Improving processor core performance through storage to save IT resources and increase revenue

　　Every year, more and more IT budgets are consumed by unnecessary software license costs. Today, we will show you how to save up to tens of thousands of dollars by fully utilizing CPU cores and reducing the number of licenses used in server deployments .

　　License Reduction: A Proven Way to Make the Most of Your IT Budget

　　According to Gartner's 2018 global IT spending forecast, spending on enterprise software is expected to grow 7%, while overall IT growth is only 2.6%_1. For many IT departments, enterprise software spending is the fastest growing item in the budget, so controlling license costs will become even more important. Fortunately, this goal is easy to achieve because software licenses are associated with CPU cores, which are supported by memory and storage. The higher the performance of each processing core, the fewer licenses are required, the lower the cost, and the higher the performance of the licensed applications.

　　Below is a list of some of the most common enterprise applications used across most industries, along with a brief description of how much they cost to license, how they are priced, whether they rely on memory and storage, and how to save on those costs.

　　- Assumptions

　　2 CPU sockets per physical server  , 12 cores per socket (each core licensed). The number of CPU cores and sockets in your server may vary, so your estimated costs will vary. Our assumptions are based on the Dell® PowerEdge® R730xd server due to its popularity, performance, and upgradability.

　　- How do we arrive at these numbers?

　　For conceptual comparison purposes, all license fees/pricing methods were taken directly from the respective software company websites as of May 5, 2017. These prices are approximate and actual prices paid may be less than the MSRP. Since Microsoft Windows Server 2016 licenses are sold in packs of 16 cores, we divided the MSRP per pack ($6,155) by 16 to approximate the price per core. Similarly, since Microsoft SQL Server licenses are sold in packs of 2 cores, we divided the cost per pack ($14,256) by 2 to approximate the price per core. Oracle Database Enterprise Edition pricing uses the standard 0.5 Oracle core processor licensing factor for Intel E5-2650 v4 processors from the Oracle Processor Core Factor Table (updated April 13, 2017). We then multiplied this core licensing factor by the price listed in the Oracle Technology Global Price List published on March 31, 2017 (excluding support costs). VMware vSphere pricing includes a default 1-year Production (Full) Support plan, but does not include additional features. Red Hat subscription pricing is based on the Premium Support edition, which features Intelligent Management, High Availability, Resilient Storage, and Extended Update Support.

　　How to virtualize enterprise applications and reduce core costs

　　Companies like Microsoft and Oracle use a core-based licensing model that allows an unlimited number of virtual machines (VMs) to be created on each licensed CPU. Still, you're wasting money if you don't create as many VMs as possible.

　　- How memory supports virtual machines

　　Creating more virtual machines requires more memory, all virtual machines draw on the same pool of available memory, and the virtualization software itself requires RAM to run. Most importantly, virtualizing applications relies on memory, which is the active data stored in memory.

　　- How Enterprise SSDs Enhance Virtual Machine Performance

　　Effective virtualization also requires fast storage, as virtualized applications often run out of memory, which can cause storage performance to degrade. With solid-state drives (SSDs), however, this performance degradation is usually minimal, allowing users to access, load, and save data nearly instantly, even when memory is running low. SSDs can help you get the most out of your software investment by speeding up costly virtualized applications.

　　Comparing costs: software licenses and the hardware that supports them

　　Since all cores running your application must be licensed, the best way to save money is to fully utilize every CPU core. If 50% of the time you are using licensed CPU cores, you are overpaying for your software (unless the low CPU utilization is due to your workload). Hardware is the bottleneck for most IT departments, so there is an easy way to save money: fully utilize the cores you paid for. This is one of the hidden keys to revolutionizing your data center and reducing costs while increasing efficiency.

　　By replacing your existing hard drive with an SSD, you can provide your CPU with more RAM and fast I/O, keeping it running 24/7. Here's a breakdown of the costs:

　　- How do we arrive at these numbers?

　　Using the same basic assumptions mentioned earlier, we fully upgraded the memory and storage in a Dell® PowerEdge® R730xd server, which was chosen for its popularity, performance, and upgradeability (2 CPUs with 12 cores each, 24 DIMM slots, 24 storage slots). As of May 5, 2017, the suggested retail price of Crucial® 32GB 2400 MT/s DDR4 RDIMMs was $395.99, and we multiplied that by 24 to simulate the price of a fully populated memory configuration. For SSDs, we took the suggested retail price of a TCG-enabled 960GB Micron® S630DC 2.5-inch SAS SSD of $1116.99 and multiplied that by 24 to simulate the price of an all-flash storage configuration designed for these types of enterprise applications. While prices change from time to time, the ratio of software costs to hardware costs generally does not change much.

　　- 4 key points

　　DRAM and SSD upgrades cost less than 7% of Oracle Database Server license cost_2

　　Upgrading SSDs costs less than 16% of SQL Server licensing costs; upgrading DRAM costs less than 6% of SQL Server licensing costs_3

　　Improving hardware efficiency will help cut down on multiple different licenses

　　Underutilized CPU performance is costly

　　Long-term impact of hardware and software investments

　　When considering hardware and software costs, it is important to remember that licenses take up an annual operating expense in your budget, whereas hardware upgrades are one-time, multi-year investments that pay dividends over the life of the drive or module.

　　The most important point: Hardware upgrades can pay for themselves

　　Although software licenses are necessary, they don’t have to be viewed as a fixed expense. You can save money and improve performance by investing just a portion of your budget in server memory and solid-state storage to support licensed applications. A little spending now can improve CPU utilization and reduce the number of licenses that need to be purchased over time, saving your business significant IT costs.

    The above is an introduction to improving processor core performance through storage in automotive electronics to save IT costs and increase revenue. If you want to know more related information, please pay more attention to eeworld. eeworld Electronic Engineering will provide you with more complete, detailed and updated information.