Page 1: Front Cover
Front cover IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction Features 8202-E4D and 8205-E6D servers based on POWER7+ processor technology Describes the support of 20 partitions per core Explores leading performance on entry servers James Cruickshank Sorin Hanganu Volker Haug...
Page 3 International Technical Support Organization IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction May 2013 REDP-4984-00...
Page 4 First Edition (May 2013) This edition applies to the IBM Power 720 (8202-E4D) and Power 740 (8205-E6D) Power Systems servers. © Copyright International Business Machines Corporation 2013. All rights reserved. Note to U.S. Government Users Restricted Rights -- Use, duplication or disclosure restricted by GSA ADP Schedule...
Page 5: Table Of Contents
1.5 Disk and media features ..........11 1.6 I/O drawers for Power 720 and Power 740 servers ......15 1.6.1 12X I/O Drawer PCIe expansion units .
Page 6 2.2.2 Power 720 and Power 740 systems ........
Page 7 2.13.1 IBM EnergyScale technology ........
Page 8 4.4.1 Service user interfaces ..........173 4.4.2 IBM Power Systems firmware maintenance ......178 4.4.3 Concurrent firmware update improvements with POWER7+ .
Page 9: Notices
IBM representative for information on the products and services currently available in your area. Any reference to an IBM product, program, or service is not intended to state or imply that only that IBM product, program, or service may be used. Any functionally equivalent product, program, or service that does not infringe any IBM intellectual property right may be used instead.
Page 10: Trademarks
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Linux is a trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States, other countries, or both. LTO, Ultrium, the LTO Logo and the Ultrium logo are trademarks of HP, IBM Corp. and Quantum in the U.S. and other countries.
Page 11: Preface
This IBM® Redpaper™ publication is a comprehensive guide covering the IBM Power 720 (8202-E4D) and Power 740 (8205-E6D) servers that support IBM AIX®, IBM i, and Linux operating systems. The goal of this paper is to introduce the innovative Power 720 and Power 740 offerings and their major functions: The IBM POWER7+™...
Page 12 United States as a pre-sales Field Technical Sales Specialist for Power Systems in Boston, MA. Marco Vallone is a Certified IT Specialist at IBM, Italy. He joined IBM in 1989, starting in the Power Systems production plant (Santa Palomba) as a Product Engineer, and then worked for the ITS AIX support and delivery service center.
Page 13: Now You Can Become A Published Author, Too
Find us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/IBMRedbooks Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ibmredbooks Look for us on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=2130806 Explore new Redbooks publications, residencies, and workshops with the IBM Redbooks weekly newsletter: https://www.redbooks.ibm.com/Redbooks.nsf/subscribe?OpenForm Stay current on recent Redbooks publications with RSS Feeds: http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/rss.html Preface...
Page 14 IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 15: Chapter 1. General Description
ISVs that support the AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems. The Power 720 server is a high-performance, energy-efficient, reliable, and secure infrastructure and application server in a dense form factor.
Page 16: Systems Overview
1.1.1 The Power 720 server The Power 720 offers a choice of a 4-core, 6-core, or 8-core configuration running at 3.6 GHz, available in a 4U rack-mount or a tower form factor. The POWER7+ processor chip in this server is a 64-bit, 4-core, 6-core, or 8-core module with 10 MB of L3 cache per core and 256 KB of L2 cache per core.
Page 17: The Power 740 Server
Figure 1-1 Power 720 rack and tower models 1.1.2 The Power 740 server The IBM Power 740 server is a 4U rack-mount with two processor sockets that offer 6-core 4.2 GHz, 8-core 3.6 GHz, and 8-core 4.2 GHz processor options. The POWER7+ processor chips in this server are 64-bit, 6-core, and 8-core modules with 10 MB of L3 cache per core and 256 KB of L2 cache per core.
Page 18 It enables you to temporarily transfer IBM i processor license entitlements and IBM i user license entitlements purchased for a primary machine to a secondary CBU-designated system.
Page 19: Operating Environment
The maximum measured value also accounts for component tolerance and operating conditions that are not ideal. Power consumption and heat load vary greatly by server configuration and utilization. Use the IBM Systems Energy Estimator to obtain a heat output estimate based on a specific configuration: http://www-912.ibm.com/see/EnergyEstimator...
Page 20: Physical Package
1.3 Physical package The Power 720 is available in both rack-mount and tower form factors. The Power 740 is available in rack-mount form factor only. The major physical attributes for each are discussed in the following sections. 1.3.1 Tower model The Power 720 can be configured as tower models by selecting the features in Table 1-2.
Page 21: System Features
(Power 740). Each POWER7+ processor module is either 4-core, 6-core, or 8-core for the Power 720, and 6-core or 8-core for the Power 740. Each of the POWER7+ processor chips in the server has a 64-bit architecture, up to 2 MB of L2 cache (256 KB per core) and up to 80 MB of L3 cache (10 MB per core).
