Intel launches new Xeon E-Core generation “Clearwater Forest” with Darkmont cores

Intel has been a major contributor to the Linux space, be it in relation to the company’s ‘Arc’ graphics range or their mainstream consumer CPUs. Although server processors initially lagged somewhat behind, Intel has caught up by announcing early support for their Clearwater Forest processors, which are expected to launch in 2025.

Intel’s Linux engineers have taken on support for Intel’s Sierra Forest series, which is the predecessor to Clearwater Forest. It seems the team won’t be taking a break, as the focus is already on the future.

It was a “basic” patch that added a new model number for Clearwater Forest Xeon CPUs. In the kernel, these CPUs have now been assigned the number “0xDD (221)”. Another interesting addition or probably a confirmation is the mention of “Atom Darkmont” which is expected to be the E-core architecture for these chips. It is expected that these cores will have an updated Skymont e-core design. Earlier information suggests that Intel would keep the 288-core count and 288 threads that we get on Sierra Forest chips as well. However, these are based on the Crestmont E-Core architecture codenamed Sierra Glen.

Although there is currently limited information on the Clearwater Forest series, it is known that it will utilize Intel’s 18A process. According to reports, this process will bring improvements to RibbonFET technology to deliver another significant advance in transistor and chip performance. There is a possibility that we will see huge performance improvements in the processors. However, as the launch of the series is scheduled for 2025, we will have to wait to find out more details.

Source: Phoronix