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Date |
: Mar 6th, 2002 |
| Category |
: CPU |
| Manufacturer |
: VIA |
| Author |
: Jin-Wei Tioh |
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SiSoft Sandra 2001te's memory benchmark tests a system's memory subsystem, ie. the interplay between the CPU, chipset and memory. Sandra's memory benchmark is based on the C STREAM memory benchmark by John McCalpin. STREAM measures sustained memory bandwidth (not burst or peak), and has been utilized in benchmarking all types of systems, from personal to super-computers. Sandra's version basically uses dynamic data (roughly 50% of physical system RAM) in lieu of STREAM's static data, coupled with the aggressive scheduling of instructions to maximize memory throughput. Since two variables have been held constant (the chipset and memory), the difference in results between the C3 and the Pentium III are only dependant on the CPU, especially their caches. The C3 is no match for the Pentium III's 256-bit ATC (advanced transfer cache) design. The Pentium III integer score of 356MB/s is twice the score of the C3. Interestingly however, the performance delta drops significantly in the floating point STREAM test.
Another integral subsystem is the storage subsystem. This is the brightest spot in the C3's theoretical performance, as it stays neck and neck with the Pentium III in both the Business and High-End Disk WinMarks, despite the latter's more advanced architecture. This effectively opens up some avenues for the C3, such as being used in an entry-level webserver or fileserver. Here, storage access speed and memory are the main bottlenecks. The CPU in such systems basically just shuttle data back and forth from the client to the server and vice versa. There is also the C3's ridiculously low power consumption and heat output. This allows it to be run with just a passive cooling solution, even in a tight enclosure such as a 1U rackmount case. The direct (less power needed to run the server) and indirect cost savings (eg. lessened need for air-conditioning) make this a perfectly feasible and appealing platform that many would want to consider. Just ask any Californian web hosting company. 
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