Xeon Platinum 8256 vs i9-9900KF

Primary details

Comparing Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	675	733
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	8.14	1.71
Market segment	Desktop processor	Server
Series	Intel Core i9	Intel Xeon Platinum
Power efficiency	11.46	9.53
Architecture codename	Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019)	Cascade Lake-SP (2018)
Release date	8 January 2019 (5 years ago)	11 December 2018 (5 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$488	$7,007

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i9-9900KF has 376% better value for money than Xeon Platinum 8256.

Detailed specifications

Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256 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	8 (Octa-Core)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	16	8
Base clock speed	3.6 GHz	3.8 GHz
Boost clock speed	5 GHz	3.9 GHz
Bus type	DMI 3.0	no data
Bus rate	4 × 8 GT/s	no data
Multiplier	no data	38
L1 cache	64K (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	1 MB (per core)
L3 cache	16 MB (shared)	16.5 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	14 nm	14 nm
Maximum core temperature	100 °C	72 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	72 °C	no data
Number of transistors	no data	8,000 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	+	+
Unlocked multiplier	+	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256 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 (Uniprocessor)	8 (Multiprocessor)
Socket	FCLGA1151	FCLGA3647
Power consumption (TDP)	95 Watt	105 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2	Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	no data	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Speed Shift	no data	+
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	+
TSX	+	+
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Turbo Boost Max 3.0	no data	-
Deep Learning Boost	-	+

Security technologies

Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	-	+
EDB	+	+
Secure Key	+	no data
MPX	+	-
Identity Protection	+	-
SGX	Yes with Intel® ME	no data
OS Guard	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256 are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	+
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4-2666	DDR4-2933
Maximum memory size	128 GB	1 TB
Max memory channels	2	6
Maximum memory bandwidth	42.671 GB/s	140.8 GB/s
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 Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256.

PCIe version	3.0	3.0
PCI Express lanes	16	48

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.

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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.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	11.50	10.57
Physical cores	8	4
Threads	16	8
Power consumption (TDP)	95 Watt	105 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i9-9900KF and Xeon Platinum 8256, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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