Agile System Design - IBM x3850 X6 Planning And Implementation Manual

Intel Virtualization Technology integrates hardware-level virtualization hooks that allow
operating system vendors to better utilize the hardware for virtualization workloads.
Intel Advanced Vector Extensions (AVT) significantly improve floating-point performance
for compute-intensive technical and scientific applications.
It supports 12 Gbps SAS RAID portfolio.
The use of solid-state drives (SSDs) instead of, or along with, traditional spinning drives
(HDDs) can significantly improve I/O performance. An SSD can support up to 100 times
more I/O operations per second (IOPS) than a typical HDD.
PCI Express 3.0 I/O adapter slots that improve the theoretical maximum bandwidth by
almost 100% (8 GTps per link using 128b/130b encoding) compared to the previous
generation of PCI Express 2.0 (5 GTps per link using 8b/10b encoding).
With Intel Integrated I/O Technology, the PCI Express 3.0 controller is integrated into the
Intel Xeon processor E7-4800/8800 v2 product families. This integration helps to
dramatically reduce I/O latency and increase overall system performance.
Support for up to two graphics processing units (GPUs) and co-processors to maximize
computing power.
Energy-efficient electronic components help lower operational costs, including highly
efficient 900 W AC and 1400 W AC power supplies with 80 PLUS Platinum certification.

3.1.2 Agile system design

The server provides many scalability and flexibility features, including these:
Innovative module "book" design for each of the three subsystems, Compute Books,
Storage Book, and I/O Books. Front and rear access means that you can easily scale the
system by adding components without removing the entire server from the rack.
The modular book design also allows clients to create the configuration that fits their
application and environment needs, reducing acquisition costs while giving them the
flexibility to grow and modify their configuration later.
The book design also means that subsystem upgrades are simpler, quicker to perform,
and having a lower impact on the rest of the server.
Using 64 GB LRDIMMs, it supports a huge amount of internal memory:
– x3850 X6: Supports up to 6 TB
– x3950 X6: Supports up to 12 TB
Up to 32 eXFlash DIMMs are supported for a total of 12.8 TB of low-latency and
high-performance storage.
Internal storage bays provide a flexible and scalable all-in-one platform to meet your
increasing demands:
– x3850 X6: Up to 16x 1.8-inch eXFlash SSD bays, or eight 2.5-inch bays
– x3950 X6: Up to 32x 1.8-inch eXFlash SSD bays, or 16x 2.5-inch bays
Offers up to 11 PCIe slots plus a dedicated Mezzanine LOM (ML2) adapter slot; most slots
are PCIe 3.0 to maximize I/O scalability.
PCIe slots are implemented in I/O Books to maximize modularity. Choose from Half-length
I/O Books or Full-length I/O Books, depending on the adapters you need to deploy.
Most components are common between the four-socket x3850 X6 and eight-socket x3950
X6, making for a simple upgrade path with minimal parts on the floor.
Chapter 3. Product information
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