
Intel AVX-512 raises the bar for vector computing. Microsoft Visual Studio 2017 supports Intel AVX-512, and with Visual Studio 2017 version 15.3 we’re enhancing that support to include more Intel AVX-512 instructions than ever before. To meet the demand for more data computation Intel introduced the Intel AVX-512 family of instructions, which are available in the new generation of Intel® Xeon® processors and some of the new Intel® Core™ X-series desktop processors, as well as current Intel® Xeon Phi™ processors. An important part of that change is the ability to handle bigger calculations to gain more actionable insights than ever before, so tasks like intelligent data retrieval and autonomous driving are science, and not just science fiction. By changing what computers can do, we change what people can do with computers, and that changes people’s lives. Introductionīoth Microsoft and Intel® are in the business of change. This post explores Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions 512 (Intel AVX-512), and how they are supported in Microsoft Visual Studio 2017, particularly in Microsoft Visual C++, Microsoft Macro Assembler (MASM), and the Microsoft Visual Studio IDE debugger, along with typical applications for vector calculations, such as artificial intelligence/machine learning, multimedia encoding and decoding, and high-performance computing workloads like simulation, and climate/weather modeling.

He gratefully acknowledges help with this post from others at Intel and Microsoft.


John has been with Intel for nine years, but his contributions to the Microsoft compiler stretch back through two decades and three other companies. For this post we welcome John Morgan from Intel Corporation as guest author on the Visual Studio Blog.
