Article ID: 000027820 Content Type: Product Comparison Last Reviewed: 08/16/2023

Difference of Cache Memory between CPUs for Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processors

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Summary

This article contains information about L3 cache of an Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processor and why the value is higher than L1 cache.

Description

There's a difference of cache memory between Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processors.

Resolution

A different cache hierarchy is expected between Intel® Xeon® Processors Families. The cache hierarchy was changed in the architecture of the newer Intel® Xeon® Scalable processor families.

What are the cache hierarchy changes?

In prior architectures (such as the Intel® Xeon® E5 v4 Processor family):

  • The mid-level cache (MLC or also known as L2) was 256 KB per core.
  • The last level cache (also known as L3) was a shared inclusive cache with 2.5 MB per core.

In the architecture of the Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processor family, the cache hierarchy has changed to provide a larger MLC of 1 MB per core and a smaller shared non-inclusive 1.375 MB LLC per core. A larger MLC increases the hit rate into the MLC resulting in lower effective memory latency and also lowering demand on the mesh interconnect and LLC. The shift to a non-inclusive cache for the LLC allows for more effective utilization of the overall cache on the chip versus an inclusive cache.

 3rd Generation Intel®  Xeon®  Scalable processor family with Intel® C620A series chipset (1S and 2S )3rd Generation Intel®  Xeon®  Scalable processor family with Intel® C620A series chipset (4S and 8S )

4th Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processor family with Intel® C741 series chipset (1S, 2S, 4S, & 8S)

Cache First Level Cache: 32 KB Instruction Cache 48 KB Data Cache
Mid-Level Cache: 1.25 MB private per core
Last Level Cache: 1.5 MB per core
First Level Cache: 32 KB Instruction Cache 32 KB Data Cache
Mid-Level Cache: 1 MB private per core
Last Level Cache: 1.375 MB per core
First Level Cache: 32 KB Instruction Cache 48 KB Data Cache
Mid-Level Cache: 2 MB private per core
Last Level Cache: 1.875 MB per core

For additional details, see the Cache Hierarchy Changes section of the Intel® Xeon® Processor Scalable Family Technical Overview.

4th Gen Intel Xeon Processor Scalable Family Technical Overview

3rd Gen Intel® Xeon® Processor Scalable Family Technical Overview

2nd Gen Intel® Xeon® Processor Scalable Family Technical Overview