Intel's next-generation Xeon CPUs for the Eagle Stream platform codenamed Sapphire Rapids and Granite Rapids would be receiving a newer socket known as LGA 4677. Along with the new socket, there would also be new features added to the platforms which would allow Intel's Xeon platform to stay on par with AMD's post-2020 EPYC lineup.
Intel's 10nm++ Sapphire Rapids and 7nm Granite Rapids Xeon CPUs To Feature Support on LGA 4677 Socketed 'Eagle-Stream' Platform
The new information comes from Kazuki Kasahara of PC Watch who has posted a picture of a Xeon LGA socket roadmap over on his twitter feed. The roadmap shows the LGA 4189 socket for Whitley platform to be replaced by the LGA 4677 socket in 2021. Since both the Whitley and Eagle Stream platforms feature a different socket, there won't be inter-socket compatibility for their respective line of Xeon CPUs. Whitley would receive two Xeon families, the refined 14nm based Cooper Lake & 10nm+ Ice Lake while Eagle Stream would receive the 10nm++ Sapphire Rapids and 7nm Granite Rapids line.
Looking at the difference between the existing LGA 3647 socket (Purley) and LGA 4189 (Whitley), it can be noted that the latter is much bulkier in design which is a requirement to accommodate the higher number of pins. The mounting is also different so once again, don't expect any kind of CPU compatibility for the current Xeon lineup.
But that's not it, the roadmap also shows the next-gen LGA 4677 socket and mentions support for PCI-Express 5.0 in 2021. The socket LGA 4677 would feature a much larger layout and blueprints of the socket have already been shared by Momomo_Us. Once again, we spot a different layout and mounting structure which would be required for the new Xeon processors.
The Eagle Stream platform has also gone by the name of Tinsley before. The platform would also support two generations of Xeon processors as stated above. The platform would be competing against AMD's Zen 4 based EPYC Genoa lineup which would also be moving to a newer platform known as SP5. AMD has promised new memory and new capabilities for the Genoa lineup which would include support for DDR5, PCIe 5.0 and more. We don't know what other features would the new lineup include but Intel is doing the same with 8-channel DDR5 support & a new interconnect for the Eagle Stream platform.
Intel 14nm Cooper Lake-SP With Up To 48 Cores, PCIe Gen 3 and 8 Channel DDR4 in Q1 2020
The roadmap itself is said to be a part of Intel's partner program and includes some main details of each upcoming Xeon family. We start off with the 14nm Cooper Lake-SP family which will be part of the Whitley Platform and feature up to 48 cores (Cooper Lake-AP), 8 channel DDR4 memory and PCIe Gen 3 support. The latest Barlow Pass Optane DIMMs would also be compatible on Whitley so we should expect a good boost in performance. Cooper Lake will also be available for 4S and 8S servers with up to 26 core Xeon CPU configurations, 6 channel DDR4 memory support and PCIe 3.0 support.
Intel 10nm+ Ice Lake-SP With Up To 26 Cores, PCIe Gen 4 and 8 Channel DDR4 in Q2 2020
Intel Ice Lake-SP processors would be available around the second quarter of 2020 and will feature the 10nm process node. The chips will have up to 26 cores and support 8 channel DDR4 memory. The main highlight of Ice Lake-SP processors would be support for PCIe Gen 4 which is coming to AMD's EPYC Rome processors this year in Q3 2019. Ice Lake-SP processors would be based on the brand new Sunny Cove core architecture which is expected to deliver double-digit IPC gains and a much-needed increase in overall efficiency.
