In many systems, the demands of I/O processing can create bottlenecks for both the host processor and the PCI bus. Intel's I/O processors (IOPs) help balance the data flow by off loading I/O processing tasks from the host CPU and intercepting interrupts generated by peripheral I/O devices. Without the demands of handling I/O interrupts, the host processor can spend more time executing applications. The result can be improved server performance, better data throughput, and increased scalability.

Intel offers a family of I/O processors. The i960 RP I/O processor was the first Intelligent I/O subsystem on a chip. It has been followed by the i960 RD I/O processor, which features a clock doubled, 66MHz core processor. I/O subsystems using Intel's I/O processors have demonstrated significant improvements in I/O processing rates, thereby allowing servers to handle more users and process more transactions per second.

The i960 processors were also the first processors to support the I2O specification. This open specification was created by the I2O Special Interest Group (SIG), composed of over 130 leading companies in the computing industry. Each i960 processor ships with a run-time license for Wind River System's IxWorks* RTOS. The i960 RP I/O processor's high level of integration includes features such as a high-performance instruction execution core, a PCI-to-PCI bridge unit, two address translation units, private PCI devices, a secondary PCI bus arbitration unit, a three-channel DMA controller, an integrated memory controller, an I2C bus interface unit as well as an advanced programmable interrupt controller (APIC) bus interface unit.

Intel's next generation I/O processors will feature higher clock speeds, support for 64-bit PCI interfaces, increased bandwidth to local memory, built-in instrumentation, and hardware to help accelerate I/O applications. In short, as the performance of the host processor increases, Intel is also working to ensure that the I/O subsystem keeps pace, providing for a balanced system design and increased system level performance.