Intel Xeon E3-1275 Review: Sandy Bridge Goes Professional

Once upon a time, Intel’s server-oriented CPUs were dramatically different from its desktop offerings.



Remember the Pentium Pro, with its P6 architecture that introduced speculative and out-of-order execution to Intel’s processor lineup? That part existed at a time when the company’s desktop chips still employed the Pentium’s P5 design. Then there was Pentium II Xeon, with its full-speed on-module L2 cache that was so large (physically) it required a special Slot 2 interface.

After that, though, the desktop and 1P server- and workstation-oriented chips started converging more and more. Fortunately, Intel played it smart and, for the most part, stopped charging the massive price premiums that Xeon-branded processors once commanded. Today, there's a $10-$20 premium on the single-socket Xeons.

Asus' C206-based P8B WS has a more business-oriented vibe

When Desktop Is Out Of Its Element

As a result, it never really surprises me when someone who should know better suggests saving a few bucks by building an entry-level server for a small business using a desktop processor. “It’s just branding, after all.” Shoot, I’ve even shown up to consulting assignments and found Celeron-based servers built by tier-one vendors. Call me old-school, but cutting corners just isn’t in the customer’s best interest.

To me, it doesn’t matter if you’ve had better luck with AMD or Intel. Emphatically, I’d insist that businesses shouldn’t use desktop platforms to drive their mission-critical machines. If it only means getting ECC memory support and a better-qualified motherboard in an Opteron- or Xeon-powered setup, spending the extra money is worth it.

That’s an easy idea to hammer home when you’re talking about dual-socket setups like the one I addressed in Intel Xeon 5600-Series: Can Your PC Use 24 Processors? After all, no amount of trying will get two LGA 1366-based Core i7s working together in a motherboard powered by Intel’s 5520 I/O Hub. Really, your only way to go there is Xeon. But Intel sells single-socket versions of its Xeon chips too.

source : http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/xeon-e3-c206-workstation,2933.html