AMD: Cloud + END Full force push "value cloud" landing

From Google CEO Eric Schmidt's first "cloud computing" concept to this day, cloud computing has evolved from a popular vocabulary to a landing technology solution, and at an alarming rate to infiltrate every aspect of the IT ecosystem, the chip area is no exception.

As a leading manufacturer in chip manufacturing, AMD has long been aware of the possible business opportunities and changes in cloud computing, and its new president and chief executive, Rory Read, has put forward three strategic priorities, low power, emerging markets and cloud computing.

Recently, in Chongqing, 2012 China International Cloud Computing Exposition (Yun Bo), AMD Greater China President Deng for the first time proposed "value cloud" concept proposition.

▲AMD Deng Yuan Yun, president of Greater China

Deng pointed out: After the cloud computing concept popularization, simple application and so on, the customer has gradually deepened the understanding of cloud computing, the demand also from the simple concept of chasing become more rational and pragmatic, can be summed up as: lower total cost of ownership, more adaptable to flexible deployment of elastic architecture, lower system power consumption, Higher energy efficiency conversion and more competitive advantage of system utilization.

"A more pragmatic, more consistent with customer demand for cost-effective, low-power and high core density solution is the real value of cloud computing, that is, what we call the value cloud." Deng talked.

"Value Cloud" pushes the cloud to the ground

Now that users have long since emerged from the cloud concept controversy, seeking effective cloud landing solutions as one of the main providers of computing engines, AMD clearly understands the opportunities and challenges posed by cloud computing and is a powerful driver of cloud computing from multiple layers of cloud.

AMD at the end of last year released a new generation of Hao long processor, has the industry's highest core number, and the use of dual-core modular architecture, can provide 4 cores, 6 cores, 8 cores and 16 core configurations, the use of 8-16 core to meet peak applications, 4-6 core can improve the main frequency, applicable to the calculation of high demand for the application type; In addition, all kinds of virtualization software and its characteristics are fully supported, which improves CPU utilization and system management ability.

In addition, the AMD server processor chip is designed entirely from the characteristics of cloud computing, for the scale effect of the cloud, AMD server chip provides a variety of energy-saving features, including dynamic adjustment of the frequency and voltage of the powernow! technology, completely off the idle core of the C6 technology, The powercapping (power cap) technology based on the power supply capability of the engine room, and the turbo Boost technology that uses the remaining power to accelerate the other core, etc. AMD will also provide customized processors for the specific needs of large-scale data centers, such as specific power consumption or specific performance.

End level, AMD has introduced innovative APU technology, emphasizing the heterogeneous computing architecture, that is, the system uses a variety of processors to form multi-core systems, not only by increasing the number of processor cores to improve performance, but also to increase the dedicated processing capacity to respond to specific tasks. For example, an AMD APU is a heterogeneous system, with DirectX 11 unique function. At the same time, the graphics function is used to handle graphics and heavy operations for large packets, thus achieving 3D rendering and other specific, APU continue to use the CPU method to run the computer operating system and most traditional commercial applications. Heterogeneous computing efficiency, low energy consumption, especially for the human-machine interaction of large-scale computing, so that the content of multimedia more easily and effectively passed to consumer users, is facing the future application trend.

The most important strategy in the future

"Global already has 2 million AMD chips for cloud computing environment, from the international, AMD with Facebook, Microsoft Azure Cloud Computing Center with close cooperation, the Chinese cloud computing market, AMD also in Beijing Xiangyun, Sheng and other projects played an important role." "Cloud computing is the most important development strategy for AMD," Deng said. ”

Can be seen, AMD recently a series of intensive measures to promote their own cloud strategy landing. For example, a $334 million trillion acquisition of Seamicro is an extremely important position in the AMD Cloud strategy.

With the growing use of cloud computing and the expansion of data centers, the issue of energy consumption has become a priority for CIOs, and such new data centers are now a battleground for processor hegemony. Intel also expects that by 2015, the market for Low-power servers will account for 10% of market share.

Seamicro low-power Micro-server can be a common processor 1/4 power consumption, 1/6 of the footprint, providing 1.2 times times the average processor per core bandwidth, improve the efficiency of the operation while significantly reducing the total cost of ownership, in the low power processor market has a unique competitive advantage. In addition, the 425 million dollar to the TSMC wafer foundry also reveals the intention and determination of AMD to improve the process.

AMD a series of initiatives, making AMD "value Cloud" concept advocated further clarity: it is obvious that AMD continue to increase the input to the low power server market, and improve the heterogeneous computing architecture, flexibly meet the user in the "Cloud + End" Two aspects of computing demand, further play its upstream chip manufacturers in the cloud computing ecological chain in the bottom of the promotion role. Clearly, "value cloud" not only helps users combine demand value with cloud technology, but also becomes an effective competitive strategy for AMD.

AMD's China Cloud

China has become the focus of AMD's global strategy as the fastest-growing economy in the world and the second it market. Deng also told IT168 editor: "China is the most important market for AMD." ”

Deng, AMD is continuing to invest, and constantly improve the strategic layout of the regional industrial chain in China: May 2011, AMD and Beijing Cloud Base signed a memorandum of cooperation, to participate in the "Xiangyun project" chip field, the most important partner. The two sides announced the establishment of the Joint Cloud Computing Laboratory, in the cloud computing technology and related product development, design areas to launch a series of cooperation to promote the Beijing cloud computing industry chain to improve. In addition, other cities such as Chengdu, Wuxi and other areas, there have been successful precedents in the operation.

"We will build Beijing as the second Strategic center of AMD, have moved more research and development, technical support to Beijing, and will build a" solution center "in Beijing, in response to industry development, with more partners in the application of cooperation. Deng talked.

"Globally, China is our important strategic area, where low-power, cloud and emerging markets are our three key targets, all of our products, including servers, desktops, notebooks, and so on, are driven toward lower power consumption in all areas of the processor." In the cloud, based on the unique advantages of acquisition Seamicro will further enhance the low power characteristics; In the end, we use heterogeneous computing architecture in different ways to deal with traditional data and multimedia data, the user experience will be better, and will drive and promote the development of cloud applications. ”

(Responsible editor: The good of the Legacy)