SGI Challenge

The Challenge, code-named Eveready (deskside models) and Terminator (rackmount models), is a family of server computers and supercomputers developed and manufactured by Silicon Graphics in the early to mid-1990s that succeeded the earlier Power (not to be confused with the IBM POWER) series systems. The Challenge was later succeeded by the NUMAlink-based Origin 200 and Origin 2000 in 1996.

There are three distinctive models of the Challenge. The first model, simply known as the "Challenge" used the 64-bit R4400. With the introduction of the R8000, the Challenge was upgraded to support more processors and memory as well as featuring support for this new processor. Such systems are known as the "POWER Challenge". During the final years of the Challenge architecture's useful life, the line was upgraded to support R10000 microprocessors. Older Challenge systems using the R10000 were known as the "Challenge 10000", while the newer POWER Challenge systems using the R10000 were known as the "POWER Challenge 10000".

Models suffixed with "GR" (for "Graphics Ready") could support the RealityEngine and InfiniteReality graphics subsystems. Standard models were either servers or supercomputers with no graphics support.

The POWER Challenge was announced on 28 January 1993 and was intended to compete against supercomputer companies such as Cray Research. At the time of its announcement, Silicon Graphics claimed that the POWER Challenge would have the same level of performance as Cray's Cray Y-MP with a single microprocessor. The new model was introduced in the middle of 1994 and used the MIPS R8000 microprocessor chip set, which consisted of the R8000 microprocessor and R8010 floating point unit accompanied by a "streaming" cache and its associated controllers. Much of the POWER Challenge's performance depended on the R8000, a microprocessor intended to achieve supercomputing performance and designed for floating-point scientific applications. As a result, the R8000 had features such as fused multiply–add instructions and a large cache.

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