IBM x3690 X5 Product Manual

®
IBM System x3690 X5
IBM Redbooks Product Guide
IBM® System x3690 X5 is a powerful two-socket 2U rack-mount server using the latest Intel Xeon
processors. The x3690 X5 servers can be combined with the IBM MAX5 memory expansion unit for up to
2 TB of memory. Add to that the 16 2.5-inch disk drive bays and you have a high performance workhorse
in a rack-dense package. The x3690 X5 server belongs to the family of a new generation of Enterprise
X-Architecture® servers. The server delivers innovation with enhanced reliability and availability features
to enable optimal performance for databases, enterprise applications, and virtualized environments.
The IBM System x3690 X5 is shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1. The IBM System x3690 X5
Did you know?
The x3690 X5 offers a two step approach to expanding the system with memory. You can first start with
16 DIMMs installed just on the system board, then as needs require, install the memory mezzanine and
an additional 16 DIMMs. The for applications that can use the most amount of RAM, use the 1U MAX5
memory expansion unit which adds an additional 32 DIMM sockets. The MAX5 scalability and memory
expansion feature is a unique IBM enhancement, not offered by other x86 server architectures. The total
number of DIMM sockets available to the system is then 64 DIMMs -- in only 3U of rack space -- and with
32 GB DIMMs, that is 2 TB of RAM.
The x3690 X5 servers also contain up to 16 HDD bays that support 2.5-inch hot-swap internal SAS/SATA
drives totaling up to 8TB, or up to 24 solid-state drive bays, supporting 1.8-inch hot-swap SSDs, using up
to three IBM eXFlash storage options. Each individual SSD is capable of sustaining approximately 4,300
IOPS, which is more than 10X what an enterprise 15,000 RPM 2.5-inch 146.8GB SAS HDD can achieve
(420 IOPS).
IBM System x3690 X5 1