[vfio-users] Hardware recommendation?

Fri May 13 16:17:35 UTC 2016

Ok, so an example, these are v1 but a different stepping.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SR0KX-INTEL-XEON-E5-2670-8-CORE-2-60GHz-20M-8GT-s-115W-PROCESSOR-CPU-/281889330127

Those should work fine with VT-d. I'll have to check which ones I have but,
I'm using vt-d and passing through a GPU so I assume I'm on a working
version.

On Fri, May 13, 2016 at 11:14 AM Tobias Geiger <tobias.geiger at vido.info>
wrote:

> yes, here some links in increasing credibility order :) :
>
>
> https://m.reddit.com/r/pcmasterrace/comments/3smipw/psa_thousands_of_cheap_e5_xeons_flood_ebay/
>
> https://forums.servethehome.com/index.php?threads/intel-xeon-e5-2670-deal-and-price-tracking.7133/page-2
>
> http://www.techpowerup.com/152978/sandy-bridge-e-vt-d-broken-in-c1-stepping-fixed-in-c2-stepping-shortly-after-launch
>
> Greetings
> Tobias
>
> Am 13.05.2016 18:09, schrieb Ryan Flagler:
> > You are correct that the E5-2670v3 would need the R3 socket, but that
> > version of the CPU is not anywhere near $60 if that's what you were
> > hoping for. I currently use the E5-2670v1 and am not aware of a vt-d
> > issue. Do you have more information about that?
> >
> > On Fri, May 13, 2016 at 11:07 AM Tobias Geiger
> > <tobias.geiger at vido.info> wrote:
> >
> >> Hi Ryan,
> >>
> >> ok now im confused:
> >>
> >> my understanding was i need a SR0KX version of the E5-2670, cause
> >> the
> >> SR0H8 hast microcode issues regarding vtd.
> >> so far so good. i thought SR0KX = E5-2670 v3 and needs a R3 socket -
> >> but
> >> you say i might be wrong here?
> >>
> >> unfortunatly the ark doesnt show the exact socket you need, they
> >> only
> >> mention the steppings on the right side of the page:
> >>
> >
> http://ark.intel.com/de/products/64595/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E5-2670-20M-Cache-2_60-GHz-8_00-GTs-Intel-QPI
> >>
> >> Greetings!
> >> Tobias
> >>
> >> Am 13.05.2016 17:59, schrieb Ryan Flagler:
> >>> i personally haven't had issues with my SuperMicro board. The
> >> biggest
> >>> issues have been related to AMD/nVidia specific issues. The asrock
> >>> motherboard you linked is not compatible wit hthe E5-2670 cpu
> >> though.
> >>> The one you linked is a Socket R3, you need Socket R for the
> >>> E5-2670v1.
> >>>
> >>> On Fri, May 13, 2016 at 10:28 AM Tobias Geiger
> >>> <tobias.geiger at vido.info> wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> Hi,
> >>>>
> >>>> great suggestions - thanks so far!
> >>>>
> >>>> Seems i have the choice between
> >>>> - this really good price/value E5-2670 Dual Xeon and this board:
> >>>>
> >>>
> >>
> >
> http://www.asrockrack.com/general/productdetail.asp?Model=EP2C612D8#Specifications
> >>>> (the Supermicro one is at least here in Germany much more
> >> expensive
> >>>> -
> >>>> and the Asrock has more SATA3 Ports... - do you see any
> >> difficulties
> >>>> in
> >>>> comparison with the Supermicroboard you mentioned?)
> >>>>
> >>>> oooor
> >>>> -  i7-6700K Intel Skylake with a board like this :
> >>>> https://www.asus.com/de/Motherboards/Q170M-C/specifications/ (Q
> >>>> Chipset
> >>>> should ensure VTD funcionality i hope!)
> >>>>
> >>>> so basicaly the choice between 16 cores with the dual xeon but
> >> with
> >>>> a
> >>>> max of 3.3Ghz - or 4 cores "only" with the Skylake i7 but
> >> 4.2Ghz...
> >>>> puh. hard one. games rarly scale well on multiple cpus, but OTOH
> >>>> this
> >>>> is/will be changing with time and newer games... but a rapid
> >>>> single-core-performance is always handy for the tasks that are
> >> not
> >>>> threadable...
> >>>>
> >>>> now im really stuck in my descision-finding-process :)
> >>>> i'll think about it for the weekend
> >>>>
> >>>> if you see any omg-dont-buy-that-it-wont-work issues - please
> >> tell
> >>>> me!
> >>>>
> >>>> Thanks and Greetings
> >>>> Tobias
> >>>>
> >>>> Am 12.05.2016 17:23, schrieb Ryan Flagler:
> >>>>> Yep, that's the one. Dirt cheap! I was able to snag a used
> >>>> SuperMicro
> >>>>> X9DR7-LN4F dual-socket motherboard and threw 2 of them in there.
> >> I
> >>>>> don't have much of an issue giving my VMs enough CPU. :) ECC
> >> DDR3
> >>>>> Registered memory is relatively cheap on ebay too.
> >>>>>
> >>>>> On Thu, May 12, 2016 at 10:21 AM Alex Williamson
> >>>>> <alex.l.williamson at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>>>
> >>>>>> On Thu, May 12, 2016 at 9:14 AM, Ryan Flagler
> >>>>>> <ryan.flagler at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>>> I know Alex has recommended the E5 series
> >>>> processors/motherboards
> >>>>>>> for the best compatibility. There are 2 versions of
> >> motherboards
> >>>>>>> that support that right now. Socket R and Socket R3. Obviously
> >>>> E5
> >>>>>>> series processors are not very affordable brand new; however,
> >>>> the
> >>>>>>> market is currently flooded with server pulled E5-2670 CPUs.
> >>>> They
> >>>>>>> can be easily found for $60 on ebay. These CPUs work on Socket
> >> R
> >>>>>>> motherboards. Additionally, these motherboards will still
> >>>> support
> >>>>>>> DDR3 memory which is cheaper to acquire than DDR4 as well.
> >>>>>>>
> >>>>>>> That's where I'd start if I was you. Obviously there could
> >>>> always
> >>>>>>> be issues with 1 manufacturer to another, but hopefully that's
> >> a
> >>>>>>> starting place.
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> Nice tip!  You're referring to Sandy-Bridge EP, right?
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>
> >>>>
> >>>
> >>
> >
> http://ark.intel.com/products/64595/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E5-2670-20M-Cache-2_60-GHz-8_00-GTs-Intel-QPI
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> 8-core, hmmm that's tempting.
>
>
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