“Barcelona” Software Resources

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The new "Barcelona" (Family 10h) processors contain an array of innovations in processor design and features, including native quad-core architecture and a new L3 cache. But what does it mean for software developers? There are a number of software visible features that can be leveraged to make your applications perform better and be ready to scale across multiple cores. Visit this page regularly for updated information and practical guidance on how to take advantage of all the new features in the "Barcelona" processors.

» Overview of Software Visible Features
» Documentation
» Technical Articles & Blogs
» Related Resources

Overview of Software Visible Features

Feature flags for new functions:

Fire & forget dynamic O/S P-state support
Misaligned SSE access
OS Visible workaround register
Instruction-based sampling
SVM lock
Nested Paging
L3 cache size
128-bit FPU

Feature identification bits for new instructions

MONITOR/MWAIT
LZCNT
POPCNT
SSE4a Instructions

Software development tools optimized for "Barcelona" processors

(In alphabetical order)

Documentation

The following documents have been updated to contain the latest information on "Barcelona" processors.

Technical Articles & Blogs

Five years ago, AMD shook up the x86 processor by putting a memory controller directly on-chip. Now, AMD breaks new ground again with an innovative cache strategy. Inside AMD's three-tier cache design.
» Barcelona's Innovative Architecture Is Driven by a New Shared Cache

New features in AMD’s upcoming Barcelona chip dramatically boost performance of floating-point arithmetic and greatly accelerate access to cache.
» SSE128: AMD’s New Floating-Point Enhancements

Take advantage of the many architectural innovations in the "Barcelona" processor through Orcas-based tools and AMD libraries.
» Develop Blazing Fast Code with Microsoft Visual Studio® 2008 (code-named “Orcas”) and AMD Tools

AMD’s new chip architecture extends a long tradition of giving developers the features they need to execute their code blindingly fast. What's in it for you?
» Going to Barcelona: A Modern Architecture for Breakthrough Software Performance

AMD “Barcelona” (Family 10h) Processor Software Visible Features blog series

Related Resources

» Barcelona:AMD's Next-Generation Quad-Core Microprocessor

AMD Press Releases
» AMD Introduces the World’s Most Advanced x86 Processor, Designed for the Demanding Datacenter
» AMD Announces Broad Software Ecosystem Support for Industry’s First x86 Native Quad-Core Solution

From STMicroelectronics
» PGI Compilers Target Third-Generation AMD Opteron™ Processors