IBM previews new server architecture

The EX5 servers take a step away from traditional x86 server architecture in which processors and memory are locked together. The new server architecture decouples memory from the processors into separate units, according to IBM.

That could help the memory and processor scale separately for faster application performance, while slashing down on storage and energy costs, the company said. IBM is previewing the servers at the CeBIT trade show being held in Hanover, Germany.

"All the new systems have improved energy efficiency in their designs across a wide range of components achieving substantial energy savings when compared to the current generation of similar servers," said Ronald Hagan, vice president of the System x business at IBM.

The servers, targeted at enterprises for use in data centers, will be released later this year, the company said. IBM will introduce three new EX5 systems including four-socket and two-socket rackmount servers and a blade server. The servers will use Intel's upcoming eight-core Nehalem-EX processor. The company declined to comment on server pricing.

In the new architecture, the memory is stored in a slim, 1U "drawer," that packs 600 percent more memory than available today on standard servers, Hagan said. IBM has developed a separate X-Architecture chip to reduce latency between memory and processor.