Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
SPARC T5
open-in-new
<h2 id="sparc-t4-t5-and-t7m7-compared">SPARC T4, T5 and T7/M7 compared</h2> <p>This chart shows some differences between the T5 and T4 processor chips. </p> <table><tbody><tr><th>Processor</th><th>SPARC T4<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a></th><th>SPARC T5<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11"><sup>11</sup></a></th><th>T7 / M7<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12"><sup>12</sup></a></th></tr><tr><td>Max chips per system</td><td>4</td><td>8</td><td>16</td></tr><tr><td>Cores per chip</td><td>8</td><td>16</td><td>32</td></tr><tr><td>Max threads per chip</td><td>64</td><td>128</td><td>256</td></tr><tr><td>Frequency</td><td>2.85–3.0 GHz</td><td>3.6 GHz</td><td>4.13 GHz</td></tr><tr><td>Shared <a href="/facts/Level_3_cache/x8BYFcdv">Level 3 cache</a></td><td>4 MB</td><td>8 MB</td><td>64 MB</td></tr><tr><td>MCUs per chip</td><td>2<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13"><sup>13</sup></a></td><td>4<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14"><sup>14</sup></a></td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>Transfer rate per MCU</td><td>6.4 Gbit/s<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15"><sup>15</sup></a></td><td>12.8 Gbit/s<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:16" href="#fn:16"><sup>16</sup></a></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Process Technology</td><td>40 nm</td><td>28 nm</td><td>20 nm</td></tr><tr><td><a href="/facts/Die_(integrated_circuit)/XWvdlltE">Die</a> size</td><td>403 mm2</td><td>478 mm2</td><td></td></tr><tr><td><a href="/facts/PCIE/ADhsLCUK">PCIe Version</a></td><td>2.0</td><td>3.0</td><td>3.0</td></tr></tbody></table> <p>The SPARC T5 also introduces a new <a href="/facts/Power_management/fWv2k2sP">power management</a> feature that consists of hardware support in the processor, and the software that allows system administrator to use the feature. Users select the policy how the system responds to over-temperature and over-current events. The dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (aka DVFS) policy can be set to maintain peak frequency, or to trade off between performance and power consumption.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:17" href="#fn:17"><sup>17</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="sparc-t5-in-systems">SPARC T5 in systems</h2> <p>The SPARC T5 processor is used in Oracle's entry and mid-size <a href="/facts/SPARC_T-Series/Vco4hf0m">SPARC T5-2, T5-4, and T5-8 servers</a>. All servers use the same processor frequency, number of cores per chip and cache configuration.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:18" href="#fn:18"><sup>18</sup></a> </p><p>The T5 processor includes a crossbar network that connects the 16 cores with the L2 caches to the shared L3 cache. Multiprocessor <a href="/facts/Cache_coherence/MhUD576q">cache coherence</a> is maintained using a <a href="/facts/Directory-based_cache_coherence/UUAIKzeJ">directory-based protocol</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:19" href="#fn:19"><sup>19</sup></a> The design scales up to eight sockets without additional silicon (<a href="/facts/Glueless/zIvALrMX">glueless</a>). The <a href="/facts/Cache_coherence/MhUD576q">snooping based protocol</a> used in SPARC T4 systems was replaced in order to reduce memory latency and reduce coherency bandwidth consumption.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:20" href="#fn:20"><sup>20</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:21" href="#fn:21"><sup>21</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>"High-Performance Security for Oracle WebLogic server Applications Using Oracle's SPARC T5 and SPARC M5 Servers, White Paper" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation, May 2012 <a href="http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/articles/systems-hardware-architecture/security-weblogic-t-series-168447.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/articles/systems-hardware-architecture/security-weblogic-t-series-168447.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Timothy Prickett Morgan (4 September 2012), "Oracle hurls Sparc T5 gladiators into big-iron arena", www.theregister.co.uk, The Register <a href="https://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/04/oracle_sparc_t5_processor/" target="_blank">https://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/04/oracle_sparc_t5_processor/</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>Timothy Prickett Morgan (26 March 2013), "Oracle's new T5 Sparcs boost scalability in chip and chassis", www.theregister.co.uk, The Register <a href="https://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/03/26/oracle_sparc_t5_m5_server/" target="_blank">https://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/03/26/oracle_sparc_t5_m5_server/</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>"SPARC T4 Processor Data Sheet" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation <a href="http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc-enterprise/t-series/sparc-t4-processor-ds-497205.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc-enterprise/t-series/sparc-t4-processor-ds-497205.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>John Feehrer; Sumti Jairath; Paul Loewenstein; Ram Sivaramakrishnan; David Smentek; Sebastian Turullols; Ali Vahidsafa (March–April 2013), IEEE Micro, vol. 33, no. 2, The Oracle Sparc T5 16-Core Processor Scales to Eight Sockets, pp. 48-57, IEEE Computer Society, ISSN 0272-1732 <a href="http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>"SPARC T5 Processor Data Sheet" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation <a href="http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc/oracle-sparc/t5-processor-ds-1922863.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc/oracle-sparc/t5-processor-ds-1922863.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>Manish Shah; Robert Golla; Gregory Grohoski; Paul Jordan; Jama Barreh; Jeff Brooks; Mark Greenberg; Gideon Levinsky; Mark Luttrell; Christopher Olson; Zeid Samoail; Matt Smittle; Tom Ziaja (March–April 2012), IEEE Micro, vol. 32, no. 2, Sparc T4: A Dynamically Threaded Server-on-a-Chip, pp. 8-19, IEEE Computer Society <a href="http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2012/02/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2012/02/index.html</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"SPARC T4 Processor Data Sheet" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation <a href="http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc-enterprise/t-series/sparc-t4-processor-ds-497205.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc-enterprise/t-series/sparc-t4-processor-ds-497205.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>John Feehrer; Sumti Jairath; Paul Loewenstein; Ram Sivaramakrishnan; David Smentek; Sebastian Turullols; Ali Vahidsafa (March–April 2013), IEEE Micro, vol. 33, no. 2, The Oracle Sparc T5 16-Core Processor Scales to Eight Sockets, pp. 48-57, IEEE Computer Society, ISSN 0272-1732 <a href="http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:10"><p>"SPARC T4 Processor Data Sheet" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation <a href="http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc-enterprise/t-series/sparc-t4-processor-ds-497205.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/us/products/servers-storage/servers/sparc-enterprise/t-series/sparc-t4-processor-ds-497205.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:11"><p>Oracle SPARC T5-2, SPARC T5-4, SPARC T5-8, and SPARC T5-1B Server Architecture (PDF), Oracle Corporation <a href="https://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o13-024-sparc-t5-architecture-1920540.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o13-024-sparc-t5-architecture-1920540.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:12"><p>"Oracle SPARC T7 and SPARC M7 Server Architecture" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation <a href="https://www.oracle.com/assets/sparc-t7-m7-server-architecture-2702877.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.oracle.com/assets/sparc-t7-m7-server-architecture-2702877.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:13"><p>"Oracle SPARC T4-1, SPARC T4-2, SPARC T4-4, and SPARC T4-1B Server Architecture, An Oracle White Paper, p. 28" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation, June 2012 <a href="http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o11-090-sparc-t4-arch-496245.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o11-090-sparc-t4-arch-496245.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:14"><p>"Oracle SPARC T5-2, SPARC T5-4, SPARC T5-8, and SPARC T5-1B Server Architecture, An Oracle White Paper, p. 29" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation, February 2014 <a href="http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o13-024-sparc-t5-architecture-1920540.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o13-024-sparc-t5-architecture-1920540.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:14" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:15"><p>"Oracle SPARC T4-1, SPARC T4-2, SPARC T4-4, and SPARC T4-1B Server Architecture, An Oracle White Paper, p. 28" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation, June 2012 <a href="http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o11-090-sparc-t4-arch-496245.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o11-090-sparc-t4-arch-496245.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:16"><p>"Oracle SPARC T5-2, SPARC T5-4, SPARC T5-8, and SPARC T5-1B Server Architecture, An Oracle White Paper, p. 29" (PDF), www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation, February 2014 <a href="http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o13-024-sparc-t5-architecture-1920540.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/sun-sparc-enterprise/documentation/o13-024-sparc-t5-architecture-1920540.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:16" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:17"><p>John Feehrer; Sumti Jairath; Paul Loewenstein; Ram Sivaramakrishnan; David Smentek; Sebastian Turullols; Ali Vahidsafa (March–April 2013), IEEE Micro, vol. 33, no. 2, The Oracle Sparc T5 16-Core Processor Scales to Eight Sockets, pp. 48-57, IEEE Computer Society, ISSN 0272-1732 <a href="http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html</a> <a href="#fnref:17" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:18"><p>Jean Bozman (April 5, 2013), Oracle Launches T5 and M5 Servers: A New Generation of Oracle's SPARC/Solaris Servers, IDC, ISSN 0272-1732 <a href="http://www.idc.com/includes/pdf_download.jsp?containerId=lcUS24059113" target="_blank">http://www.idc.com/includes/pdf_download.jsp?containerId=lcUS24059113</a> <a href="#fnref:18" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:19"><p>John Feehrer; Sumti Jairath; Paul Loewenstein; Ram Sivaramakrishnan; David Smentek; Sebastian Turullols; Ali Vahidsafa (March–April 2013), IEEE Micro, vol. 33, no. 2, The Oracle Sparc T5 16-Core Processor Scales to Eight Sockets, pp. 48-57, IEEE Computer Society, ISSN 0272-1732 <a href="http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html</a> <a href="#fnref:19" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:20"><p>John Feehrer; Sumti Jairath; Paul Loewenstein; Ram Sivaramakrishnan; David Smentek; Sebastian Turullols; Ali Vahidsafa (March–April 2013), IEEE Micro, vol. 33, no. 2, The Oracle Sparc T5 16-Core Processor Scales to Eight Sockets, pp. 48-57, IEEE Computer Society, ISSN 0272-1732 <a href="http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.computer.org/csdl/mags/mi/2013/02/index.html</a> <a href="#fnref:20" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:21"><p>"SPARC T5 Deep Dive: An interview with Oracle's Rick Hetherington", www.oracle.com, Oracle Corporation <a href="http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/innovation/sparc-t5-deep-dive/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/innovation/sparc-t5-deep-dive/index.html</a> <a href="#fnref:21" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>