Adding Symmetric Multiprocessing to Amiga UNIX.

[Scott Hess]

In article <1991Jan29.024542.1 at ccvax.iastate.edu> taab5 at ccvax.iastate.edu (Marc Barrett) writes:
      If Commodore could do the same, and add symmetric multiprocessing
   to Amiga UNIX, this would permit both of the processors to be used at
   once in a multiprocessor Amiga 3000.  More importantly, it would allow
   Commodore to join only a handful of other companies that produce 
   multiprocessor UNIX workstation systems.  Not only would Commodore have
   a true multiprocessor workstation, but their could market this system
   at less than 1/3 the price of other similar multiprocessor systems.

Actually, I don't know how worth it it would be to have symmetric
multiprocessing with a 68040 and a 68030 working in tandem.  The '040
is quite a bit better (this is sort of like an 8088/80286 team,
or 68030/68000 team, though not quite _that_ bad).

I think an easier, and more than likely faster, route would be to offload
io processing to the 68030.  This works well for many machines, and
when you're running Unix, it's really an advantage.  One problem with
cheap (not as in flakey - cheap in $$) Unix systems is that they have
cheap peripherals.  And cheap peripherals means that the CPU is doing
work on behalf of the peripheral to make up for lack of capability,
in general.  For example, look at all the cheap MSDOS-world hard drives -
most are cheap because the controller's intelligence (as it were)
looks much like a PC clone . . . :-).

Having a second CPU to handle the disk drive requests and networking
would be alot like having all the advantages of brains on the peripherals
without actually having any brains there.  With the '040's speed, I
think that the '040 could easily keep the '030 busy, esp. if it was
accelerated (>25Mhz).

>				     -MB-

Good post, though.
--
scott hess                      scott at gac.edu
Independent NeXT Developer	GAC Undergrad
<I still speak for nobody>
"Tried anarchy, once.  Found it had too many constraints . . ."
"Buy `Sweat 'n wit '2 Live Crew'`, a new weight loss program by
Richard Simmons . . ."