IBM 7947E5U Product Manual page 13

Leadership enterprise server with significantly lower cost of ownership in a highly available and
expandable, rack-dense, 2U dual-socket server
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extensions, a large cache and advanced features for availability and manageability. Large cache
size, combined with fast 1333MHz, 1066MHz or 800MHz memory access and an integrated
memory controller reduce memory latency and facilitates the movement of data. (Note: System
performance depends not only on the number of processors in the server but also on the power
and functionality of each processor.) Adding a second processor may be a cost-effective way to
achieve significant performance improvements.
Memory — Memory is a significant factor in systems application performance. Adding more
memory to a System x server is one of the most effective ways to increase application
performance. For best performance in a server with a 4-core processor, there should be twice as
much memory available as for a 2-core processor.
Hard Disk Drives — IBM hard disk drives help you improve the transaction and cost
performance of your System x servers. The choice of hard disk drives can be a critical aspect of
maximizing the I/O throughput of the system. SAS hard disk drives are available for the x3550
M2 with capacities of 500GB (2.5-inch) at 7,200 RPMs and 146.8GB (2.5-inch) at 15,000 RPMs.
2.5-inch SATA HDDs are available in capacities up to 500GB (2.5-inch) at 7,200 RPMs.
Solid State Drives — IBM solid-state drives offer high performance and the ultimate in reliability,
with 3X the MTBF (mean time between failure) rate of enterprise HDDs. IBM SSDs. are available
in 50GB capacities. They can be used as a highly available boot drive, for storing disk images, or
for other uses that stress read performance.
Power Supply — The optional second power supply for the x3650 M2 enables redundancy for
hot-swap power. In addition, its 92%-efficient design helps lower your energy bill for power and
cooling.
Virtual Media Key — The x3650 M2 includes a plethora of systems management features built-
in; however, sometimes additional management capability is needed. In those situations, the
Virtual Media Key not only offers powerful new features, it does so without taking up a valuable
PCI-X or PCIe adapter slot, instead using a dedicated connector on the motherboard.
ServeRAID Controllers — System x servers using ServeRAID technology allow companies to
build a reliable foundation for business-critical computing. IBM ServeRAID technology allows an
array consisting of multiple physical hard disk drives to be treated as one logical drive.
ServeRAID technology also allows data to be stored redundantly, across multiple hard disk
drives— enhancing both the integrity and the availability of the data. SAS and SATA ServeRAID
controllers offer enhanced performance due to onboard processors and cache. Because IBM
ServeRAID controllers can help significantly improve data transfer rates, this technology is
extremely effective when implementing demanding, transaction-oriented applications. By
employing the advanced fault tolerance of IBM ServeRAID technology, companies can effectively
implement networked business systems that require large amounts of storage space for data and
applications that must be available for their businesses to continue operating.
External Storage — The IBM System Storage DS3000, DS4000, DS6000, and DS8000 series,
as well as the N3000, N5000, and N7000 series, comprise a powerful and broad shared storage
family with integrated management software designed to meet midrange and enterprise needs.
For lower-end needs, IBM offers the System Storage EXP3000 storage enclosure.
External SAN, iSCSI, and direct-attach storage is available using one of several IBM System
Storage and TotalStorage host bus adapters. Additionally, external LAN-attached tape storage is
available.
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