Silicon Graphics Answers Call for Data-Intensive Computing With SGI(R) Altix(R) ICE...

Silicon Graphics Answers Call for Data-Intensive Computing With SGI(R)
Altix(R) ICE and Intel(R) Xeon(R) Processor 5500 Series (Code-Named Nehalem)

Massive Data Volumes No Match for Scalable, I/O-Centric Altix ICE Platform and
New Memory-Optimized Xeon Processors

SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Silicon Graphics, Inc.
(SGI) today unveiled another solution for enterprises and businesses with
data-intensive computing environments who are struggling to derive timely
results and insights from ever-larger volumes of data.

Coinciding with today's worldwide launch of the Intel(R) Xeon(R) processor
5500 series (code-named Nehalem), Silicon Graphics announced it will feature
the next-generation processor in it's award-winning SGI(R) Altix(R) ICE
integrated blade platform.

By integrating the scalable, I/O-intensive SGI Altix ICE platform with the
high-bandwidth memory design of the Intel(R) Xeon(R) processor 5500 series,
Silicon Graphics is delivering a unique solution that helps organizations
avoid the costly performance inefficiencies that can occur when large data
sets and intense processing overwhelm the comparatively slow memory, I/O and
interconnect infrastructures of other commodity Linux(R) clusters.

"To remain competitive, users today require their IT platforms to deliver
results much sooner, even as their applications increase in complexity and
data sets grow exponentially," said Silicon Graphics CEO Bo Ewald. "The SGI
Altix ICE platform is unique in its rich I/O infrastructure and high-bandwidth
interconnect design, which makes it an ideal platform for solving big data
problems with the new Intel(R) Xeon(R) processor 5500 series."

"Working with fast-growing data volumes is a constant challenge for our
application development teams, whose work spans chemistry, materials
(including nanoscience) research, astrophysics, climate research, biology and
other disciplines," said Jeffrey Vetter, Future Technologies Group Leader at
the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which conducts
state-of-the-art research and development in emerging architectures and
computational sciences. "Our early evaluation of Nehalem demonstrated
significant performance improvements on many of our important applications. By
harnessing the power of SGI Altix ICE systems driven by Intel Nehalem
processors, we expect to shorten our time to results, which in turn will give
our users greater flexibility to pursue solutions to complex, 'big data'
problems."

Performance soars by 140 percent with unprecedented scalability
The new system delivers reliably scalable performance gains of up to 140
percent across a variety of data-intensive applications, including the Fluent
computational fluid dynamics (CFD) application, the VASP Ab-Initio simulation,
and WRF weather modeling.

-- Fluent. A 14-million-cell model of the external flow of a truck body
was
tested on 64 cores of an Altix ICE 8200EX with Intel(R) Xeon(R)
processor 5500 series at 2.93GHz. On the new SGI system, the test ran
1.59x faster than AMD Shanghai at 2.7GHz and 1.73x faster than Altix
ICE
8200EX with Intel(R) Xeon(R) processor X5472 at 3.0GHz on 64 cores -
with near linear scalability. For a larger 111-million-cell model, the
performance improvement is even higher. Altix ICE 8200EX with Intel(R)
Xeon(R) processor 5500 series at 2.93GHz/1067 is 1.64x faster than AMD
Shanghai on 64 cores and 1.81x faster than Altix ICE 8200EX with
Intel(R) Xeon(R) X5472 3.0GHz on 128 cores.
-- VASP. When running the bench.PdO standard benchmark for the Vienna
Ab-Initio Simulation Package (VASP), the Altix ICE 8200EX with
Intel(R)
Xeon(R) processor 5500 series at 2.93GHz on 32 cores is 1.95x faster
than the same system equipped with Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors X5470
at
3.0GHz.
-- WRF. The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model of the
continental United States at 2.5km resolution runs 2.4x faster on
Altix
ICE 8200EX with Intel(R) Xeon(R) processor 5500 series at 2.93GHz on
128
cores than it does on a similarly configured system featuring Intel(R)
Xeon(R) processors X5470 at 3.0GHz.

"I am pleased to see the highly scalable SGI Altix ICE platform extended to
take advantage of the new Intel (R) Xeon(R) 5500 series processor," said
Richard Dracott, Intel general manager of High Performance Computing. "This
combination will allow the deployment of even faster HPC solutions."

SGI Altix ICE 8200EX and SGI(R) Altix(R) XE systems featuring the Intel(R)
Xeon(R) processor 5500 series are available today. For more information, visit
www.sgi.com/products/servers/altix/ice/

To download a technical white paper detailing how this new platform delivers
leading performance for data-intensive applications, visit:
www.sgi.com/pdfs/4154.pdf.

Silicon Graphics, Inc.
Silicon Graphics, Inc. (SGI), is a leader in high-performance computing. SGI
delivers a complete range of high-performance server and storage solutions
along with industry-leading professional services and support that enable its
customers to overcome the challenges of complex data-intensive workflows and
accelerate breakthrough discoveries, innovation and information
transformation. SGI solutions help customers solve their computing challenges
whether it's enhancing the quality of life through drug research, designing
and manufacturing safer and more efficient cars and airplanes, studying global
climate, providing technologies for homeland security and defense, or helping
enterprises manage large data. With offices worldwide, the company is
headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, and can be found on the Web at
www.sgi.com.

(C) 2009 SGI. All rights reserved. Silicon Graphics, SGI , the Silicon
Graphics, Altix and the SGI logo are registered trademarks of SGI in the
United States and/or other countries worldwide. Intel and Itanium are
trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries
in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks mentioned
herein are the property of their respective owners.

This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding SGI
technologies and third-party technologies that are subject to risks and
uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to
differ materially from those described in such statements. The reader is
cautioned not to rely unduly on these forward-looking statements, which are
not a guarantee of future or current performance. Such risks and uncertainties
include long-term program commitments, the performance of third parties, the
sustained performance of current and future products, financing risks, the
ability to integrate and support a complex technology solution involving
multiple providers and users, and other risks detailed from time to time in
the company's most recent SEC reports, including its reports on Form 10-K and
Form 10-Q.

CONTACT:
Lisa Provenzano
408-524-6980
lprov@sgi.com

SOURCE Silicon Graphics, Inc.

Lisa Provenzano of Silicon Graphics, Inc., +1-408-524-6980, lprov@sgi.com