>>>I am ordering a Compaq server that will run MS SQL Server. To upgrade from 256 to 512 pipeline burst cache costs $1000, so I'm told. Is it worth it? I'm not even sure what pipeline burst cache is.
>>>
>>>Thanks,
>>>Ross
>>
>>Funny, it cost me about $50. But I don't use a Compaq. I have been told that with EDO RAM pipeline cache is not as important as it was. I have not confirmed this but they seemed pretty confident. If you have a non-EDO RAM memory PC and the Compaq pipeline is < $100 (like it should be -- or you can search for a better outlet) then it is worth upgrading to.
>>
>>Tom
>I am no hardware guru, so someone please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that the pipeline cache, buffers I/O to/from the CPU. If you are using the machine as a server and are interested in moving lots of data, I would recommend that you focus on the controller and hard drive. A PCI SCSI Caching Controller with 4 or 8 MB RAM (or more) attached to a good fast SCSI drive will do much more to increase throughput than worrying about the pipeline cache.

If your are going to use the machine to run SQL Server, then the PLB cache is very important. The above advise is good for any high transaction machine. At a $1000, I would look for another vendor. Where you place this machine on your network will also have a major effect on througput and response time; PCI network interface is a plus.