The "new" AST2500 datasheet is interesting because it frequently references the AST2600. Here is how the chips differ according to the latest comparative tables:

Register for access to the ASPEED developer portal today. Your next PCB spin—or your next firmware release—depends on the tiny, critical details that only the new AST2500 datasheet provides. Disclaimer: Specifications and revision numbers mentioned are based on publicly available data as of the latest ASPEED publications. Always consult your official ASPEED representative for NDA-protected errata.

The original datasheet claimed H.264 encoding. The new datasheet reveals support for multi-stream compression . You can now encode one stream for KVM (low bandwidth) and another for local recording simultaneously. The register set for VE_OFFSET_CTRL has been expanded to handle two logical channels.

A major headache in older designs was bus contention on I2C channels 0 and 1. The new datasheet introduces a "bus park" mode register (0xE000_01C4) that prevents the BMC from locking the bus during host reset cycles.