Xeon w5-2545 vs Gold 6421N
Aggregate performance score
Xeon Gold 6421N outperforms Xeon w5-2545 by a considerable 41% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 90 | 188 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 44.63 | 83.24 |
| Market segment | Server | Server |
| Power efficiency | 18.84 | 11.76 |
| Architecture codename | Sapphire Rapids (2023−2024) | Sapphire Rapids (2023−2024) |
| Release date | 10 January 2023 (1 year ago) | 24 August 2024 (less than a year ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $2,368 | $889 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Xeon w5-2545 has 87% better value for money than Xeon Gold 6421N.
Detailed specifications
Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545 basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.
| Physical cores | 32 (Dotriaconta-Core) | 12 (Dodeca-Core) |
| Threads | 64 | 24 |
| Base clock speed | 1.8 GHz | 3.5 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.6 GHz | 4.7 GHz |
| L1 cache | 80K (per core) | 80 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 2 MB (per core) | 2 MB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 60 MB | 30 MB |
| Chip lithography | Intel 7 nm | Intel 7 nm |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 85 °C | 74 °C |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
Compatibility
Information on Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545 compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.
| Number of CPUs in a configuration | 1 | 1 |
| Socket | FCLGA4677 | FCLGA4677 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 185 Watt | 210 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512 | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512 |
| AES-NI | + | + |
| AVX | + | + |
| vPro | + | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| Speed Shift | + | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | + |
| TSX | + | + |
| Turbo Boost Max 3.0 | no data | + |
| Deep Learning Boost | + | + |
Security technologies
Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | + |
| EDB | + | + |
| SGX | Yes with Intel® SPS | - |
| OS Guard | + | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545 are enumerated here.
| VT-d | + | + |
| VT-x | + | + |
| EPT | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR5-4400 | DDR5-4800 |
| Maximum memory size | 4 TB | 2 TB |
| Max memory channels | 8 | 4 |
| ECC memory support | + | + |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | no data | N/A |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545.
| PCIe version | 5 | 5.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | 80 | 64 |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.
Passmark
Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 37.02 | 26.24 |
| Recency | 10 January 2023 | 24 August 2024 |
| Physical cores | 32 | 12 |
| Threads | 64 | 24 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 185 Watt | 210 Watt |
Xeon Gold 6421N has a 41.1% higher aggregate performance score, 166.7% more physical cores and 166.7% more threads, and 13.5% lower power consumption.
Xeon w5-2545, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 1 year.
The Xeon Gold 6421N is our recommended choice as it beats the Xeon w5-2545 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon Gold 6421N and Xeon w5-2545, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
Similar processor comparisons
We picked several similar comparisons of processors in the same market segment and performance relatively close to those reviewed on this page.
