Xref: utzoo comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware:392 comp.sys.att:10064 Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!att!cbnewsl!rubin From: rubin@cbnewsl.att.com (Mike Rubin) Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware,comp.sys.att Subject: Re: 106 mip PC Message-ID: <1990Jul23.165921.28420@cbnewsl.att.com> Date: 23 Jul 90 16:59:21 GMT References: <12487@netcom.UUCP> Distribution: usa Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Summit, NJ Lines: 34 In article <12487@netcom.UUCP> jbreeden@netcom.uucp (John Breeden) writes: >Does anyone know any details about AT&T's Starserver E? The lit I have >says it's a true symmetrical, multiprocessor 33mhz 486 (4 processors). >They claim a MIP rating of 106MIPS (yea!, I know. That's faster than >a 3090!), and they are shipping it! Neither the additional processor boards, nor an operating system to handle them, exist yet. The box does contain the inter-processor bus so you will be able to just plug in the extra processors. The 106-MIP rating is calculated, not observed. (It's my opinion that AT&T public relations is being less than clear on these points.) What you can buy today is the 1 processor configuration, which is a full-out 33 MHz 486 with Weitek 4167 math coprocessor and DPT EISA-bus SCSI disk controller. Production is still quite limited due to the scarcity of 33 MHz 486's. I wouldn't doubt the 26 MIPS single-processor figure; it really does scream. SCSI performance is in line with other DPT controllers (not in line with a 3090 :-), more and faster disks might help. Unix (SVR4.0) runs on the machine but the Unix C compiler does not yet support the Weitek. The parallel operating system is being jointly developed with Pyramid and bears some resemblance to what you see on current Pyramid machines (except that it's SVR4.0 based instead of BSD). The "true symmetrical multiprocessor" stuff means that (unlike e.g. the dual-processor Compaq) all processors will be able to run kernel code and do I/O. --Mike Rubin [Disclaimer: So far as I know everything stated here is public knowledge.]