rx2660 versus rx2620

[Andre Braganca]

Our HP-UX systems are running on Itanium rx2620 and rx2600 servers. I'm going to buy a new server and can't make up my mind between a rx2620 or a rx2660. They seem equivalent because they take the same CPUs and have the same chassis. The difference seems to be in the chipset and the memory - the rx2660 has the zx2 chipset and takes memory pairs, not quads. Can anyone help ?

Regards,
Andre'

P.S. This thread has been moved from HP 9000 to Servers > Integrity. -HP Forum Moderator

[Torsten.]

Hi,

the rx2620 and rx2660 have different chassis and different CPUs -see:

rx2660
http://h20341.www2.hp.com/integrity/cache/452196-0-0-0-121.html

rx2620
http://h20341.www2.hp.com/integrity/cache/332536-0-0-0-121.html

Type: Dual-core Intel® Itanium® 2 processor
1.4 GHz/12 MB Dual-core
1.6 GHz/18 MB Dual-core
Level 1 cache: 32 KB
Level 2 cache: 1 MB instruction/256 KB data
Level 3 cache: 12 MB (6 MB per core) and 18 MB (9 MB per core)



Type: Intel® Itanium® 2 processor
1.4 GHz/12 MB
1.6 GHz/18 MB
Level 1 cache: 32 KB
Level 2 cache: 256 KB
Level 3 cache: 12 MB (6 MB per core) and 18 MB (9 MB per core)

[Andre Braganca]

For the benefit of the forum, using the links and comparing (rx2620 vs rx2660):
Chipset zx1 vs. zx2
System bus 6.4 vs 8.5GB/s
CPU Level 2 cache 256KB vs. 1M/256K
Memory bus 8.5 vs. 12.8 GB/s
Disk bays 3 vs. 8 (SAS)
(there are also small diferences in disk capacities and rpm)
PCI-X slots 4 vs 3
Price bigger vs. smaller (from an HP quote)

rx2660 disadvantages:
PCI-X slots
For me, not being able to exchange parts with the rest of my servers

The newer rx2660 looks like a winner. Does anyone know any other disadvantage other than the 2 mentioned above ?

[Andre Braganca]

One other advantage of the rx2660:
Memory slots 3 (quads) vs. 4 (pairs)

[rick jones]

Apart from differences already mentioned,

The rx2620 has three or perhaps four PCI-X slots, max speed 133 MHz. The rx2660 has either three PCI-X slots - two 266 MHz and one 133, or two PCIe x8 slots and a 133 MHz PCI-X depending on the I/O cage you select.

There is also a PCIe x8 low-profile slot on the motherboard of the rx2660, but that is reserved for the optional SmartArray.

The rx2660 can hold 8, 2.5" SAS discs, the rx2620 can hold three, U320 discs.

The MP/iLO on the rx2660 is a newer version with the option of Virtual Media support, and support for the "dbprofile" command in EFI to enable network-based installs without need of DHCP setup.