About IDEAS Relative Performance Estimate 2 (RPE2)
In response to significant end-user customer demand, IDEAS has developed, over the past nine years, a unique methodology for providing a comprehensive perspective on server performance. The current server ranking series is known as the Relative Performance Estimate, Version 2 (RPE2).
The objective of RPE2 is to provide licensed users with comparable performance information for server consolidation studies and for the initial evaluation phase of server selection. RPE2 offers this assistance by incorporating:
- A composite workload profile comprising six industry benchmarks
- Full coverage for all leading vendor server families and variants
- Coverage of current and obsolete models
The creation of the RPE2 rankings is entirely theoretical and is largely based on performance data from the manufacturers, supplemented and normalized to published benchmark performance data.
RPE2 was created because users wanted to have a way of comparing servers – both for servers that have benchmark results available, and for the majority that do not. The RPE2 data uniquely fills voids created by the lack of consistent benchmark data. However, like any composite value, RPE2 is capable of adding useful information but also of potentially being misinterpreted or misapplied.
How RPE2 Should Be Used:
RPE2 provides a theoretical estimate of the relative performance of servers. RPE2 is a valuable tool that helps to mitigate the problem of insufficient actual benchmark test results in the industry. RPE2 enables servers from different vendors and architectures to be compared and contrasted for predicted relative performance across the spectrum of their per-processor configuration points.
How RPE2 Should Not Be Used:
Because it is a theoretical estimate, RPE2 is not intended to be a highly accurate and specific ranking. Given the underlying methodology that it uses, the actual relative performance of servers in specific application environments may differ materially from RPE2-based comparisons, particularly for workloads that differ from the composite mix.
IDEAS does not recommend that customers base their final purchasing decisions solely on the performance outcomes of the RPE2 estimates.
RPE2 values and comparisons are not to be used in the public domain or outside of the subscriber company. RPE2 is an internal-use only measure for licensed subscribers to Ideas International's research offerings.
More information about IDEAS’s Relative Performance Estimate, Version 2 (RPE2) can be found in the following documentation:
