Here's an interesting development

[unixronin]

Amid continuing problems getting its four-core processors to market, it appears AMD will be repackaging four-core processors with minor faults on one core and selling them as triple-core processors.

Now tell me:  What was your first thought?

Yeah.  Mine was, "I wonder how long it's going to be before somebody hacks up a fault-tolerant Linux/BSD/whatever (or perhaps a completely custom OS) that runs a separate kernel thread on each core, with cross-checking and two-of-three majority voting?"

I mean, come on.  It's the obvious use for a triple-core processor.

Comments

[bikergeek.livejournal.com]

a man with two cores never knows what time it is?

[dr-nebula.livejournal.com]

Sounds like they are having trouble building a good 4-assed monkey.

[radarrider.livejournal.com]

Well, yeah, I've known for months that the tri-core Phenoms will be quad-core chips with one core disabled. If AMD prices them aggressively, they will provide outstanding value. It'll be interesting to see how they go. For example, what if they have a chip where all four cores run perfect at 2.2 GHz but only three run perfect at 2.5? Do they sell it as a 9550 or 7700?

[otherbill.livejournal.com]

My first thought was "Enh, that's just how the industry works."

As for the redundOS, are you talking about all three processors running the same instructions in lock-step, or something more advanced?

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Yup, three processors running the exact same instructions in parallel and cross-checking each other. Triple redundancy. If any one device (processor core, in this case) gets a different result from the other two, the other two devices overrule it and throw a warning. If it can't be reconciled with the other two, the remaining two mark it failed and continue without it. It's been a standard technique for decades in military and space hardware for applications where you absolutely cannot afford errors.

(If all three devices differ, or if one device of the three has been marked failed and there is a second disagreement, the system is usually designed to panic and shut down.)

[bfudlmint.livejournal.com]

I assume your saying a hack that uses all 4 processors. The big question is will all the overhead negate the advantages of 4 cores.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

No, the fourth core is defective. It's just that if you have a triple-core processor, it's practically a ready-made platform to implement core-level triple redundancy. (See the thread immediately above.)

[bfudlmint.livejournal.com]

Yup, I asked my question 9 minutes too early. Another question, can you buy them? I couldn't find it as a product on the AMD site but the AMD site is horrible.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Not yet. But AMD is saying it'll put them on the market this quarter. If the price point is right, they could be a pretty hot product.

(Unfortunately, the chances of them being available in a Socket 939 package are probably slim.)

[bfudlmint.livejournal.com]

Judging by too quick a read of the AMD website, it is going to be AM2+. I think most of the new chips will be. Of course, yet again I've not been able to find any info on what a am2+ socket is on the AMD site(I found it elsewhere).

[wyrdling.livejournal.com]

(processor) minority report
(eep)

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Never actually saw that myself.

[wyrdling.livejournal.com]

it was ok. i imagine the philip k dick was better.
the 2/3 majority voting thing brought it on ;)