Goodbye storage crisis? AMD presents MEXT
RAM is scarce. AMD’s new MEXT engine is intended to help by making it possible to partially replace expensive DRAM in servers with significantly cheaper flash memory. Private PCs could theoretically benefit from this at some point.
AI engine saves RAM
The growing need for memory in data centers is driving up hardware prices. Although some analysts expect a slowdown in demand growth soon, others predict that the so-called RAM crisis will get even worse in the coming year. AMD therefore wants to drastically reduce the use of expensive DRAM with a new predictive memory engine called MEXT, although the performance of the servers should only decrease to a comparably small extent. The company has now revealed details about it.
The concept, which has been around for a while, transfers so-called cold, i.e. rarely used, data to inexpensive NVMe flash storage. Flash memory operates approximately 500 times slower than traditional RAM. To compensate for this disadvantage, a software module with artificial intelligence is used. A corresponding tool continuously analyzes the access patterns of the server applications. The AI predicts what data will be needed next and proactively moves it back to the fast DRAM even before the system requests it.
High performance with half the RAM
How AMD as part of yesterday’s announcement of the general availability of the 6th generation of its EPYC CPUs, physical memory requirements can be reduced by 20 to 75 percent with MEXT. In internal tests with databases and design programs, servers with only half the DRAM capacity retained up to 99 percent of their original performance. The software only requires an EPYC processor core without a graphics unit and, according to the manufacturer, learns the structure of the respective application within a second. The market launch should proceed gradually.
The first servers are currently in a preliminary phase, while the system is already running internally on 145 computers at AMD. In the coming year, the technology will be expanded internally to 2,000 servers. Flash memory costs one fiftieth of DRAM per bit and requires 30 times less energy. According to the company, this enables savings amounting to millions.
Potential benefit for home users
Although the technology is initially reserved for EPYC servers, AMD has not yet categorically ruled out later integration into end customer products. Such memory management would potentially offer noticeable benefits for private users and gamers. It is conceivable that computers with less RAM could benefit significantly from combining it with an SSD. However, the difference between a home PC and a server is significant. On a desktop, the requirements for latency and responsiveness are significantly higher for games and interactive applications, for example. If MEXT outsources too aggressively, performance could plummet. A potential implementation, if it ever comes, is probably still a long way off.
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