Page 22: Power 720 System Features
A PCIe x4 Gen2 slot containing a PCIe2 4-Port 10/100/1000 Base-TX Ethernet adapter A maximum of nine PCIe Gen2 slots: – Five PCIe x8 full-height short card slots – Optional four PCIe x8 low-profile short card slots IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 23: Minimum Features
1.4.4 Power supply features One 1925 watt AC power supply (FC 5532) is required for the Power 720. A second power supply is optional. Two 1925 Watt A/C power supplies are required for the Power 740. The second power supply provides redundant power for enhanced system availability. To provide full redundancy, the two power supplies must be connected to separate power distribution units (PDUs).
Page 24: Memory Features
This enables operating at a higher data rate for larger memory configurations. Memory in the Power 720 and 740 systems is installed into memory riser cards. One memory riser card is included in the base system. The base memory riser card is not listed as a feature code in the configurator.
Page 25: Disk And Media Features
10 SAS port 5618 5618 and EJ02 EJ01 Table 1-10 shows the available disk drive feature codes for the installation a Power 720 and Power 740 server. Table 1-10 Disk drive feature code description Feature code Description OS support...
Page 26 IBM i Table 1-11 shows the available disk drive feature codes for the installation in an I/O enclosure external to a Power 720 and Power 740 server. Table 1-11 Disk drive used in I/O drawer feature code description Feature code...
Page 27 Certain adapters are available for order in large quantities. Table 1-12 lists the Gen2 disk drives in a quantity of 150. Table 1-12 Available disk drives in quantity of 150 Feature code Description 1817 Quantity 150 of FC 1962 (571 GB 10K RPM SAS SFF-2 Disk Drive) 1818 Quantity 150 of FC 1964 (600 GB 10K RPM SAS SFF-2 Disk Drive) 1844...
Page 28 Power 740. In a Power 720 or Power 740 with a split backplane (3 x 3), SSDs and HDDs can be placed in either “split,” but no mixing of SSDs and HDDs within a split is allowed. IBM i does not support split backplane.
Page 29: I/O Drawers For Power 720 And Power 740 Servers
The 7031-D24 holds a 3.5-inch SCSI disk (supported but not orderable). The Power 720 provides one GX++ slot, offering one connection loop. The Power 740 has one GX++ slot if one processor module is installed, and two GX++ slots when two processor modules are installed.
Page 30: I/O Drawer Pcie Expansion Units
FC 7314 drawer mounting enclosure. The 4-EIA tall enclosure can hold up to two FC 5796 drawers mounted side by side in the enclosure. A maximum of four FC 5796 drawers can be placed on the same 12X loop. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 31: I/O Drawers And Usable Pci Slots
FC 5796 and the 7314-G30 on the same loop is supported with a maximum of four drawers total per loop. IBM i does not support the 7314-G30 I/O drawer. 1.6.3 I/O drawers and usable PCI slots The various I/O drawer model types can be intermixed on a single server within the appropriate I/O loop.
Page 32: Exp30 Ultra Ssd I/O Drawer
4U additional rack space for AIX clients. This ultra-dense SSD option is similar to the Ultra Drawer (FC 5888), which remains available to B and C models of Power 720, and Power 740. The EXP30 attaches to the Power 720 or Power 740 server with a GX++ adapter, FC EJ03.
Page 33: Exp12S Sas Drawer
EXP12S with SAS cables. FC 5886 can also be directly attached to the SAS port on the rear of the Power 720 and Power 740, providing a low-cost disk storage solution. When used this way, the imbedded SAS controllers in the system unit drive the disk drives in EXP12S.
Page 34: Comparison Between Models
1.7 Comparison between models Table 1-16 compares the Power 720 and Power 740 models. Table 1-16 Comparison between models Characteristic Power 720 (8202-E4D) Power 740 (8205-E6D) POWER7+ architecture 4-core 3.612 GHz 1 or 2 x 6-core 4.284 GHz 6-core 3.612 GHz 1 or 2 x 8-core 3.612 GHz...
Page 35: Build To Order
1.9 IBM Edition IBM Edition is available only as an initial order. If you order an IBM Edition as defined here, you can qualify for half the initial configuration’s processor core activations at no additional charge.
Page 36 Consider the following minimum definitions for IBM Edition: For Power 720, a minimum of 2 GB of memory per core is needed to qualify for the IBM Edition. There can be different valid memory configurations that meet the minimum requirement.
Page 37: Express Editions For Ibm I
1.9.1 Express Editions for IBM i Express Editions for IBM i enable initial ease of ordering and feature a lower price than if you ordered them a la carte or build-to-order. Taking advantage of the edition is the only way you can use no-charge features for processor activations and IBM i user license entitlements.
Page 38: Ibm I Solution Editions For Power 720 And Power 740
1.10 IBM i Solution Editions for Power 720 and Power 740 The IBM i Solution Editions for Power 720 and Power 740 are designed to help you take advantage of the combined experience and expertise of IBM and independent software vendors (ISVs) in building business value with your IT investments.
