Linus Torvalds (torvalds.delete@this.linux-foundation.org) on January 5, 2021 12:29 pm wrote:
>
> Don't fall for the bullshit. ECC is not for servers. ECC is for everybody, and wanting
> to pay a bit extra for RAM shouldn't mean that you are then limited in other ways.
>
> Linus


Thanks for taking the time to write this very well thought message, which is one of the best that I have seen describing the ECC problem.


I, for example, have certain very good reasons to use only ECC, which do not necessarily apply to other people, and which would take some extended space to explain.

I would normally not care at all whether other people choose to use devices with ECC or without ECC, except that this policy initiated by Intel to restrict ECC to so called "professional" devices and to make the majority believe that they do not need ECC, has severe consequences for the few that need or want reliability.


I would be very happy to pay 10% or 20% more for a computer with ECC, even if that is already ludicrous, because the memory is just a part of the price of a complete computer and an extra 10% would be right just for the memory with ECC, resulting in just a few percent extra cost for the entire system.

Instead of that, when I buy a good laptop with ECC, from the very few sources for such a device, I have to pay at least double the price compared with what I would have paid if I would have been content to buy a laptop without ECC.

For desktops/servers it is not that bad, only because I buy separate components and I assemble them myself. Branded workstations or servers have overinflated prices too.