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Microsoft's 128-bit indiscretion discloses AMD Bulldozer, Intel Haswell?

10/12/2009 by: Theo Valich - Get more from this author


Recently, Robert Morgan from Microsoft Research got its 15-min of fame after claiming that he is "working in high security department for research and development involving strategic planning for medium and long-term projects. Research & Development projects including 128bit architecture compatibility with the Windows 8 kernel and Windows 9 project plan."

This was not the only status update posted on LinkedIn. Prior to account deletion, he also posted following updates:
  • "Robert Morgan is using Hestia (custom software package) for experimenting with the processor for scientific analysis and 3D graphics. Error: Memory Latency? Always gotta be a challenge barrier, it’s gotta be a bug in Hestia. right?!"
  • "Robert Morgan is frustrated with process standards and regulations! Delays Delays!"
Yes, you've read that correctly. According to now defunct LinkedIn account, British branch of Microsoft Research team is working on getting IA-128 to achieve "full binary compatibility on the existing IA-64 instructions in the hardware simulation to work for Windows 8."

The fact that Windows 8 and Windows 9 kernels are to support the 128-bit CPU architecture speak for itself, but the physical hardware is coming sooner than most people think. It isn't hard to predict what processors will support 128-bit instruction set - not on the CPUs coming next year, but starting from 2011, we should see 128-bit CPUs coming our way, such as AMD Bulldozer core. The question is in the air for Intel's Haswell architecture. Haswell is the successor to Sandy Bridge architecture [Nehalem-Westmere / 45nm-32nm, Sandy Bridge-Ivy Bridge / 32nm-22nm], but besides bringing Larrabee set of features into the CPU, not much is known about the part.

All we can say at this point is that Microsoft would not work on bringing 128-bit operating system in 2012 without appropriate hardware, and we heard about AMD's 128-bit processors way back in 2006, from a C-level executive coming from one of their key partners, later confirmed by S-level and V-level execs. A lot of things have changed since then, but if Bulldozer is three years late [2009-2010-2011], there might be a pretty good reason why.

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Microsoft, Robert Morgan, Microsoft Research, Windows, Windows 8, Windows 9, 128-bit, 128-bit CPU, Bulldozer, R&D, Research & Development, LinkedIn,

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Comments:

one two eight already to late by: solidusprime on 10/20/2009
This is needed not just for the incredible memory footprints. It is also needed for the faster addrssing of those footprints.

It could also be 128 bit registers and not true 128 bit processing.

Finally and just speculation maybe they are moving the bus processing on die? It kind of maks sense for the bulldozer layout in the link.
by: Anonymous on 10/14/2009
I just can not see it. what need is there for 128 bit integers? sure, fp & sse type instructions, but anything else? I will believe it when I see it.
128 bit MSword by: Anonymous on 10/13/2009
Cool.

It's comforting to think that MS WORD will utilize 128 bit integer processing in the near future.

What type of letter effect and interface are we going to see in a 128 bit MSWORD environment.
Realtime Raytracing?.
Itanium 2012 by: Anonymous on 10/13/2009
It can't be 128-bit addressing, so the 128-bits clearly applies to something else.

Probably 128-bit precision floating point (quad-precision).

Possibly also 128-bit integers.

Or because it is related to Itanium, it could simply be a re-branding as IA128 from IA64 to reflect the 128-bit VLIW-esque instruction format. Itanium seriously needs rebranding. Yeah, this is most likely.
IA-128(Intel Itanium) by: Anonymous on 10/13/2009
This is IA-128(Intel Itanium) and not x128.
clouds by: Anonymous on 10/12/2009
this seems needed for the clouds. 64 bit may bee not enough for storage...
Exchange by: Anonymous on 10/12/2009
Ultrasparc has been running 64bit since 1995. It took Bill almost 15 years to get a working 64bit OS.
Now Bill is desperate and needs a 128bit OS just years after. Why. Who need 16 exbibytes of memory?

My educated guess is that Exchange needs that kind of HDD/memory space. My employer has football yards full of exchange servers. Almost like every employee needs his own server. All because some strange people wants to book calenders in a mail application.
by: Anonymous on 10/12/2009
The transition from 32bit to 64bit was needed, since the large database systems needed more than 4GB of ram. It was led mostly by MySpace back in 2005 needing 64GB Microsoft SQL boxes, and the most prominent box representing the 64bit transition was the HP DL585, a 4way Opteron system.

I don't know that transition to 128bit would be needed in 2012 anyways. Current AMD processors would have 48bit addressability per CPU. Nehalem-EX supports at least 1TB of ram, if not more. 64bits, if all used for memory addressability can give you 16 Exabytes of memory. It will be a long time before 128bit would be needed.
news by: Anonymous on 10/12/2009
read this almost 2 weeks ago at http://www.eightforums.com
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