Page 39: Ibm I For Business Intelligence
Unavailable: IBM i for Business Intelligence solution is not available for the Power 740. 1.12 Model upgrade A model upgrade from a Power 520 to the Power 720, preserving the existing serial number, is available. You can upgrade the 2-core or 4-core Power 520 (8203-E4A) with IBM POWER6 or POWER6+™...
Page 40: Upgrade Considerations
Note: The model upgrade is from a system (8203-E4A) with a one-year warranty to a system (8202-E4D) with a three-year warranty. However, like the B or C model Power 720 same-serial-number upgrades of existing POWER6 feature codes or model numbers converted to POWER7 feature codes retain the one-year warranty.
Page 41: Server And Virtualization Management
Multiple POWER6 and POWER7 processor-based servers can be supported by a single HMC. One OS: If you do not use an HMC or IVM, the Power 720 and Power 740 runs in full system partition mode, meaning that a single partition owns all the server resources and only one operating system can be installed.
Page 42: System Racks
I/O drawer in a 19-inch rack before shipping the MES order. If a system is to be installed in a rack or cabinet that is not from IBM, ensure that the rack meets the requirements that are described in 1.14.10, “OEM rack” on page 39.
Page 43: Ibm 7014 Model T00 Rack
1.14.2 IBM 7014 Model T00 rack The 1.8-meter (71-inch) model T00 is compatible with past and present IBM Power Systems servers. The features of the T00 rack are as follows: Has 36U (EIA units) of usable space.
Page 44: Ibm 7014 Model T42 Rack
The 2.0 m Rack Acoustic Door feature (FC 6249) consists of a front and rear door to reduce noise by about 6 dB(A). It has a depth of about 191 mm (7.5 in). IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 45: Feature Code 0555 Rack
The water lines in the door attach to the customer-supplied secondary water loop by using industry standard quick couplings. See details about planning for the installation of the IBM Rear Door Heat Exchanger: http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/powersys/v3r1m5/index.jsp?topic=/iphad_p5/iphade xchangeroverview.html 1.14.4 Feature code 0555 rack...
Page 46 The PDU receives power through the UTG0247 power line connector. Each PDU requires one PDU-to-wall power cord. Various power cord features are available for various countries and applications by varying the PDU-to-wall power cord, which must be ordered separately. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 47 For maximum availability, the best way is to connect power cords from the same system to two separate PDUs in the rack, and to connect each PDU to independent power sources. For detailed power requirements and power cord details, see “Planning for power” at the IBM Power Systems Hardware information center: http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/powersys/v3r1m5/topic/p7had/p7hadrpower.htm...
Page 48: Rack-Mounting Rules
The IBM System Storage 7216 Multi-Media Enclosure (Model 1U2) is designed to attach to the Power 720 and the Power 740 through a USB port on the server or through a PCIe SAS adapter. The 7216 has two bays to accommodate external tape, removable disk drive, or DVD-RAM drive options.
Page 49 A PCIe Dual-x4 SAS adapter (FC 5901) or a PCIe LP Dual-x4-Port SAS Adapter 3 Gb (FC 5278) must be installed in the Power 720 and Power 740 server to attach to a 7216 Model 1U2 Multi-Media Storage Enclosure. Attaching a 7216 to a Power 720 and Power 740 through the integrated SAS adapter is not supported.
Page 50 Figure 1-11 The 7216 Multi-Media Enclosure In general, the 7216-1U2 is supported by the AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems. IBM i, from Version 7.1, now fully supports the internal 5.25 inch RDX SATA removable HDD docking station, including boot support (no VIOS support). This support provides a fast, robust, high-performance alternative to tape backup/restore devices.
Page 51 Table 1-24 lists the supported options for IBM Power servers in the 7226-1U3. Table 1-24 Supported feature codes for 7226-1U3 Feature code Description Status 5619 DAT160 SAS Tape Drive Available EU16 DAT160 USB Tape Drive Available 1420 DVD-RAM SAS Optical Drive...
Page 52 The IBM System Storage 7226 Multi-Media Enclosure is compatible with most IBM POWER6, POWER6+, POWER7, and POWER7+ systems, and also with the IBM BladeCenter models (PS700, PS701, PS702, PS703, and PS704) that offer current levels for the AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems.
Page 53: Oem Rack
203mm (8.0 in.) Drawer Rail 494mm (19.45 in.) Mounting 719mm (28.31 in.) Flanges 51mm (2.01 in.) Front, No Door 451mm (17.76 in.) 494mm (19.45 in.) Figure 1-13 Top view of rack specification dimensions (that are not IBM) Chapter 1. General description...
