPUs that handle a moderate amount of memory and have a reasonable number of cores and threads. I/O.
  • Gold: High-end CPUs that support big amounts of memory and have a lot of cores and threads. I/O.
  • Platinum: Top-tier CPUs that handle the most memory and I/O along with the greatest number of cores and threads.

Intel Xeon Silver :

Intel Xeon Silver provides a decent blend of performance and price for use in entry-level servers. Compared to other Xeon processors, they have fewer cores and a lower TDP, but they still support cutting-edge features like Intel's Turbo Boost and Hyper-Threading.

Intel Xeon Gold :

Mid-range servers are meant to employ Intel Xeon Gold processors, which perform better than Silver processors. Compared to Silver CPUs, they offer more memory channels, more cores, and cutting-edge technology like Intel's Turbo Boost and Hyper-Threading.

Intel Xeon Platinum :

High-end servers are designed to utilise INTEL® XEON® Platinum, the top model in the Xeon range. They support the largest memory channels, the most core counts, and cutting-edge technology like Intel's Turbo Boost and Hyper-Threading.

A server processor in green and rest of the motherboard turned greyish brown

AMD EPYC processors

Let's now examine the AMD EPYC. The four primary subcategories of the EPYC series are EPYC 3000, EPYC 5000, EPYC 7000, and EPYC 9000. Let's take a look at each category one at a time because they each provide varying degrees of performance and features.

Processor AMD EPYC 3000:

AMD EPYC 3000 servers offer a decent blend of performance and price and are meant for usage in entry-level servers. Compared to the other EPYC processors, they feature fewer memory channels and fewer cores, but they still support cutting-edge technologies including AMD's Simultaneous Multithreading (SMT) technology.

Processor AMD EPYC 5000:

AMD EPYC 5000 processors are more powerful than EPYC 3000 CPUs and are intended for usage in mid-range servers. Compared to the EPYC 3000, they feature more memory channels, more cores, and cutting-edge technologies including AMD's SMT technology.

AMD EPYC 7000 processor:

AMD EPYC 7000 CPU AMD's top-of-the-line EPYC 7000 processors are made for usage in high-end servers. They support the most memory channels, the most cores, and cutting-edge technologies like AMD's SMT technology. They also offer the greatest core counts.

Processor AMD EPYC 9000:

The most recent EPYC line addition from AMD, the EPYC 9000 CPUs, are built for usage in the most demanding server scenarios. They support the largest memory channels and core counts of any EPYC CPUs, as well as cutting-edge technologies including AMD's SMT technology.

A server processor in it's housing

Direct Comparison

After discussing the different categories of Intel Xeon and AMD EPYC CPUs, let's compare their technical details in a table to see how they compare.

A table comparing Intel Xeon Silver, Gold, Platinum, AMD EPYC 3000, EPYC 5000 EPYC 7000 and EPYC 9000 processors

The table shows that the performance and feature levels of the Intel Xeon and AMD EPYC CPUs vary. The Xeon Silver CPUs provide a decent blend of performance and price for entry-level servers. The mid-range servers that use the Xeon Gold CPUs get greater performance levels. High-end servers are built to utilise the Xeon Platinum CPUs, which are the pinnacle of the Xeon range.

On the AMD side, the EPYC 3000 CPUs offer a decent combination between performance and price and are likewise intended for entry-level servers. The EPYC 5000 processors offer greater performance than the EPYC 3000 processors and are intended for mid-range servers. The top of the EPYC range CPUs, the 7000 series is intended for usage in high-end servers. The newest processors in the EPYC range, the EPYC 9000 processors, are intended for usage in the most demanding server scenarios.

It's crucial to take your unique requirements and workloads into account when selecting a server processor.

Conclusion

Both Intel Xeon and AMD EPYC processors have their own distinct advantages and disadvantages, based on a comparison of their features and performance. The high clock rates and powerful single-threaded performance of Intel Xeon CPUs make them ideal for jobs requiring a lot of data processing and computing capacity. The high core counts and potent multithreading performance of AMD EPYC CPUs, in contrast, make them ideal for jobs that call for intensive parallel processing and vast amounts of memory, such as those found in data center. In the end, the user's particular demands and requirements will determine which of the two types of processors to utilise.

If you have any more doubts, or are interested in purchasing or renting a processor, you can schedule a meeting with us or email us here!

A server processor which has btcoin symbol on it demonstrating it can be used for bitcoin mining.