Overview of PCI Express Operation
007-5806-004
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Overview of PCI Express Operation
This section provides a brief overview of the PCI Express (PCIe) technology that will be available
as an option with your system’s stand-alone administration, RLC and service nodes. PCI Express
has both compatibility and differences with older PCI/PCI-X technology. Check with your SGI
sales or service representative for more detail on PCI Express board options available with your
SGI ICE X system.
PCI Express is compatible with PCI/PCI-X in the following ways:
•
Compatible software layers
•
Compatible device driver models
•
Same basic board form factors
•
PCIe controlled devices appear the same as PCI/PCI-X devices to most software
PCI Express technology is different from PCI/PCI-X in the following ways:
•
PCI Express uses a point-to-point serial interface vs. a shared parallel bus interface used in
older PCI/PCI-X technology
•
PCIe hardware connectors are not compatible with PCI/PCI-X (see Figure 7-8)
•
Potential sustained throughput of x16 PCI Express is approximately four times that of the
fastest PCI-X throughputs
PCI 2.0 32-bit
PCI Express x1
PCI Express x16
Figure 7-8
Comparison of PCI/PCI-X Connector with PCI Express Connectors
Summary of Contents for ICE X
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