Page 54 15.9mm 15.9mm 12.7mm 12.7mm 450 +/- 0.75mm Rack Front Opening Hole Diameter = 465 +/- 0.8mm 7.1 +/- 0.1mm Rack Mounting Holes Center-to-Center Figure 1-14 Rack specification dimensions, top front view IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 55: Chapter 2. Architecture And Technical Overview
Chapter 2. overview This chapter describes the overall system architecture for the IBM Power 720 and Power 740, represented by Figure 2-1 on page 42 and Figure 2-2 on page 43. The bandwidth numbers that are provided throughout the section are theoretical maximums values that are used for reference.
Page 56 Figure 2-1 shows the logical system diagram for the Power 720. Memory Card #1 Memory Card #2 Optional PCIe Gen2 Riser PCIe Gen2 x8 (Short, LP) – SLOT #1 PCIe Gen2 x8 (Short, LP) – SLOT #2 P7-IOC (Optional Expansion) PCIe Gen2 x8 (Short, LP) –...
Page 57 Memory Controller 68.2 GB/s HDD1 HDD2 Buffer Buffer Buffer Buffer HDD3 Controller HDD4 RAIDs 0,1,10 HDD5 HDD6 GX++ SLOT #2 Memory Card #3 Memory Card #4 Figure 2-2 IBM Power 740 logical system diagram Chapter 2. Architecture and technical overview...
Page 58: The Ibm Power7+ Processor
2.1 The IBM POWER7+ processor The IBM POWER7+ processor represents a leap forward in technology achievement and associated computing capability. The multi-core architecture of the POWER7+ processor is matched with innovation across a wide range of related technologies to deliver leading throughput, efficiency, scalability, and reliability, availability, and serviceability (RAS).
Page 59: Power7+ Processor Overview
I/O links Figure 2-3 POWER7+ processor die with key areas indicated 2.1.1 POWER7+ processor overview The POWER7+ processor chip is fabricated with IBM 32 nm Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) technology that use copper interconnects, and implements an on-chip L3 cache that use eDRAM.
Page 60: Power7+ Processor Core
One decimal floating point unit The following caches are tightly coupled to each POWER7+ processor core: Instruction cache: 32 KB Data cache: 32 KB L2 cache: 256 KB, implemented in fast SRAM IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 61: Simultaneous Multithreading
SMT4 mode enables the POWER7+ processor to maximize the throughput of the processor core by offering an increase in processor-core efficiency. SMT4 mode is the latest step in an evolution of multithreading technologies introduced by IBM. Figure 2-4 shows the evolution of simultaneous multithreading in the industry.
Page 62: Memory Access
Each memory channel operates at 1066 MHz connects to four DIMMs. In the Power 720 server, each channel can address up to 128 GB. Thus the Power 720 is capable of addressing up to 512 GB of total memory.
Page 63 The on-chip L3 cache is organized into separate areas with differing latency characteristics. Each processor core is associated with a fast local region of L3 cache (FLR-L3) but also has access to other L3 cache regions as shared L3 cache. Additionally, each core can negotiate to use the FLR-L3 cache associated with another core, depending on reference patterns.
Page 64: Power7+ Processor And Intelligent Energy
Small physical footprint The performance of eDRAM when implemented on-chip is similar to conventional SRAM but requires far less physical space. IBM on-chip eDRAM uses only one-third of the components used in conventional SRAM, which has a minimum of six transistors to implement a 1-bit memory cell.
Page 65: Power7+ Processor Modules
2.2 POWER7+ processor modules The Power 720 and Power 740 server chassis house POWER7+ processor single chip modules (SCMs). Each SCM can access eight DDR3 memory DIMM slots. The Power 720 server houses one processor module offering 4-core 3.6 GHz, 6-core 3.6 GHz, or 8-core 3.6 GHz configurations.
Page 66: Power 720 And Power 740 Systems
2.2.2 Power 720 and Power 740 systems Power 720 and Power 740 systems support POWER7+ processors with various core-counts. Table 2-3 summarizes the POWER7 processor options for the Power 720 system. Table 2-3 Summary of POWER7+ processor options for the Power 720 system...
Page 67: Memory Subsystem
64 GB (2 x 32 GB) Memory DIMMs, 1066 MHz (FC EM4D) A minimum of 8 GB memory is required for a Power 720 system or a Power 740 system using one processor card. Table 2-5 lists the maximum memory that is supported on the Power 720.
Page 68 DDR3 RDIMM Slot 6 BC-A Channel A DDR3 RDIMM Slot 3 DDR3 RDIMM Slot 4 MC: Memory Controller BC: Memory Buffer Figure 2-8 Memory DIMM topology for the Power 720 or Power 740 IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 69 Slot #7 – P1-Cn-C9 Slot #8 – P1-Cn-C10 Memory Riser Card Figure 2-9 Memory Riser Card for Power 720 and Power 740 Systems The memory-placement rules are as follows: The base machine contains one memory riser card with eight DIMM sockets. Memory features occupy two memory DIMM sockets.
