Since the release of AMD’s “APU”, or Accelerated Processing Unit, it has been applied to a multitude of applications from low powered media PCs to budget gaming PCs. A new application is being formed now which is integrating the APU platform into RTOS software.
RTOS stands for Real Time Operating System which is a form of an OS which is said to be far more consistent when compared to a general purpose OS such as Windows. This consistency reduces “jitter” and time between I/O operations. RTOSs are applied in situations where timing and latencies are essential. An example of this could be web server where timings must be consistent to server consistent data.
Recently, Green Hills Software, the largest independent vendor of embedded software has teamed up with AMD to embed its INTEGRITY RTOS technology into AMD APUs. This solution is fantastic for many applications that require a low-power yet high reliability in a system. This could mean in the future we may see AMD APUs powering servers with far higher efficiency than we see today.
“The INTEGRITY board support package for the AMD Embedded G-Series APU supports the AMD DB-FT1 Development Board and will enable AMD customers to build a strong software foundation based on market proven Green Hills technology,” says Chris Smith, vice president of marketing at Green Hills Software. “With its advanced separation kernel architecture, INTEGRITY has achieved numerous certifications for industry safety and security standards, leading to its widespread adoption in the embedded market.”