Intel has always been about simplifying lives and making world a better place. If you try to understand the job of their Chief Technical Officer (CTO) in simple words it is about creating huge labs that hold above two lac interconnected computers. The complete team of engineers works to design and develop the most efficient and powerful computer chips in the world and software tools that enhance the capability of connected smart devices.
One of the biggest challenges faced by Intel’s team is to meet the eternally growing demand for high performance tools and data center power while keeping costs under control. For now, they have been meeting the demand by creating the most energy-efficient data center. It gets cooled by fans, circulating grey water, and passive radiators along with scope for expansion in future. However, frequent server updates have a drastic side effect. All power supplies, drives, chassis, fans, and cables are sent for recycling which is a big pain. They covered up this issue by simplifying the server upgrading process as simple as changing the light bulb.
The “blade” server design that is commonly used in industry these days aids in reduction of upgrade waste to some extent, it also permits storage, memory, and processor replacements independently from longer-life components. The firm’s CTO, Shesha Krishnapura, wanted to split the motherboard into two parts and take away the processor and memory apart from the slowly evolving input-output pats. He sketched the design and collected support from other Intel technical leaders and those who were connected with maker.
Shesha further adds, “I’m extremely frugal. In my personal life, I have always used things for their full useful life, and extend, where possible, with minimal maintenance, whether it is household appliances or automobiles. Then the question came to my mind: how to extend selectively what we invest in data center IT equipment in a way that is both financially rewarding and environmentally responsible? That was the motivation for disaggregated server design.”
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