Page 70 Pair 3 Memory Card #1 – P1-C18 P1-C18-C7 Pair 4 Pair 2 P1-C18-C8 P1-C18-C9 Pair 4 Pair 2 P1-C18-C10 Figure 2-10 Memory DIMM installation sequence for one processor with two riser cards IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 71 P1-C17-C1 Pair 2 P1-C17-C2 Pair 6 P1-C17-C3 Pair 2 P1-C17-C4 Pair 6 Memory Card #2 – P1-C17 P1-C17-C7 Pair 8 P1-C17-C8 Pair 4 P1-C17-C9 Pair 8 P1-C17-C10 Pair 4 POWER7+ P1-C11 P1-C18-C1 Pair 1 P1-C18-C2 Pair 5 P1-C18-C3 Pair 1 P1-C18-C4 Pair 5 Memory Card #1 –...
Page 72 P1-C16-C8 Pair 5 P1-C18-C8 Pair 4 P1-C16-C9 Pair 11 P1-C18-C9 Pair 10 P1-C16-C10 Pair 5 P1-C18-C10 Pair 4 Figure 2-13 Memory DIMM installation sequence for two processors with three riser cards IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 73: Memory Bandwidth
2.3.3 Memory bandwidth The POWER7+ processor has exceptional cache, memory, and interconnect bandwidths. Table 2-7 shows the maximum bandwidth estimates for the Power 720 and Power 740 systems. Table 2-7 Power 720 and Power 740 processor and memory bandwidth estimates...
Page 74: Capacity On Demand And Capacity Backup Offering
2.4 Capacity on Demand and Capacity Backup offering The only available Capacity on Demand feature for Power 720 and Power 740 systems is Capacity Backup (CBU) for IBM i. For Power 720 and Power 740 systems used with AIX or Linux, Capacity on Demand is not supported.
Page 75: System Bus
InfiniBand adapters. The internal I/O subsystem on the Power 720 and Power 740 is connected to the GX bus on a POWER7+ processor in the system. This bus runs at 2.5 GHz and provides 20 GBps of I/O connectivity to the PCIe slots, integrated Ethernet adapter ports, SAS internal adapters, and USB ports.
Page 76: Slot Configuration
The integrated system ports are supported for modem and asynchronous terminal connections. Any other application using serial ports requires a serial port adapter to be installed in a PCI slot. The integrated system ports do not support IBM PowerHA® configurations.
Page 77: Pci Adapters
When a Gen2 adapter is installed into a Gen2 slot, it operates at the full PCIe Gen2 speed. The Power 720 and Power 740 system enclosure is equipped with five PCIe x8 Gen2 full-height slots. A sixth PCIe x4 slot is dedicated to the PCIe Ethernet card that is standard with the base system.
Page 78: Pcie Adapter Form Factors
The PCIe2 4-port 1 Gb Ethernet adapter (FC 5899) is the only PCIe adapter that is allowed at the P1-C7 PCIe x4 slot in the Power 720 and Power 740 servers. Other supported PCIe adapters on the Power 720 and Power 740 are not supported in the P1-C7 slot.
Page 79 Low Profile PCIe Slots Full High PCIe Slots • Power 710 / 730 • Power 720 / 740 / 750 / 760 / 770 / 780 / 795 • Power 720 / 740 • 12X PCIe I/O Drawer PCIe riser card...
Page 80: Lan Adapters
A blank CCIN indicates CCIN not available. IBM i: For the IBM i operating system, Table 2-11 on page 66 shows the native support of the card. All Ethernet cards can be supported by IBM i through the VIOS server.
Page 81 5288 5288 PCIe2 2-Port 10 Gb Ethernet SFP+ PCIe Full height, AIX, Linux Copper adapter short 5706 5706 IBM 2-Port 10/100/1000 Base-TX PCI-X Full height, AIX, IBM i, Ethernet PCI-X adapter short Linux 5717 5271 4-Port 10/100/1000 Base-TX PCI PCIe...
Page 82: Graphics Accelerator Adapters
Low profile AIX, IBM i, Dual-port 6 Gb Linux a. Supported, but no longer orderable. b. A pair of adapters is required to provide mirrored write cache data and adapter redundancy. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 83: Pcie Raid And Ssd Sas Adapter
For detailed information about SAS cabling of external storage, see the IBM Power Systems Hardware information center: http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/powersys/v3r1m5/index.jsp Table 2-14 compares features of parallel SCSI and SAS. Table 2-14 Comparison parallel SCSI to SAS Feature Parallel SCSI Architecture Parallel, all devices connected to...
Page 84 Supported only in the rack-mount configuration. VIOS attachment requires Version 2.2 or later. b. Supported only in a FC 5802 and FC 5877 PCIe I/O drawer. Not supported in the Power 720 and Power 740 system unit. If used with the VIOS, Version 2.2 or later of VIOS is required.
