Xeon
The first Xeon-branded processor was the Pentium II Xeon (code-named "Drake"). It was released in 1998, replacing the Pentium Pro in Intel's server lineup. The Pentium II Xeon was a ""Deschutes"" Pentium II (and shared the same product code: 80523) with a full-speed 512 kB, 1 MB, or 2 MB L2 cache. The L2 cache was implemented with custom 512 kB SRAMs developed by Intel. The number of SRAMs depended on the amount of cache. A 512 kB configuration required one SRAM, a 1 MB configuration: two SRAMs, and a 2 MB configuration: four SRAMs on both sides of the PCB. Each SRAM was a 12.90 mm by 17.23 mm (222.21 mm²) die fabricated in a 0.35 µm four-layer metal CMOS process and packaged in a cavity-down wire-bonded land grid array (LGA). The additional cache required a larger module and thus the Pentium II Xeon used a larger slot, Slot 2. It was supported by the 440GX dual-processor workstation chipset and the 450NX quad- or octo-processor chipset.
Intel Xeon chipsets
In August 1999 Intel began shipping the Profusion PCIset. The chipset was based on technology developed by the Corollary company, which Intel acquired. It supported up to 8 Pentium III Xeon processors on two busses and maintained cache coherency between them. Profusion supported up to 32 GB of memory. It saw some limited competition from the NEC Aqua II chipset. Another minor player in the eight-way space was Axil Computer's NX801, which was used in an 8-way (two buses) Pentium Pro design, commercialized by Data General as their AV-8600 computer.