[conspire] (forw) Re: Ancient hardware [Was: Can Ubuntu 14.04 not install on a new HD?]

[Rick Moen]

Probable answer to the question of _why_ the 2014 AMD low-power SoCs 
can drive only 8GB RAM maximum, while their immediate predecessors
(such as Kabini SoCs) from 2013 can drive 4x as much.

It's because the motherboards have two DIMM sockets, and the particular
flavour of low-power DDR3 DIMMs required aren't available in higher
density than 4GB per stick.  Ergo, 8GB max.  So, it's not the SoC but
the RAM itself.

----- Forwarded message from Rick Moen <rick at linuxmafia.com> -----

Date: Sat, 21 Mar 2015 19:35:42 -0700
From: Rick Moen <rick at linuxmafia.com>
To: luv-main at luv.asn.au
Subject: Re: Ancient hardware [Was: Can Ubuntu 14.04 not install on a new HD?]
Organization: If you lived here, you'd be $HOME already.

Quoting Colin Fee (tfeccles at gmail.com):

> AIUI it's an economic compromise made by CPU manufacturers and mobo
> manufacturers. 

Sounds reasonable (and  this is what I expected).  Part of what I'm
curious about (not asking _you_ specifically, but rather just putting
the question out in the air) is whether this implementation compromise
is, particularly in recently discussed SoCs and motherboards, imposed by 
the SoC or not.  And which specific component or components create(s) it.

Most particularly, I am curious whether I am wasting my time looking
aroudn for motherboards compatible with AMD's 2014 'Puma' series of SoCs 
(the Beema and Mullins series) capable of supporting more than 8GB of
RAM -- because to the extent I find Beema/Mullins used, which is
distressingly rare, I see 8GB limits. 

[RM: snipping the rest]

-- 
Cheers,             I'm ashamed at how often I use a thesaurus.  I mean bashful. 
Rick Moen           Embarrassed!  Wait--humiliated.  Repentant.  Chagrined!  Sh*t!
rick at linuxmafia.com                                        -- @cinemasins
McQ! (4x80)        
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----- Forwarded message from Craig Sanders <cas at taz.net.au> -----

Date: Sun, 22 Mar 2015 15:11:03 +1100
From: Craig Sanders <cas at taz.net.au>
To: luv-main at luv.asn.au
Subject: Re: Ancient hardware [Was: Can Ubuntu 14.04 not install on a new HD?]

On Sat, Mar 21, 2015 at 04:17:02PM -0700, Rick Moen wrote:
> Quoting Craig Sanders (cas at taz.net.au):
> 
> > funnily enough, i have a similar reaction to most intel motherboards
> > - their CPUs can be quite good, but the PCIe lines available and the
> > I/O is minimal compared to AMD AM2/3/3+ CPUs and motherboards.
>
> Here's a question that stumps me just a bit:  Why are so many x86_64

i know this question wasn't actually addressed to me, but i just wanted
to say that i'm quite interested in this conversation but unable to
continue at the moment because i'm getting ready to go into hospital
tomorrow - i expect to be in for about 10-14 days (having my right
polycystic kidney removed...the left one was removed last year and
weighed 6.5 Kg or about 1 stone in archaic units)

i probably wont have internet access because dealing with the hospital's
wifi authentication system (they come around with a daily changed
password sometime in the mid-to-late afternoon, which stops working
abruptly at midnight when the password is changed) is way more hassle
than it's worth.

in any case, i expect i shall be making use of the magic
morphine-on-demand button (max 1 hit every 15 minutes) for the first day
or two.

so, anyway, sorry for dropping out of the convo so abruptly - it's been
interesting and educational and has spurred me to do more reading and
research than i really have time for right now :)

the only detail i've managed to find about the mullins/beema memory
controllers is that they're both single channel and support up to two
dimms.

AFAICT they're both also DDR3-L (low power variant of ddr3), which only
seeems to be available in 1, 2, and 4GB sticks at the moment. so that
may be the source of the 8GB limit.



craig

ps: i have warned my surgeon that if i cark it on the operating table,
i'll turn on the spot and he'll have a zombie outbreak to deal with.

(i promised the same thing last year and the very first thing i said
to my partner when i woke up after surgery was "braaaaaainzzzz".
fortunately she had left her katana at home)

-- 
craig sanders <cas at taz.net.au>

BOFH excuse #241:

_Rosin_ core solder? But...
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----- End forwarded message -----