Page 85: Iscsi Adapters
CCIN Adapter description Slot Size OS support code 5273 PCIe LP 8 Gb 2-Port Fibre PCIe Low profile, AIX, IBM i, Channel adapter short Linux 5276 PCIe LP 4 Gb 2-Port Fibre PCIe Low profile, AIX, IBM i, Channel adapter...
Page 86: Fibre Channel Over Ethernet
A Gen2 PCIe slot is required to provide the bandwidth for all four ports to operate at full speed. b. Use within IBM i it is not supported. Instead, use it with the Virtual I/O server. Note: The usage of NPIV through the Virtual I/O server requires a NPIV-capable Fibre Channel adapter such as the FC 5729, FC 5735, FC 5273, FC EN0A, and FC EN0B.
Page 87: Infiniband Host Channel Adapter
The PCIe Gen2 low-profile adapter provides two high-speed 4X InfiniBand connections for IP over IB usage in the Power 720 and Power 740. On the Power 720 and Power 740, this adapter is supported in PCIe Gen2 slots. The following types of QDR IB...
Page 88: Asynchronous And Usb Adapters
Asynchronous PCIe adapters provide connection of asynchronous EIA-232 or RS-422 devices. If you have a cluster configuration or high-availability configuration and plan to connect the IBM Power Systems by using a serial connection, use the features listed in Table 2-20.
Page 89: Internal Storage
SAS and SATA channels, which give Power 720 and Power 740 the combined total of eight SAS busses. Each channel can support either SAS or SATA operation. The SAS controller is connected to a direct attached storage device (DASD) backplane and supports three or six small form factor (SFF) disk drive bays depending on the backplane option.
Page 90 Disk #3 Disk #4 Disk #5 Integrated Port SAS Adapter Exp. Disk #6 Disk #7 BACKUP BATTERY Disk #8 SAS External Port Figure 2-19 FC EJ01 DASD backplane - Internal topology overview IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 91: Raid Support
AIX or Linux supports all of these options. IBM i does not use unprotected disks, and uses embedded functions instead of RAID 10. IBM i does use the RAID 5 or RAID 6 function of the integrated controllers.
Page 92: External Sas Port And Split Backplane
This section describes the external SAS port and split backplane features. External SAS port feature The Power 720 and Power 740 DASD backplane (FC EJ01) offers an external SAS port: The SAS port connector is located next to the GX++ slot 2 on the rear bulkhead.
Page 93: Media Bays
Figure 2-20 Internal topology overview for FC 5618 backplane with split backplane feature FC EJ02 2.8.3 Media bays The Power 720 and Power 740 each offer a slim media bay to support a slim SATA DVD device. Direct dock and hot-plug of the DVD media device are supported. In addition a half-high bay is available to support an optional SAS tape drive or removable disk drive.
Page 94: Pci-Ddr 12X Expansion Drawer
GX++ Dual-port 12x Channel Attach (FC EJ04) Note: The attachment of external I/O drawers is not supported on the 4-core Power 720. 2.9.1 PCI-DDR 12X expansion drawer The PCI-DDR 12X expansion drawer (FC 5796) is a 4U (EIA units) drawer and mounts in a 19-inch rack.
Page 95: I/O Drawer Pcie
Figure 2-21 shows the back view of the expansion unit. 12X Port 0 (P1-C7-T1) SPCN 0 (P1-C8-T1) SPCN 1 (P1-C8-T2) P1-C8-T3 P1-C1 P1-C3 P1-C4 P1-C6 P1-C2 P1-C5 12X Port 1 (P1-C7-T2) Figure 2-21 PCI-X DDR 12X expansion drawer rear side Tip: The PCI-DDR 12X expansion drawer (FC 5796) is supported, but no longer orderable.
Page 96 Figure 2-22 shows the front view of the 12X I/O Drawer PCIe (FC 5802). Disk drives Service card Port cards Power cables Figure 2-22 Front view of the 12X I/O Drawer PCIe IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 97: I/O Drawer Pcie Configuration And Cabling Rules
Figure 2-23 shows the rear view of the 12X I/O Drawer PCIe (FC 5802). 10 PCIe cards X2 SAS connectors 12X connectors Mode switch SPCN connectors Figure 2-23 Rear view of the 12X I/O Drawer PCIe 2.9.3 12X I/O Drawer PCIe configuration and cabling rules The following section gives you detailed information about the disk drive configuration, 12X loop, and SPCN cabling rules.
Page 98 9 + 9 bays Figure 2-24 Disk bay partitioning configuration in 12X I/O Drawer PCI (FC 5802) Tools and CSP: The IBM System Planning Tool supports disk bay partitioning. Also, the IBM configuration tool accepts this configuration from IBM System Planning Tool and passes it through IBM manufacturing using the Customer Specified Placement (CSP) option.
Page 99 4 bays P4-T3 P3-D10 to P3-D14 5 bays P4-T4 P3-D15 to P3-D18 4 bays For more detailed information about cabling and other switch modes, see the Power Systems enclosures and expansion units documentation: http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/powersys/v3r1m5/topic/ipham/ipham.pdf Chapter 2. Architecture and technical overview...
