Explaining Graviton as a First AWS General Purpose CPU

The aim of this page📝 is to explain the use of Graviton processors since I got a request for moving ElasticSearch to AWS Graviton instances for cost-effectiveness and performance optimization.

2 min readFeb 19, 2024

Graviton processors are custom processors developed by AWS based on ARM architecture.
They offer a cost-effective alternative to traditional x86 processors — even before they started designing hardware with Nitro Systems or ML chips like Inferentia or Trainium
Gravition is their first general-purpose chip, though, launching in 2020.
ElasticSearch has been optimized to run on ARM architecture, making it compatible with Graviton processors.
AWS provides good support for running ElasticSearch on Graviton instances.
Graviton processors are commonly used for various workloads, including web servers, containerized applications, and microservices.
The adoption of Graviton processors is growing due to their cost savings and performance benefits.
Graviton processors are primarily designed for cloud computing instances offered by AWS.
Graviton processors are optimized for server workloads and data centers, making them more suitable for cloud computing environments.
If you are looking for a laptop, you are more likely to find laptops with traditional x86 processors from Intel or AMD.
While ARM-based processors like Graviton are efficient and cost-effective for cloud computing, they are not commonly used in laptops due to different use cases and requirements.
Of course, this trend is an illustration that hardward knowledge is specialized and probably declining in the industry, see links below