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From: dillon@flea.best.net (Matt Dillon)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.sco.misc,comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc,comp.unix.bsd.bsdi.misc,comp.sys.sgi.misc
Subject: Re: no such thing as a "general user community"
Date: 18 Mar 1997 14:28:39 -0800
Organization: BEST Internet Communications, Inc.
Lines: 43
Message-ID: <5gn4un$8s5@flea.best.net>
References: <331BB7DD.28EC@net5.net> <5g90sg$aj6@innocence.interface-business.de> <5g9k2m$c68@flea.best.net> <gergE79322.HD8@netcom.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: flea.best.net
Xref: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au comp.unix.sco.misc:36935 comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc:37428 comp.unix.bsd.bsdi.misc:6402 comp.sys.sgi.misc:29309
:In article <gergE79322.HD8@netcom.com>, Greg Andrews <gerg@netcom.com> wrote:
:>dillon@flea.best.net (Matt Dillon) writes:
:>>..
:>> Do I need a faster cpu in this box? No. Do I need a faster I/O bus?
:>> No. In fact, I will probably run out of memory long before I
:>> run the machine into the ground cpu or I/O wise.
:>>
:>
:>That's true, Matt, but a news machine is still a poor example to cite
:>when you're saying a single-cpu PPro is completely sufficient for any
:>I/O needs.
:>
:>You even hinted in another post that there are other types of I/O
:>than disk I/O, with different requirements. (You mentioned a high-
:>speed router)
:>
:> -Greg
Absolutely, but 98% of the installations out there are not going to
fall into that category. I'm not saying SMP isn't good, I'm saying
that I/O technology needs to catch up to cpu technology. Tightly
coupled duel-processor configurations are definitely a good thing
that are only going to become better as the I/O catches up to them.
This does tend to throw a wrench into the works of larger SMP
minicomputers such as the ones SUN and SGI make. Things that
I had to put on a mini five years ago now fit nicely on a ppro 200.
We bought two challenge L's two years ago that, now, are barely worth
their weight in scrap.
To max out a ppro 200 I'd have to put a great deal of disk and memory
in the box... so much so that I consider it foolish to attach so many
hardware subsystems to a single machine. If something fries, I'm in
trouble.
I saw a Sun mini fry a few weeks ago. Half the insides were a total
loss from smoke damage and the board that died *melted* into the backplane.
you couldn't pull it out (!). Of course, sun uses all those damn plastic
heat sinks all over the place. If one falls out, you can kiss goodbye
to the board.
-Matt