Intel recently launched their 3D XPoint non-volatile memory (NVM) under the brand name of Optane. The SSD label in some of the branding might imply that it’s a different type of durable storage, but the technology is aimed at applications that would normally use RAM…
Intel recently launched their 3D XPoint non-volatile memory ( NVM ) under the brand name of Optane. The SSD label in some of the branding might imply that it’s a different type of durable storage, but the technology is aimed at applications that would normally use RAM. This marks the beginning of the end for the compromise between in memory and persistent, as Optane is touted as offering the best of both worlds – DRAM performance and SSD durability.
The reality of Optane is that it’s the first commercial release of 3D XPoint. The hardware is still immature, and the software ecosystem to take advantage of it has yet to properly develop. Optane isn’t as fast as DRAM, so it still forces some degree of compromise between in memory performance and ‘on disc’ persistence. It’s not just SSD by name, as for the time being it’s also packaged as an SSD; with initial data center models coming in 375GB capacity as PCIe add-in-cards (AIC), to be shortly followed by U.2 SATA Express variants. Consumer models come in M.2 packaging in 16GB and 32GB capacities, and essentially provide a fast cache for SSDs in the same way that SSDs were used to cache mechanical HDDs not so long ago.
