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How nPartitions work
A hardware partition corresponds roughly to a single, standalone system. The Integrity rx7620-16
Server can be subdivided into two partitions, while the Integrity rx8620-32 Server (configured with an
SEU) can be divided into four partitions. In the Integrity rx7620-16 Server, each partition will contain
one cell board and its associated I/O resources. The Integrity rx8620-32 Server nPar can contain one
or more cells that communicate coherently over a high-bandwidth, low-latency crossbar fabric. Cells
are grouped into physical structures called cabinets or nodes. Special programmable hardware in the
cells defines the boundaries of a partition in such a way that isolation from the actions of other
partitions is enforced. Each partition runs its own independent instance of the operating system, and
different nPartitions can be executing the same or different versions of an OS. In an HP Integrity
rx7620-16 or rx8620-32 Server, they can even be executing different operating systems altogether
(such as HP-UX, Linux, and Windows).
Each nPartition has its own independent set of CPUs, memory, and I/O resources. You can use
system management commands to move resources from one nPartition to another without having to
physically change the hardware. Dynamic additions of new nPartitions are also supported.
Furthermore, maintenance can be performed on one nPar (including hardware additions or
replacements) without any interruption to other nPars.
In vertically scaled servers, partitioning can be complemented by HP Utility Pricing Solutions to
provide a number of options for implementing the infrastructure hardware and software required for
on-the-fly expansions and reductions in computing power. Specific solutions for HP servers with HP-UX
are Instant Capacity and PPU. Instant Capacity allows customers to activate processors within a
partition or server when they are needed. (Processors can also be activated temporarily [Temporary
Instant Capacity] to meet short-term demand, then deactivated and held again in reserve.) Cell board
Instant Capacity also allows customers to add a complete cell board (CPUs and memory) to the
system in standby mode, ready for activation when more processing capacity is needed. PPU
solutions from HP are usage-based leasing solutions—customers pay only for the actual resources that
are used. In terms of virtualization, HP Utility Pricing Solutions match expenditures directly to
resources that are actually consumed by a specific IT service and can be activated only when they are
really needed.
High availability
High availability (HA) continues to be the hallmark of HP computer systems. But HP knows that
delivering solutions that fully enable the highly available 24×7 operations demanded of today's
businesses requires more than just delivering laundry lists of unusable HA features—or HA features
with limited utility. The high-availability features of the HP Integrity rx7620-16 and rx8620-32 Servers
actually address the real causes of customer downtime, as determined by actual field data from
midrange computer users.
The HA features of the Integrity rx7620-16 and rx8620-32 Servers can be classified as those that
address per-partition reliability and those that address intra-partition reliability—that is, single points
of failure between hard partitions.
Partition reliability
The Integrity rx7620-16 and rx8620-32 Servers have a design that is significantly "hardened" over
other systems in their class. In fact, many of the features in these midrange systems can only be found
in mainframes (or in HP Integrity Superdome). The reliability features within each Integrity rx7620-16
and rx8620-32 Server partition have been field-proven to provide high system reliability. And many
customers who have taken advantage of these features report significantly lower hardware failure
rates than with competitive systems.
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