NVIDIA Business Platform: A competitive desktop alternative to Intel?
by Gary Key on March 30, 2006 12:15 AM EST- Posted in
- IT Computing
Basic Features: NVIDIA and Intel Stable Image Platforms
Listed above are the basic system configurations for the Professional Level stable image platforms and both offer expandability for discrete graphics solutions. Although these systems would certainly not be considered acceptable for an enthusiast or workstation user, they certainly offer very good performance for general business applications. NVIDIA currently holds an advantage in both overall system performance and thermals due to the AMD Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 X2 processor choices. NVIDIA's 6200 GPU unit also offers better video performance than the Intel 950GMA graphics solution. NVIDIA's integrated or discreet graphics options are fully certified and supported by their single binary driver image. In addition, NVIDIA Business Platform motherboards offer the capability to drive two displays without requiring a separate card. This is important as more and more businesses are relying on multiple monitors to increase productivity.
Listed above are the basic system configurations for the Entry Level stable image platforms with NVIDIA still offering expandability for a discrete graphics option. The main difference in the platform designs compared to the Professional Level systems is a reduction in the available PCI Express and PCI slots along with a change to a small form factor board. NVIDIA also holds an even greater advantage at this level in overall system performance due to the full availability of the AMD Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 X2 processor choices compared to the Intel specified 531 P4. NVIDIA's 6150 GPU unit also offers better video performance than the Intel 950GMA graphics solution.
| Specification | NVIDIA Business Platform Performance - 2006 | Intel Professional Business Platform 2005 |
| CPU Interface | 939-Pin based Athlon 64 or Athlon64 X2 series Processor Range listed in AMD CISP | LGA775-based Pentium 4 600 series Processor Range listed in Intel SIPP |
| Chipset | NVIDIA GeForce 6200 GPU NVIDIA 430MCP |
Intel 945GM (Intel 950GMA Graphics) - Northbridge Intel ICH7 - Southbridge |
| Expansion Slots | (1) x PCI-E x16 (2) x PCI-E x1 (4) x PCI 2.3 |
(1) x PCI-E x16 (1) x PCI-E x1 (3) x PCI 2.3 (Typical Configuration) |
| Onboard USB 2.0 | (8) USB2.0 ports | (6) USB2.0 ports |
| Onboard LAN | NVIDIA Gigabit Ethernet LAN | Intel PRO/1000 PM Ethernet LAN (Typical Option) |
| Onboard Audio | High Definition Audio Codec | High Definition Audio Codec |
| Back Panel I/O Ports | 1 x PS/2 Keyboard 1 x PS/2 Mouse 1 x Parallel 1 x Audio I/O 1 x RJ45 4 x USB 2.0 1 x VGA 1 x DVI 1 x TV Out |
1 x PS/2 Keyboard 1 x PS/2 Mouse 1 x Parallel 1 x Audio I/O 1 x RJ45 4 x USB 2.0 1 x VGA 1 x DVI |
| Other Features | NVIDIA ActiveArmor Firewall NVIDIA MediaShield Storage Trusted Platform Module 1.2 - Optional ATX Form Factor |
Intel AMT - enables IT staff to diagnose, repair, and manage remote PCs regardless of OS or system state. Remote systems require a network connection and power source. Trusted Platform Module 1.2 - Optional ATX Form Factor |
Listed above are the basic system configurations for the Professional Level stable image platforms and both offer expandability for discrete graphics solutions. Although these systems would certainly not be considered acceptable for an enthusiast or workstation user, they certainly offer very good performance for general business applications. NVIDIA currently holds an advantage in both overall system performance and thermals due to the AMD Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 X2 processor choices. NVIDIA's 6200 GPU unit also offers better video performance than the Intel 950GMA graphics solution. NVIDIA's integrated or discreet graphics options are fully certified and supported by their single binary driver image. In addition, NVIDIA Business Platform motherboards offer the capability to drive two displays without requiring a separate card. This is important as more and more businesses are relying on multiple monitors to increase productivity.
