New Micron LRDIMMs To Increase Server Memory Capacity

Micron Technology has produced a DDR3 load-reduced, dual-inline memory module (LRDIMM) and will begin sampling 16-gigabyte (GB) versions this fall. By reducing load on the server memory bus, Micron’s LRDIMMs provide the option to support higher data frequencies and significantly increase memory capacity.

The new LRDIMMs will be manufactured using Micron’s 1.35-volt, 2-gigabit (Gb) 50-nanometer DDR3 memory chips, allowing the company to increase server module capacity because of the chips’ high-density small die size. Micron’s 2Gb 50nm DDR3 product is currently in qualification with customers.

Most mid-range enterprise servers today utilise approximately 32GB of DRAM per system but this is expected to more than triple by 2012, according to a recent report from Gartner. With server manufacturers continuing to take advantage of multi-core processors and data centres opting for virtualisation technology, memory requirements are being driven ever higher. By increasing the available memory a server system has, it is able to run more programs concurrently, handle larger data files efficiently, and generally exhibit better overall system performance.

Micron’s LRDIMMs currently use Inphi’s isolation memory buffer (iMB) chip in place of a register to reduce the bus load when transferring data between the memory and processor. As per company claims, Micron’s new LRDIMMs reduce this load by 50 percent for a dual-rank module and 75 percent for a quad-rank module, when compared to today’s standard DDR3 server modules – registered DIMMs (RDIMMs). By reducing the load on the bus, Micron’s LRDIMMs enable servers to handle higher frequencies of data to improve overall system performance and support increased number of modules for greater system memory capacity.

“With the rise in virtualisation, our new 16GB modules allow customers to easily expand their memory capacity. While traditional RDIMMs limit the amount of memory that can be accommodated due to their loading profile, LRDIMMs eliminate that problem by reducing the module load,” said Robert Feurle, vice president of DRAM marketing at Micron.

“Adoption of this approach to memory technology will further enable server virtualisation and cloud computing,” said Paul Washkewicz, vice president of marketing at Inphi. “This technology delivers the higher bandwidth and memory capacity demanded by data centre servers.”

Product Availability

Micron is currently sampling an 8GB LRDIMM with select enablers. Mass production of its 16GB LRDIMMs is expected to begin in 2010.