Page 100 Power 720. Other options are also available. PCIe PCIe PCIe One I/O-Drawer Two I/O-Drawers PCI-X PCI-X PCI-X PCI-X PCI-X One I/O-Drawer Four I/O-Drawers Figure 2-27 12X I/O Drawer configuration for a Power 720 with one GX++ slot IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 101 12X I/O Drawer PCIe loop Any I/O drawer is connected to the adapters in the Power 720 and Power 740 system unit with data transfer cables such as the 12X DDR cables for the FC 5802 and FC 5877 I/O drawers.
Page 102 Figure 2-29 shows an example of the typical 12X I/O loop port connections for a Power 720 and Power 740 with one loop and using the FC 5796 expansion drawer. 720/740 Figure 2-29 Typical 12X I/O loop port connections Various cables are available for the SPCN connections. Table 2-25 shows various 12X cables to satisfy the various length requirements.
Page 103: External Disk Subsystems
Power Control Cable (SPCN) - 30 meter a. Supported, but no longer orderable 2.10 External disk subsystems This section describes the external disk subsystems that can be attached to the Power 720 and Power 740: EXP30 Ultra SSD I/O drawer (FC EDR1, CCIN 57C3)
Page 104 Each controller is connected to a GX++ 2-port PCIe2 x8 adapter (FC EJ03 CCIN 2C1E) in a Power 720 and Power 740 server through a PCIe x8 cable. Usually both controllers are attached to one server, but each controller can be assigned to a separate server, or a logical partition.
Page 105 FC ES02 and FC ES04 are identical SSD drives, but have separate feature codes for use with the AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems. FC ES02 is used for AIX and Linux; FC ES04 is used for IBM i.
Page 106 FC EJ03 PCIe Gen2 8X cable FC EDR1 ERM - C1 ERM - C2 T1 T2 Figure 2-32 Connection between one or two FC EJ03 cards and a single FC EDR1 drawer IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 107 Two EXP24S disk drawer (FC 5887) can be directly attached to a EXP30 (FC EDR1) drawer, running AIX, IBM i, and Linux. Up to 48 additional SAS disks enhance the disk capacity up to 43.2 TB. This combination (one EXP30 Ultra Drawer and two EXP24S drawers) provides a maximum capacity of 54.8 TB capacity.
Page 108: Exp24S Sff Gen2-Bay Drawer
POWER7+ system unit or of the 12X PCIe I/O Drawers, or vice versa. The drawer can be attached to the Power 720 and Power 740 either using the FC EJ01 storage backplane, providing an external SAS port, or using the following PCIe SAS adapters...
Page 109 With IBM AIX, and Linux, the EXP24S drawer can be ordered with four sets of six bays (mode 4), two sets of 12 bays (mode 2), or one set of 24 bays (mode 1). With IBM i the EXP24S drawer can be ordered as one set of 24 bays (mode 1).
Page 110: Exp12S Sas Expansion Drawer
19-inch rack; the SAS controller can be a SAS PCIe adapter or pair of adapters. The drawer can be attached to the Power 720 and Power 740 either by using the FC EJ01 storage backplane, providing an external SAS port, or using the following SAS adapters: PCIe LP RAID &...
Page 111: Ibm System Storage
An existing EXP12S Drawer that contains SSD drives cannot be attached to the system unit external SAS port on the Power 720 and Power 740 or through a PCIe LP 2-x4 port SAS adapter 3 Gb (FC 5278). If this configuration is required, use a high-profile PCIe SAS adapter or a PCI-X SAS adapter.
Page 112: Hardware Management Console
The IBM Flex System™ V7000 Storage Node is also available as an integrated component of IBM Flex System and IBM PureFlex™ Systems and is seamlessly integrated into the Flex System Manager and Chassis Map, delivering new data center efficiencies.
Page 113 7042-CR6 or later. If you attach an existing HMC to a new server such as the Power 720 and Power 740 or add functions to an existing server that requires a firmware update, the HMC machine code might...
Page 114 The HMC gives systems administrators a tool for planning, virtualizing, deploying, and managing IBM Power System servers. With the introduction of HMC V7R760, the HMC can now manage IBM BladeCenter Power Blade servers. This management includes support for dual VIOS, live partition mobility between blades and rack servers, and management of both blades and rack servers from a single management console.
Page 115: Hmc Connectivity To The Power7+ Processor-Based Systems
2.11.1 HMC connectivity to the POWER7+ processor-based systems POWER7+ processor technology-based servers and their predecessor systems that are managed by an HMC require Ethernet connectivity between the HMC and the server’s service processor. In addition, if dynamic LPAR, Live Partition Mobility, or PowerVM Active Memory Sharing operations are required on the managed partitions, Ethernet connectivity is needed between these partitions and the HMC.
