Intel Xeon Sapphire Rapids suffers umpteenth delay TechRadar Skip to main content TechRadar is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here's why you can trust us. Intel Xeon Sapphire Rapids suffers umpteenth delay By Sead Fadilpašić published 2 August 2022 Yet more rotten luck for anyone waiting for next-gen Xeon (Image credit: Intel) Audio player loading… Intel has once again delayed the launch of its 4th Generation Xeon Scalable server processors, codenamed Sapphire Rapids. Although the company has previously disclosed the need to alter Sapphire Rapids design due to security bugs, documents obtained by Igor's Lab (opens in new tab) suggest these problems were severe. In total, Intel is said to have needed to address almost 500 distinct bugs affecting its next-generation Xeon chips, contributing to the delay of the launch to spring of 2023. "Sapphire Rapids brings to the industry many new innovations, and we are working closely with our customers to get these innovations in their hands. We are building in additional validation time, and as a result, we expect to ramp Sapphire Rapids later in the year," said Intel, in a statement provided to TechRadar Pro. (Image credit: Intel) More features more bugs The rollout of Sapphire Rapids has been punctuated by repeated delays. Originally slated to launch in 2021, the new Xeon chips were first pushed back to early 2022, then to the middle and end of the year. The company delivered on its promise to put the new chips in the hands of select customers in Q1, but it now appears that most will have to wait until the end of Q1 2023 to gain access to the silicon. Sapphire Rapids holds some promise, though. The most performant SKU is expected to feature up to 60 cores and the line boasts a number of new features, such as Advanced Matrix Extensions (AMX), Data Streaming Accelerator (DSA), CXL 1.1 protocol, DDR5 and HBM2E memory support, PCIe Gen 5 interface and more. With such an extensive array of new functionalities, bugs are to be expected. Usually, the manufacturer will address them with microcode and software patches, but it has supposedly taken Intel twelve design iterations to address the issues with Sapphire Rapids.Read more> Is this the first glimpse of new Intel Sapphire Rapids workstations? (opens in new tab) > Intel Xeon Sapphire Rapids suffers another unwelcome setback (opens in new tab) > Here's our take on the best bare metal hosting right now (opens in new tab) "With innovation comes a level of complexity, and we see all customers – OEMs, ODMs, the hyperscalers - have strong demand for platform validation with us," explained Sandra Rivera, head of data center silicon, last time the launch was delayed. "At this point, we are building in more platform and product validation time, so we see the Sapphire Rapids ramp being later in the year than we had originally forecast." However, Rivera was quick to dismiss concerns that repeated Sapphire Rapid hold-ups are indicative of a delay in the launch of the following generation of Xeon chips, codenamed Emerald Rapids. As it stands, the fifth generation of Xeon chips are still scheduled for release late next year.Our list of the best dedicated server hosting deals right now Via Tom's Hardware (opens in new tab) Sead Fadilpašić Sead is a seasoned freelance journalist based in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. He writes about IT (cloud, IoT, 5G, VPN) and cybersecurity (ransomware, data breaches, laws and regulations). In his career, spanning more than a decade, he's written for numerous media outlets, including Al Jazeera Balkans. He's also held several modules on content writing for Represent Communications. See more Computing news Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to theTechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Thank you for signing up to TechRadar. You will receive a verification email shortly. There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again. MOST POPULARMOST SHARED1PC gamers are shunning high-end GPUs – spelling trouble for the Nvidia RTX 40902It looks like Fallout's spiritual successor is getting a PS5 remaster3Samsung's smaller micro-LED 4K TV might finally be on the way to battle OLED4A whole new breed of SSDs is about to break through5Nothing announces official launch date for new Ear (stick) AirPods alternatives 1Con le RTX 4000 ho capito che Nvidia ha perso la testa2Canon's next mirrorless camera could be too cheap for its own good3PC gamers are shunning high-end GPUs – spelling trouble for the Nvidia RTX 40904IT pros suffer from serious misconceptions about Microsoft 365 security5A whole new breed of SSDs is about to break through Technology Magazines (opens in new tab)● (opens in new tab)The best tech tutorials and in-depth reviewsFrom$12.99 (opens in new tab)View (opens in new tab)