What are Xeon Bronze CPUs

Intel Xeon Bronze processors were designed by Intel in 2017 for entry-level servers and data centers that require reliable performance for basic workloads. They are ideal for companies that need energy efficiency and cost savings. These processors are often used in situations where the demand for computing power is not extremely high, but where a stable and reliable server environment is required.

Generally suitable for small to medium sized businesses looking for an affordable and efficient server solution for tasks such as web hosting, lightweight application servers, and low-end back-end systems.

Organizations that offer software-defined storage solutions can leverage these processors for their storage needs.

Socket-type per generation

Intel Xeon Bronze 1st generation: LGA3647
Intel Xeon Bronze 2nd generation: LGA3647

What is the difference between the generations

The difference between the first three generations of Intel Xeon Bronze processors lies mainly in the microarchitecture used and the improvements in performance and features:

The first generation (3100 Series, Skylake) Xeon Bronze processors were introduced in July 2017. These chips were manufactured on an improved 14nm+ process based on the Skylake microarchitecture. They brought a relatively major SoC design change from the previous Xeon families. These processors were the first to move to a mesh interconnect and introduced a tile-based architecture, with the first implementation of AVX-512 and a redesigned cache hierarchy designed for server workloads.

• Proc: 14 nm proces
• TDP: 85 W
• Mem: 768 GiB hexa-channel DDR4-2133 ECC-geheugen.
• I/O: 48 PCIe Gen 3.0-lanes
• ISA: Alles tot AVX-512 (SMM, FPU, NX, MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AES, AVX, FMA3, AVX2, AVX-512-F/CD/BW /DQ/VL)
• Features: Speed ​​Shift, vPro, VT-x, TSX, TXT, Volume Management Device (VMD), Mode-based Execute Control (MBE), Key Protection Technology (KPT) and Platform Trust Technology (PTT).

The second generation (3200-Series, Cascade Lake) was introduced in early 2019. These processors are manufactured on an improved 14 nm process based on the Cascade Lake microarchitecture, which enables higher clock speeds and has introduced a number of hardware changes against the various speculative execution vulnerabilities. The CPUs also introduced new new instructions for machine learning (inference) acceleration and support for persistent memory. All 3200 Series Xeon Bronze processors support:

• TDP: 85 W
• Mem: 1 TiB hexa-channel DDR4-2133 ECC memory.
• I/O: 48 PCIe 3 lanes
• ISA: Everything up to AVX-512 (SMM, FPU, NX, MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AES, AVX, FMA3, AVX2, AVX-512-F/CD/BW/DQ/VL/VNNI)
• features: Speed Shift, vPro, VT-x, TSX, TXT, Volume Management Device (VMD), Mode-based Execute Control (MBE), Key Protection Technology (KPT), and Platform Trust Technology (PTT).

Packaging

NTS ships Xeon Bronze CPUs in custom trays that fit 4. These are stackable and provide optimal protection so that the CPU cannot move in the packaging during transport.

41711024 - Tray Intel Xeon Scalable Processors (1x4) Gold/Silver CPU

The trays are also available separately in our webshop. To do this, follow the link in the product number above.

What should be taken into account when purchasing

The CPU has a code next to the clock speed, as shown in the image below:

• Make sure this code matches when using multiple CPUs. Different versions of processors may have minute differences that affect performance. Using the same code from the same product name ensures that the CPUs are identical.

• Before you upgrade your CPU, check the wattage of the power supply, especially when installing a 2nd processor or in combination with a powerful video card. View the power consumption per component in the product specifications. Your power supply must be able to handle the total with some margin.

• Thermal paste is required for installation of Xeon Bronze processors. Ask your account manager to add this to the order, or add it in the webshop.

• If you are looking for a CPU upgrade for a server, keep in mind that an extra processor or faster processor may contain more cores and therefore a software license extension may be required, such as Microsoft Server core licenses. More information can be found on the Windows Server Core Calculator site.

• Before installing the Xeon Bronze processors, the CPU cooling must be removed. Before replacing, check which format this should be. This depends on the cooling, but this is often a Philips head 2.