Gigabyte G242-Z10 GPU Server

Description

With only a single processor, the 2U Gigabyte G242-Z10 GPU server can offer a faster return on investment (ROI) with reduced upfront costs and reduced licensing fees if based on a per socket payment model. This server is designed to address applications in AI, AI training, AI inference, and high-performance computing. Although the processor will support a PCIe 4.0 bus, this system only supports PCIe 3.0 speeds. Power is provided by dual redundant 80 PLUS Platinum 1600W PSUs.

Other Gigabyte G242 Series GPU Servers

Gigabyte G242-P31 GPU Server
1x Ampere Altra CPU, 4x PCIe Gen4 x16 GPUs, 16x DDR4 DIMM, 4TB memory, 4x 3.5" SATA/SAS, 2x M.2

Gigabyte G242-Z10 GPU Server
1x AMD EPYC 7002/7003 CPU, 4x PCIe Gen3 x16 GPUs, 1TB memory, 8x DDR4 DIMM, 4x 3.5" SATA, 2x 2.5" NVMe/SAS/SATA, 1x M.2

Gigabyte G242-Z11 GPU Server
1x AMD EPYC 7002/7003 CPU, 4x PCIe Gen3 x16 GPUs, 1TB memory, 8x DDR4 DIMM, 4x 3.5" SATA, 2x 2.5" NVMe/SAS/SATA

Performance

With only a single processor at up to 64 cores, this system can still do the work of a similarly outfitted dual Intel Xeon Scalable processor-based system. This server also supports up to 4x full-height/full-length GPU accelerators in four separate PCIe risers to accommodate cooling. AMD EPYC 7002 and 7003 series processors also support 8x memory channels each and memory speeds of up to 3200MHz. The system has a configurable thermal design point (cTDP) of up to 280W, however, if using the onboard slot for an NVMe M.2 storage device the CPU is limited to a cTDP of only 180W.

Memory

The single AMD EPYC processors supports 8x DDR4 DIMM slots with a single memory module each. 3DS registered (RDIMM) and load-reduced (LRDIMM) modules will provide the highest memory capacity at up to 2TB using 256GB modules in all slots. Standard RDIMM and LRDIMM memory modules will only support memory module capacities of up to 128GB for a maximum capacity of up to 1TB of memory. Memory speeds will run at up to 3200MHz using appropriate processors and memory modules.

Storage

At only 2U in height, the G242-Z10 server has 4x 3.5-inch storage bays on the front, lower portion of the chassis. The front storage bays support SATA devices only. Two more 2.5-inch hot-swappable storage bays on the back of the chassis can be outfitted using NVMe, SAS, or SATA drive formats, but a SAS card is required for support of SAS storage mediums. A single PCIe3.0 x4 slot on the system board can be used for an NVMe M.2 module for support of the operating system.

Expansion

Four separate GPU cages with 3x in front and 1x in back provide mounts for the 4x double-wide GPUs supported on this system. Two more full-height, half-length (PCIe Gen3 x16 or x8 / Gen3 x0 or x8) slots accessible from the back of the chassis provide for optional high-speed I/O. If SAS drives are installed in the rear drive cage, one of those half-heigh, half-length slots will be taken up by a CRSG027 controller card. Other dedicated slots include one PCIe 3.0 x4 slot for an NVMe M.2 storage device and another for an open compute project (OCP 2.0) card for flexible I/O options that can be easily upgraded and switched out. The system comes with two integrated GbE LAN ports adjacent to an MLAN port for remote management of the system.

Management

Gaining remote access to the system through the dedicated MLAN RJ45 port on the back of the system is easy and painless using Gigabyte’s remote management applications. The Gigabyte Management Console provides remote management for a single server through the integrated platform management interface (IPMI) 2.0 to access the baseboard management controller, or BMC. Gigabyte Server Management (GSM) is for managing multiple clusters of servers simultaneously and is compatible with IPMI 2.0 and Redfish. GSM can help manage any Gigabyte system remotely with the GSM Agent installed. Several other utilities included with GSM provide more granular control when monitoring and troubleshooting the system.

Summary

At 2U and featuring only 4x double slot GPUs and a single AMD EPYC CPU, the Gigabyte G242-Z10 GPU server is more of mid-level GPU server. However, it still offers powerful performance with help from a 3rd generation AMD EPYC series processor offering a 19% increase in performance over the 2nd generation EPYC processors. This platform is designed to address high-performance computing applications for the data center and cloud.