Revision date March 25th, 2014
This article identifies resources for anyone investigating the value to their organization of the Intel® Xeon Phi™ coprocessor, which is based on the Intel® Many Integrated Core (Intel® MIC) architecture. It is one of three such guides, each for people in one of the following specific roles:
- Administrator refers to a person responsible for administration of one or more servers equipped with the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor (including clusters of such servers).
- Developer refers to a person programming for systems equipped with the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor.
- Investigator refers to anyone else who needs to learn more about the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor, particularly those deciding whether an organization should adopt the technology.
Each guide focuses on the resources most likely to be of primary interest to people in that role. For example, documentation on maintaining clusters is potentially of interest to an administrator, but far less likely to be valuable to a developer. Likewise, programming syntax and semantics are important to a developer, but typically not to an administrator. The content in each guide is tailored accordingly.
The resources identified in this guide are a starting point rather than an exhaustive catalog, and readers are encouraged toward further study and participation in the Intel MIC community1. The Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Developer Zone2 contains a wealth of additional resources, including articles and documentation, tools, training, forums, and blogs.
The topic areas in this document are divided into the following sections.
- Becoming Familiar with the Coprocessor:
- Hardware Architecture
- Software Architecture
- Supporting Customer Objectives:
- Programming Effort Requirements
- Supporting Existing Skill Sets
- Getting Help and Other Support
Becoming Familiar with the Coprocessor
The coprocessor uses a standard Linux OS and supports most of the typical networking protocols. The host OS can be either Microsoft Windows* (Enterprise or Server) or Linux* (SUSE Linux Enterprise Server or Red Hat Enterprise Server).
- Is the Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Right for You?3 explains how you can quickly or more extensively evaluate whether your application is best served by continuing to develop on Intel® Xeon processors or if adding an Intel® Xeon Phi™ Coprocessor to your platform will increase your application’s performance.
Hardware Architecture
- Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor – the Architecture4 is a substantial but accessible introduction to the hardware architecture of the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor.
- Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Architecture Overview5 describes the Intel MIC architecture and gives a hardware-focused overview of the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor and its implementation.
Software Architecture
- Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Software Ecosystem6 introduces the system software, OS, and application environment used by the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor.
- Programming for Multicore and Many-core Products7 explains the programming methods available for multicore processors and many-core processors, with a focus on widely adopted solutions and emerging standards.
- Intel® Software Development Tools Demystified: The Packaging, Reference Guides, User Guides, BKMs, Getting Support8 explains how Intel’s software development tools are packaged and identifies useful documentation.
- Performance and Case Studies9 (located on the “Case Studies” tab) cover a diverse range of industry verticals, such as financial services, manufacturing, and weather forecasting.
NOTE: Roadmaps are not public. Please contact your Intel® Corporation representative for more information.
Supporting Customer Objectives
Programming Effort Requirements
- Offloading Computation10 presents an overview of the programming model for the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor as it relates to offloading techniques and related subjects.
- Advanced Offload Topics11 delves more deeply into offloading topics, including considerations associated with simultaneous computing on both the host and coprocessor.
- Intel Many Integrated Core Architecture Forum12 is a public discussion board (i.e. forum) moderated by Intel where developers can ask questions, get expert advice from Intel and community experts, and engage in discussions.
Supporting Existing Skill Sets
- Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Software Ecosystem13 introduces the system software, OS, and application environment used by the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor.
- Resource Guide for Intel® Xeon Phi™ Coprocessor Developers14 identifies resources for people programming for systems equipped with the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor.
- Resource Guide for Intel® Xeon Phi™ Coprocessor Administrators15 identifies resources for people responsible for administration of one or more servers equipped with the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor (including clusters of such servers).
Getting Help and Other Support
- Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Developer Zone16 is the source of first resort for technical resources related to the Intel MIC architecture.
- Intel Many Integrated Core Architecture Forum17 is a public discussion board (i.e., forum) moderated by Intel where developers can ask questions, get expert advice from Intel and community experts, and engage in discussions.
- External training for the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor is available from the following sources:
References
This list of notes provides both the URLs for resources covered in the article, as well as navigation guidance for locating resources that are located on the Intel Developer Zone, without using the URL. Note that “MIC-IDZ” refers to the Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Developer Zone, located at http://software.intel.com/mic-developer.
1 http://software.intel.com/en-us/forums/intel-many-integrated-core
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Get Support => Intel® Many Integrated Core Architecture Forum
2 http://software.intel.com/en-us/mic-developer
Navigation:MIC-IDZ
3 http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/is-intelr-xeon-phitm-coprocessor-right-for-you
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Overview => Getting Started => Is the Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Right for You?
4 http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/intel-xeon-phi-coprocessor-codename-knights-corner
Navigation: MIC-IDZ => Overview => Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Architecture
5 http://software.intel.com/sites/default/files/Intel%C2%AE_Xeon_Phi%E2%84%A2_Coprocessor_Architecture_Overview.pdf
Navigation: MIC-IDZ => Training => Video Workshops and Tutorials => Training Presentations => “Intel® Xeon Phi™ Coprocessor Architecture
6 http://software.intel.com/en-us/file/intel-xeon-phi-coprocessor-software-ecosystempdf
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Training => Video Workshops and Tutorials => Training Presentations => Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Software Ecosystem
7 http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/programming-for-multicore-and-many-core-products
Navigation: MIC-IDZ => Programming => Programming for Multicore and Many-core Products
8 http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/intel-tools-reference-guides-user-guides-bkms-getting-support
Navigation: MIC-IDZ => Tools & Downloads => Intel® Software Development Tools Demystified: The Packaging, Reference Guides, User Guides, BKMs, Getting Support
9 http://software.intel.com/en-us/mic-developer
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Case Studies => “Technical Case Studies” / “Success Stories” / “External Publications”
10 http://software.intel.com/sites/default/files/Intel%C2%AE_Xeon_Phi%E2%84%A2_Coprocessor_Offloading_Computation.pdf
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Training => Training Presentations => Offloading Computation
11 http://software.intel.com/sites/default/files/Intel%C2%AE_Xeon_Phi%E2%84%A2_Coprocessor_Advanced_Offload_Topics.pdf
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Training => Training Presentations => Advanced Offload Topics
12 http://software.intel.com/en-us/forums/intel-many-integrated-core
Navigation: MIC-IDZ => Get Support => Intel® Many Integrated Core Architecture Forum
13 http://software.intel.com/en-us/file/intel-xeon-phi-coprocessor-software-ecosystempdf
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Training => Video Workshops and Tutorials => Training Presentations => Intel Xeon Phi Coprocessor Software Ecosystem
14 http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/quick-start-guide-for-the-intel-xeon-phi-coprocessor-developer
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Overview => Getting Started => Site maps => Developers
15 http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/quick-start-guide-for-the-intel-xeon-phi-coprocessor-administrator
Navigation:MIC-IDZ => Overview => Getting Started => Site maps => Administrators
16 http://software.intel.com/mic-developer
Navigation:MIC-IDZ
17 http://software.intel.com/en-us/forums/intel-many-integrated-core
Navigation: MIC-IDZ => Get Support => Intel® Many Integrated Core Architecture Forum
18 http://www.colfax-intl.com/nd/xeonphi.aspx
19 http://www.tacc.utexas.edu/user-services/training
20 http://www.acceleware.com/xeon-phi-training