Xeon Gold 6538N vs Gold 5217

Primary details

Comparing Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking	719	143
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	6.42	no data
Market segment	Server	Server
Series	Intel Xeon Gold	no data
Architecture codename	Cascade Lake (2019−2020)	Emerald Rapids
Release date	2 April 2019 (5 years ago)	14 December 2023 (less than a year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$1,522	no data
Current price	$1391 (0.9x MSRP)	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N 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)	32 (Dotriaconta-Core)
Threads	16	64
Base clock speed	3 GHz	2.1 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.7 GHz	4.1 GHz
Bus support	4 × 8 GT/s	no data
L1 cache	512 KB	80 KB (per core)
L2 cache	8 MB	2 MB (per core)
L3 cache	11 MB	60 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	14 nm	Intel 7 nm
Die size	no data	2x 763 mm2
Maximum core temperature	79 °C	85 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	85 °C
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	+	no data
Unlocked multiplier	No	No

Compatibility

Information on Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N 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	4 (Multiprocessor)	2
Socket	FCLGA3647	FCLGA4677
Power consumption (TDP)	115 Watt	205 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512	Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, 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
Status	Launched	Launched

Security technologies

Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	+
SGX	no data	Yes with Intel® SPS
OS Guard	no data	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4-2667	DDR5-5200
Maximum memory size	1 TB	4 TB
Max memory channels	6	8
Maximum memory bandwidth	128.001 GB/s	no data
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 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N.

PCIe version	3.0	5.0
PCI Express lanes	48	80

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.

Gold 6538N outperforms Gold 5217 by 191% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

---

Pros & cons summary

---

Performance score	9.98	29.03
Recency	2 April 2019	14 December 2023
Physical cores	8	32
Threads	16	64
Power consumption (TDP)	115 Watt	205 Watt

---

Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon Gold 5217 and Xeon Gold 6538N, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Vote for your favorite

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite CPU.

---