EPU Engine (abbreviation for Energy Processor / Processing Unit ) is a hardware - software energy-saving technology developed by ASUSTeK Computer (ASUS) and designed to regulate the power supply of components of a personal computer (PC). EPU Engine is present on most motherboards manufactured by ASUS since 2008 , and allows you to dynamically adjust the amount of electricity consumed by the components of a personal computer. [1] [2]
There are two versions of the EPU Engine that differ in hardware and software levels - the EPU-4 Engine and the EPU-6 Engine. The difference lies in the number of PC components for which there is the possibility of adjusting power consumption. The EPU-6 Engine , as indicated in the name, supports six components: a central processor (CPU), a chipset , RAM , a video card , a storage medium (usually a hard disk ), and a processor cooler . [3] EPU-4 Engine supports four components - CPU, video card, storage medium and cooler (RAM and chipset are not supported). [4] [5]
Description
At the hardware level, the EPU Engine is represented by an EPU chip , which is built into the motherboard and is a PWM controller . [6] This microcircuit dynamically adjusts the number of active power supply channels of the central processor (CPU) depending on its load. [7] Also, the EPU can change the system bus frequency and processor multipliers, reducing the FSB frequency below the standard one and minimizing the multipliers at the moments of low CPU utilization, as well as slightly overclocking the processor as it grows. Moreover, the frequency change intervals can be changed, and you can also configure several modes of reduced power consumption or acceleration, so that you can quickly switch between them. [4] In addition to the central processor, the EPU chip is capable of changing the power modes of other PC components.
At the software level, the EPU Engine is a utility that interacts with the EPU chip. In the utility settings, you can specify the power consumption modes, their configuration. So, for the modes, you can set the intensity of reducing the supply voltage of one or another component. [6] Another feature is that you can switch between power modes using the ASUS TurboV Remote . [6] [7] The utility constantly calculates the amount of electricity saved with its help and the amount of reduced carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. [four]
The EPU-4 Engine utility has more limited features than the EPU-6 Engine utility. So, in the EPU-6 Engine, the user has five power consumption modes: four manually configurable and one automatic. [3] There are only three modes in the EPU-4 Engine: one automatic and two manual. [4] Naturally, in the EPU-6 Engine, six components of the PC can be adjusted, and in the EPU-4 Engine - only four. [five]
With the most energy-efficient power consumption mode (that is, with the lowest power consumption mode), the EPU-6 Engine can reduce the frequency of the processor up to 30%, and its supply voltage - up to 40%. The frequency of RAM is reduced by 30-40% of the nominal frequency. The system bus between the processor and the chipset can reduce the frequency by 10-50%, depending on the processor model. Hard drives are disconnected, all the information necessary for work is stored in RAM. If there is a need for information from hard drives, then they are transferred to the nominal operating mode in 3-5 seconds. The video card operates in a mode of increased energy saving, according to claims its energy consumption is reduced by 37% of the nominal value. The processor cooler goes into silent mode. [3]
The technology was first introduced at Computex 2008. At ASUS, it said that 75% of the time, PC capabilities are only partially demanded, but the system continues to consume energy. EPU Engine technology was developed to reduce the power consumption of a PC at a time when its capabilities are not being used at full capacity. ASUS claimed that with the help of the EPU Engine it was possible to increase the efficiency of the PC power system to 96%. The first motherboards to receive the EPU Engine were the P5Q series. [one]
In early July 2010, ASUS introduced the new Dual Intelligent Processors technology, which, according to the announcement, can instantly speed up a PC by 37% or reduce its power consumption by 80%. This technology at the hardware level is implemented by two chips, the TurboV Processing Unit (TPU) and EPU, which are responsible for overclocking and energy efficiency, respectively. [eight]
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 Accent. ASUS revealed the "secrets" of its motherboards . iXBT.com (June 10, 2008). Date of treatment April 25, 2010. Archived on August 13, 2011.
- ↑ The world's first “smart power management” technology across the entire computing system . business-tools.ru. Date of appeal April 25, 2010. (unavailable link)
- ↑ 1 2 3 deem. EPU-6 (part 1). General overview of energy saving technology. . AdminDoc.ru (March 24, 2009). Date of treatment April 25, 2010. Archived on August 13, 2011.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Evgeny Tsypkin. Review and testing of motherboard ASUS P5QL PRO . EasyCOM.com.ua (October 23, 2008). Date of appeal April 25, 2010.
- ↑ 1 2 Ruslan Tsap. The most affordable motherboard with an 8-phase power subsystem from ASUS . 3DNews (September 25, 2008). Date of appeal April 25, 2010.
- ↑ 1 2 3 Sergey Pikalov. ASUS P7P55D-E Premium is a motherboard based on the Intel P55 chipset . iXBT.com (April 1, 2010). Date of treatment April 25, 2010. Archived on August 13, 2011.
- ↑ 1 2 Sergey Pikalov. ASUS P7P55D Deluxe and P7P55D EVO are motherboards based on the Intel P55 chipset . iXBT.com (October 14, 2009). Date of treatment April 25, 2010. Archived on August 13, 2011.
- ↑ Konstantin Khodakovsky. ASUS TPU and EPU: 37% speed increase and 80% savings . 3DNews (July 7, 2010). Date of treatment July 7, 2010.
External links
- Graphics cards for EPU-6 Engine . ASUSTeK Computer . - A brief description of the EPU-6 Engine technology and a list of video cards that it supports. Date of treatment April 25, 2010. Archived on August 13, 2011.
- Graphics cards for EPU-4 Engine . ASUSTeK Computer . - A brief description of the EPU-4 Engine technology and a list of video cards that it supports. Date of treatment April 25, 2010. Archived on August 13, 2011.
- Patrick Schmid, Achim Roos. Asus P5Q Deluxe: EPU Power-Saving Tom's Hardware (November 14, 2008). Date of treatment October 28, 2010. Archived August 13, 2011.