Intel is planning on releasing a range of server chips based on the company's 32nm Westmere architecture, according to details of an earnings conference call on Thursday.

The chip giant has already launched Westmere for the desktop and mobile environments at the start of the year, and it will transition the technology to server-oriented Xeon chips within three months.

To retail as the Xeon 5600-series, the new chips will be available in four- and six-core models for use in dual-processor boards. Intel will also finally release the eight-core 'Beckton' Nehalem-EX chip that's based on older 45nm Nehalem technology.

The new Westmere Xeons will be a drop-in upgrade to existing 5500-series chips. Generalising somewhat, the 32nm production should increase performance over incumbent Nehalem by adding in more on-chip cache and leveraging the chips' enhanced instruction set.

What remains to be seen is how Intel uses Westmere's integrated graphics, if at all, in a server environment, and we'll learn more before the official launch in March.