Open Source Community Makes Significant Gains in Porting Linux to AMD's 'Hammer' Family of Processors

AMD and SuSE encouraged as Open Source community makes significant gains in porting Linux to AMD's 'Hammer' family of processors. The x86-64 technology extends the x86 instruction set to enable 64-bit computing and is the backbone behind AMD's planned 64-bit processor family, code-named 'Hammer'. SuSE has been spearheading the effort to develop a version of Linux for AMD's x86-64 architecture. The Open Source community has succeeded in making software development tools comply with the x86-64 standard for software, e.g. the Application Binary Interface (ABI). Virtutech Simics software is used to simulate the operations of a 64-bit 'Hammer' processor-based computer, allowing developers to use currently available technology to quickly and accurately test and debug their 64-bit software for AMD's next-generation processors. The 'Hammer' processors will be the first AMD processors capable of 64-bit operation, and are being designed to deliver leading-edge performance on both the 64-bit software used by high-end workstations and servers and the 32-bit software used by the majority of desktop computers.