Disk Controllers - IBM System x3250 M4 Product Manual

A highly-affordable, ultradense, uniprocessor server for edge-of-network and Web-based
computing in space-constrained environments
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Data transfer rates depend on many factors and are often less than the maximum possible.
Please see the Legal Information section for important notices and information.
• 65W dual-core Intel Core i3 models 2130 or 2120 running at 3.4 or 3.3GHz, respectively,
with low power draw and good performance/watt (only 32.5W per core), 3MB of L3
processor cache, and 1333MHz memory access
• 65W dual-core Intel Pentium models G860 or G840 running at 3.0 or 2.8GHz, respectively,
with low power draw and good performance/watt (only 32.5W per core), 3MB of L3
processor cache, and 1333MHz memory access
• 65W dual-core Intel Pentium models G630 or G620 running at 2.7 or 2.6GHz, respectively,
with low power draw and good performance/watt (only 32.5W per core), 3MB of L3
processor cache, and 1066MHz memory access
The two-core processors contain two complete processor cores; four-core processors,
similarly, contain four cores. The processors also contain one shared cache. The shared
cache is dynamically allocated among cores as needed. The cores appear to software as
physical processors. The two-core processors offer considerably higher performance than a
same-speed Xeon processor with a single core. Likewise, four-core processors offer
considerably higher performance than a same-speed Xeon processor with two cores.
1333MHz memory access offers up to 9% higher throughput at the same processor clock
speed than 1066MHz memory access.
Note: Because of the integrated memory controllers the former front-side bus (FSB) no longer
exists.
Turbo Boost Technology increases performance by translating the temperature, power and
current head room into higher frequency. It will dynamically increase by 133MHz for short and
regular intervals until the upper limit is met or the maximum possible upside for the number of
active cores is reached. The maximum frequency is dependent on the number of active cores.
The amount of time the processor spends in the Turbo Boost Technology state depends on the
workload and operating environment, providing the performance you need, when and where
you need it.
In processors implementing Intel Hyper-Threading Technology, each core has two threads
capable of running an independent process. Thus, a 6-core processor can run 12 threads
concurrently.
Intelligent Power Capability powers individual processor elements on and off as needed, to
reduce power draw.
Execute Disable Bit functionality can help prevent certain classes of malicious buffer overflow
attacks when combined with a supporting operating system.
High- Performance, Low-Latency DDR3 ECC Memory
The x3250 M4 ships with one DIMM installed and supports up to 32GB of Unbuffered DIMM
(UDIMM) memory in 4 DIMM sockets. It uses PC3-10600 double data rate III (DDR3) memory
operating at 1333MHz for fast access, and provides ECC memory protection.
The x3250 M4 supports either 1, 2, or 4 UDIMMs. When 2 or 4 DIMMs are installed, memory
operates in two-way interleaved mode for increased performance. UDIMMs are available in
kits consisting of one 1GB DIMM or two 1GB, 2GB, 4GB or 8GB DIMMs (available in 2Q
2011). The x3250 M4 supports both single- and dual-rank UDIMMs. RDIMMs and non-ECC
memory are not supported.

Disk Controllers

The integrated SATA controller provides data transfer speeds of up to 3Gb per second
the SATA bus for up to two 3.5-inch internal Serial ATA II (SATA II) or four 2.5-inch (via
CTO) SAS drives. In addition, the standard ServeRAID C100 for IBM system x provides
integrated RAID-0/1 on the planar at no additional cost, although without the performance
boost of hardware RAID.
Optional RAID controllers include:
The 6Gbps (x8 PCIe) ServeRAID-M1015 SAS/SATA controller supports RAID-0/1/10 (no
cache) for up to 4 drives (system limit). The ServeRAID M1000 Series Advance Feature Key
adds RAID-5 support.
The 6Gbps (x8 PCIe) ServeRAID-M5014 SAS/SATA controller offers enhanced performance
with 256MB of cache memory, and supports RAID-0/1/10/5/6 for up to 4 drives (system limit).
(Note RAID-5 requires at least three drives, and RAID-10 and 6 require at least 4 drives;
therefore these RAID levels are not supported in the models containing two 3.5-inch SATA
drive bays, only in models containing four 2.5-inch SAS drive bays. RAID-50/60 require more
drives than the server supports, and therefore are not supported in the x3250 M4)
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across
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