Samsung's new open-source software tools facilitate CXL memory deployment

The new software kit enables the main memory and the CXL memory expander to work together seamlessly in heterogeneous memory systems. It comprises of libraries -sets of pre-built, reusable codes -and application programming interfaces (APIs) -the connections to access these software codes.

Samsung on Thursday introduced the Scalable Memory Development Kit (SMDK), the first open-source software solution designed to support the Compute Express Link (CXL) memory platform.

Earlier this year, the company introduced the industry's first CXL memory expander that allows memory capacity and bandwidth to scale to levels far exceeding what's possible in today's server systems. With this launch, Samsung has extended the CXL platform beyond hardware to offer easy-to-integrate software tools, making CXL memory more accessible to data center system developers.

The new software kit enables the main memory and the CXL memory expander to work together seamlessly in heterogeneous memory systems. It comprises of libraries -sets of pre-built, reusable codes -and application programming interfaces (APIs) -the connections to access these software codes, the company said in a press release.

Utilizing the new Samsung SMDK, system developers can easily incorporate CXL memory into advanced IT systems without the need to modify existing application environments, or alternatively use it to optimize application software settings to suit special system needs.

Samsung's new SMDK also supports memory virtualization which allows system designers to efficiently manage an expanded memory pool in shared memory architectures. The software kit leverages a proprietary Intelligent Tiering Engine to identify and configure the memory type, capacity and bandwidth that are most appropriate for each use case.

The open-source software solution is now available on a limited basis for initial testing and optimization and will be open-sourced within the first half of next year.

In order for data center and enterprise systems to smoothly run next-generation memory solutions like CXL, development of corresponding software is a necessity. Today, Samsung is reinforcing its commitment toward delivering a total memory solution that encompasses hardware and software, so that IT OEMs can incorporate new technologies into their systems much more effectively.

Cheolmin Park, Vice President of the Memory Product Planning Team at Samsung Electronics.