| Specification | NVIDIA Business Platform Standard - 2006 | Intel Fundamental Business Platform 2005 |
| CPU Interface | 939-Pin based Athlon 64 or Athlon64 X2 series Processor Range listed in AMD CISP | LGA775-based Pentium 4 531 series Processor listed in Intel SIPP (Processor Options dependent upon supplier) |
| Chipset | NVIDIA GeForce 6150 GPU NVIDIA 430MCP |
Intel 945GM (Intel 950GMA Graphics) - Northbridge Intel ICH7 - Southbridge |
| Expansion Slots | (1) x PCI-E x16 (1) x PCI-E x1 (2) x PCI 2.3 |
(1) x PCI-E x1 (2) x PCI 2.3 (Typical Configuration) |
| Onboard USB 2.0 | (8) USB2.0 ports | (6) USB2.0 ports |
| Onboard LAN | NVIDIA Gigabit Ethernet LAN | Intel PRO/1000 PM Ethernet LAN (Typical Option) |
| Onboard Audio | High Definition Audio Codec | High Definition Audio Codec |
| Back Panel I/O Ports | 1 x PS/2 Keyboard 1 x PS/2 Mouse 1 x Parallel 1 x Audio I/O 1 x RJ45 4 x USB 2.0 1 x VGA 1 x DVI |
1 x PS/2 Keyboard 1 x PS/2 Mouse 1 x Parallel 1 x Audio I/O 1 x RJ45 4 x USB 2.0 1 x VGA 1 x DVI |
| Other Features | NVIDIA ActiveArmor Firewall NVIDIA MediaShield Storage Trusted Platform Module 1.2 - Optional M-ATX Form Factor |
Trusted Platform Module 1.2 - Optional M-ATX or ATX Form Factor |
Listed above are the basic system configurations for the Entry Level stable image platforms with NVIDIA still offering expandability for a discrete graphics option. The main difference in the platform designs compared to the Professional Level systems is a reduction in the available PCI Express and PCI slots along with a change to a small form factor board. NVIDIA also holds an even greater advantage at this level in overall system performance due to the full availability of the AMD Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 X2 processor choices compared to the Intel specified 531 P4. NVIDIA's 6150 GPU unit also offers better video performance than the Intel 950GMA graphics solution.
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Schadenfroh - Thursday, March 30, 2006 - link
I have been using my nvidia firewall for over a year without any problems.FinFET - Thursday, March 30, 2006 - link
From what I read "AMT enables IT staff to diagnose, repair, and manage remote PCs regardless of OS or system state."So is this basically like ILO (Integrated Lights Out) where I can have BIOS Level access to the machine, essentially IP-KVM?
If so does the current iteration of boards with NVIDIA ActiveArmor support this type of feature?
Gary Key - Thursday, March 30, 2006 - link
The NVIDIA nForce boards and software being designed for this stable image platform fully support WOL/PXE. This offering is basically an updated version of the WOL/PXE capabilities provided on the nForce Professional 2050/2200 boards with specialized driver and software support.
tokath - Thursday, March 30, 2006 - link
They don't support anything close to the level AMT but there is likely an option that will allow ASF to be enabled if the vendor wants it.AMT is not essentially an IP-KVM because you do not have direct access to the system, keyboard, mouse, video. Rather AMT requires a separate application such as LANDesk to allow you to control the more advanced aspects, when you access the system remotely without any extra software you can do simple things like turn the system on/off, reboot, view temps and check the OS state. Because the Intel LOM (PRO/1000 PM) that has AMT also supports IDE-R and SOL you can do some very useful things like boot from a remote CD to restore the system. Theoretically vendors can create custom software to do a lot more through AMT.
That said I sure hope NVIDIA LOMs will support ASF (preferably 2.0), there are alot of business that use ASF.