One thing to note is that Intel's 10nm for 2020 is an enhanced node of the original 10nm node that will launch this year. It's marked as 10nm+ and that is specifically what the Ice Lake-SP Xeon line will make use of. Some of the major upgrades that 10nm will deliver include:
- 2.7x density scaling vs 14nm
- Self-aligned Quad-Patterning
- Contact Over Active Gate
- Cobalt Interconnect (M0, M1)
- 1st Gen Foveros 3D Stacking
- 2nd Gen EMIB
Intel Xeon CPU Families (Preliminary):
| Family Branding | Diamond Rapids | Clearwater Forest | Granite Rapids | Sierra Forest | Emerald Rapids | Sapphire Rapids | Ice Lake-SP | Cooper Lake-SP | Cascade Lake-SP/AP | Skylake-SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Process Node | Intel 20A? | Intel 18A | Intel 3 | Intel 3 | Intel 7 | Intel 7 | 10nm+ | 14nm++ | 14nm++ | 14nm+ |
| Platform Name | Intel Mountain Stream Intel Birch Stream | Intel Mountain Stream Intel Birch Stream | Intel Mountain Stream Intel Birch Stream | Intel Mountain Stream Intel Birch Stream | Intel Eagle Stream | Intel Eagle Stream | Intel Whitley | Intel Cedar Island | Intel Purley | Intel Purley |
| Core Architecture | Lion Cove? | Darkmont | Redwood Cove | Sierra Glen | Raptor Cove | Golden Cove | Sunny Cove | Cascade Lake | Cascade Lake | Skylake |
| MCP (Multi-Chip Package) SKUs | Yes | TBD | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No |
| Socket | LGA 4677 / 7529 | LGA 4677 / 7529 | LGA 4677 / 7529 | LGA 4677 / 7529 | LGA 4677 | LGA 4677 | LGA 4189 | LGA 4189 | LGA 3647 | LGA 3647 |
| Max Core Count | Up To 144? | Up To 288 | Up To 136? | Up To 288 | Up To 64? | Up To 56 | Up To 40 | Up To 28 | Up To 28 | Up To 28 |
| Max Thread Count | Up To 288? | Up To 288 | Up To 272? | Up To 288 | Up To 128 | Up To 112 | Up To 80 | Up To 56 | Up To 56 | Up To 56 |
| Max L3 Cache | TBD | TBD | 480 MB L3 | 108 MB L3 | 320 MB L3 | 105 MB L3 | 60 MB L3 | 38.5 MB L3 | 38.5 MB L3 | 38.5 MB L3 |
| Memory Support | Up To 12-Channel DDR6-7200? | TBD | Up To 12-Channel DDR5-6400 | Up To 8-Channel DDR5-6400? | Up To 8-Channel DDR5-5600 | Up To 8-Channel DDR5-4800 | Up To 8-Channel DDR4-3200 | Up To 6-Channel DDR4-3200 | DDR4-2933 6-Channel | DDR4-2666 6-Channel |
| PCIe Gen Support | PCIe 6.0 (128 Lanes)? | TBD | PCIe 5.0 (136 Lanes) | PCIe 5.0 (TBD Lanes) | PCIe 5.0 (80 Lanes) | PCIe 5.0 (80 lanes) | PCIe 4.0 (64 Lanes) | PCIe 3.0 (48 Lanes) | PCIe 3.0 (48 Lanes) | PCIe 3.0 (48 Lanes) |
| TDP Range (PL1) | Up To 500W? | TBD | Up To 500W | Up To 350W | Up To 350W | Up To 350W | 105-270W | 150W-250W | 165W-205W | 140W-205W |
| 3D Xpoint Optane DIMM | Donahue Pass? | TBD | Donahue Pass | TBD | Crow Pass | Crow Pass | Barlow Pass | Barlow Pass | Apache Pass | N/A |
| Competition | AMD EPYC Venice | AMD EPYC Zen 5C | AMD EPYC Turin | AMD EPYC Bergamo | AMD EPYC Genoa ~5nm | AMD EPYC Genoa ~5nm | AMD EPYC Milan 7nm+ | AMD EPYC Rome 7nm | AMD EPYC Rome 7nm | AMD EPYC Naples 14nm |
| Launch | 2025? | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2018 | 2017 |
Intel 10nm++ Sapphire Rapids-SP With PCIe Gen 5 and 8 Channel DDR5 Support in Q1 2021, 7nm Granite Rapids-SP in 2022
Moving further into the post-2020 Xeon lineup, Intel will be launching Sapphire Rapids-SP in 2021 and Granite Rapids-SP in 2022. The 10nm++ based Sapphire Rapids is expected to make use of the updated Willow Cove core architecture which replaces Sunny Cove in 2020. The Sapphire Rapids lineup will make use of 8 channel DDR5 memory and support PCIe Gen 5.0 on the Eagle Stream platform. This will allow Intel to match up or even outpace AMD's EPYC offerings if Milan will end up reusing DDR4 and PCIe Gen 4 from the upcoming EPYC Rome platform. That remains to be seen.
Intel's Sapphire Rapids family will be launching the same year that Intel introduces their first datacenter Xe GPUs based on the 7nm process node. The first confirmed product to feature the 7nm datacenter Xe GPUs will be the Aurora supercomputer, more on that here. The new Xe architecture based GP-GPU will be built using Foveros 3D stacking architecture which means we are going to see a one-chip, single-stacked-chip harmony between the GPU, memory and interconnect.
This will allow High-Bandwidth memory to be stacked right on top of the GPU die, featuring a package size that is much smaller than existing GPUs but at the same time, denser than anything we have got so far.
Later in 2022, Intel will launch Granite Rapids-SP which will further expand upon the DNA of Sapphire Rapids and possibly make use of the 7nm process node. The process roadmap shows that Intel will have 7nm+ ready for deployment in 2022 along with their Golden Cove chip core architecture. It remains to be seen what kind of core count we should expect from Intel's Rapid series of Xeon families, but one thing that's confirmed is that Intel is speeding up the pace for their Xeon lineup as competition from AMD has risen. We will keep you updated as we hear more info around the Intel Xeon lineup.
