Jetson AGX Xavier Developer Kit questions

Robotics & Edge Computing Jetson & Embedded Systems Jetson AGX Xavier
1

Hi!
I’m an active member of Folding at home, and Boinc.
My main interest is in using this device for these purposes.
I saw the Jetson AGX Xavier Developer Kit for sale for $~700.
It looks like it’s pretty slow (being built on Volta, with only 512 cores, and I seriously doubt the 5tops is even close to correct; unless it’s at half or quarter precision); but I like the prospect of adding a GPU in there.
For reference, I run a couple of RTX2080Tis in one GPU server, and a bunch of 2080/2070Supers, and 2060s in another, totaling 70Tflops at full precision, 24/7.

This device caught my interest, as I do need a portable device from time to time, and my current design consists out of a Rosewill mini-itx PC, with 2x RTX2060 GPUs jammed in there (running at 1900Mhz boost all the time, for an est ~20Tflops with CPU and Intel IGP working in tandem).
The solution is too bulky, the motherboard has too many parts I don’t need, and the case could use some trimming.

That being said, I do have some questions on this Xavier developer kit:
1- Does the device run Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)? (important for noobs/beginners, and those wanting to run compatible software).
2- Can this device be used for folding at home, or crunching on Boinc?
3- Can we see more photos, on where the m.2 slot is located (for extra GPU connectors)? (I’d love to be able to jam 2 to 3x RTX 2080 Supers in there!
4- Is there a future upgrade possible, where I can just mount an ATX/ITX/FSP/SFX power supply on/under the kit, using the 24 pin ribbon cable to directly power the device, and use the same power supply to feed external GPUs?
Reason being, if you’re going to run this device from 5V/19V, you’d have to take a secondary PSU to power an external GPU (@12V, as the GPU would need a different voltage, and would most likely overbalast the PSU. The problem with 2 PSUs, is not only extra space, lower portability, but also voltage/ground errors that can occur, with the potential of blowing up one PSU or other hardware parts.
I prefer to use one PSU (SFX, FSP, mini-itx…) per unit.
Current kit doesn’t offer this, but for AI purposes, it’s imperative it’ll start using existing hardware standards (like the 24 pin mobo connectors), wifi connection, and Sata connector and mount option (for mounting a 2,5" SSD on the board)
Thanks.

2

Do beware that the GPU is integrated directly to the memory controller, and thus the driver lacks the PCI query interface which is available to desktop PCs. If the software requires this interface (and odds are high that it does), then the software won’t be able to use the Xavier.

  1. The Jetsons all run Ubuntu Linux.
  2. If the software requires GPU, and if the GPU detection and interface requires PCI functions, then no. Otherwise…maybe.
  3. Don’t know.
  4. Don’t know, although the power supply voltage range is fairly wide.

Note: Using a PC GPU/video card via PCIe is not currently possible due to drivers. I have heard this is being worked on and may be possible in the future, but there are no guarantees.