Frequently Asked Questions for Intel® Optane™ Persistent Memory

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Product Information & Documentation

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01/05/2023

Find answers below to the most frequently asked questions about Intel® Optane™ Persistent Memory.

Common compatibility topics

What helpful training articles and videos are available?
What are the Intel® Optane™ PMem and DRAM population rules? Population rules may be different according to server boards. Intel lists two Intel® Server Boards according to S2600WF Product Family and S2600BP Product Family at Module DIMM Population for Intel® Optane™ Persistent Memory.
What is the recommended memory ratio between Intel® Optane™ PMem and DRAM? Depending on data size and applications, general ratio recommendations for Intel® Optane™ PMem : DRAM range is 4:1 to 16:1.
Is it possible to move Intel® Optane™ PMem modules from a server to another server? You should be very cautious. We suggest having matching hardware and software/firmware on both servers. Further, be sure to place Intel® Optane™ PMem and DIMM in the same socket on the original server.
Which DRAM type is better between RDIMM and LRDIMM?

It depends on customer preferences. These are the general differences between RDIMM and LRDIMM:

  • RDIMM has lower capacity and fewer ranks. It provides higher performance with lower latency.
  • LRDIMM has higher capacity and more ranks. It provides lower performance with higher latency.
How are Error Correction Code (ECC)  and spare chip used? Intel® Optane™ PMem provides for both Address Range Scrub (ARS)  on boot and periodic Patrol Scrub that check for data consistency. They do this by checking the data against the parity information distributed across Intel Optane devices. Intel® Optane™  PMem can recover from single-bit errors, dual-bit errors, and entire Optane die failure for a total of two major faults before failure on the third fault on a single DIMM. The likelihood of a triple fault on a single device in a short period of time is small.

One extra spare ship is a hot spare that gets activated when a serious fault is detected that renders the module as unable to function.
Where can I find warranty information? See the article on Warranty Information and RMA Process for Intel® Optane™ Persistent Memory.