Page 116: High Availability Hmc Configuration
HMCs provide a locking mechanism so that only one HMC at a time has write access to the service processor. Both HMCs should be available on a public subnet to allow full synchronization of functionality. Depending on your environment, you have multiple options to configure the network. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 117: Operating System Support
V7R7.3.5 or later, and that the HMC that is managing the POWER7+ processor-based server is at minimum level of V7R7.6.0 or later. 2.12 Operating system support The Power 720 and Power 740 servers support the following operating systems: IBM i Linux...
Page 118: Ibm Aix Operating System
IBM AIX Version 5.3 At the time of writing, AIX Version 5.3 is not supported with the Power 720 and Power 740. Statement of Direction (SoD): IBM intends to provide to those clients with AIX 5.3 Technology Level 12 (and the associated service extension offering) the ability to run that environment on the Power 720 and Power 740.
Page 119: Ibm I Operating System
POWER7 mode to allow exploitation of new hardware capabilities such as SMT4 and Active Memory Expansion. 2.12.2 IBM i operating system The IBM i operating system is supported on the Power 720 and Power 740 with the following minimum required levels: IBM i 7.1, or later IBM i 6.1 with machine code 6.1.1, or later...
Page 120: Virtual I/O Server
See information about Red Hat Enterprise Linux Advanced Server: http://www.redhat.com/rhel/features 2.12.4 Virtual I/O Server The minimum required level of Virtual I/O Server for both the Power 720 and Power 740 is VIOS 2.2.2.2. Statement of Direction (SoD): IBM intends to provide to those clients with VIOS 2.2.1 the ability to run that environment on the Power 720 and Power 740.
Page 121 POWER systems. The performance of COBOL for AIX applications is improved by means of an enhanced back-end optimizer. With the back-end optimizer, a component common also to the IBM XL compilers, your applications can use the most recent industry-leading optimization technology.
Page 122: Energy Management
2.13 Energy management The Power 720 and 740 servers are designed with features to help clients become more energy efficient. The IBM Systems Director Active Energy Manager uses EnergyScale technology, enabling advanced energy management features to dramatically and dynamically conserve power and further improve energy efficiency. Intelligent Energy optimization capabilities enable the POWER7+ processor to operate at a higher frequency for increased performance and performance per watt or dramatically reduce frequency to save energy.
Page 123 111.6% of nominal frequency for extra performance. Table 2-30 shows the maximum frequency increases of the various processor options. Table 2-30 Maximum frequency increase values for Power 720 and Power 740 Processor module option Power 720 Power 740 3.6 GHz 4-core (FC EPCK)
Page 124 (either Power Energy Saver Mode or Dynamic Power Saver Mode), fan speed will vary based on power consumption, ambient temperature, and altitude available. System altitude can be set in IBM Director Active Energy Manager. If no altitude is set, the system assumes a default value of 350 meters above sea level.
Page 125 The Power 720 and the Power 740 comply to the ASHRAE Class A3 standard and can support up to 35 degrees C and 1825 meters at the rated performance. However, they can operate in a degraded performance above 35 degrees C up to 40 degrees C, or higher, altitudes.
Page 126: Thermal Power Management Device Card
Server Power Down Partition Power Management The Power 720 and Power 740 systems implement all the EnergyScale capabilities listed in 2.13.1, “IBM EnergyScale technology” on page 108. 2.13.2 Thermal power management device card The Thermal power management device (TPMD) card is a separate micro controller that is installed on some POWER6 processor-based systems, and available on all POWER7 and POWER7+ processor-based systems.
Page 127: Energy Consumption Estimation
An estimation of the energy consumption for a certain configuration The calculation of the energy consumption for a certain configuration can be done in the IBM Systems Energy Estimator: http://www-912.ibm.com/see/EnergyEstimator/ In that tool, select the type and model for the system, enter various details of the configuration and a desired CPU utilization.
Page 128 IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 129: Chapter 3. Virtualization
As you look for ways to maximize the return on your IT infrastructure investments, consolidating workloads becomes an attractive proposition. IBM Power Systems combined with PowerVM technology offer key capabilities that can help you consolidate and simplify your IT environment: Improve server utilization and sharing I/O resources to reduce total cost of ownership and make better use of IT assets.
Page 130: Power Hypervisor
3.1 POWER Hypervisor Combined with features that are designed into the POWER7+ processors, the IBM POWER Hypervisor delivers functions that enable other system technologies, including logical partitioning technology, virtualized processors, IEEE VLAN-compatible virtual switch, virtual SCSI adapters, virtual Fibre Channel adapters, and virtual consoles. The POWER Hypervisor is a basic component of the system’s firmware and offers the following functions:...
Page 131 The storage virtualization is accomplished using two paired adapters: A virtual SCSI server adapter A virtual SCSI client adapter A Virtual I/O Server partition or an IBM i partition can define virtual SCSI server adapters. client Other partitions are partitions.
Page 132 Depending on the system configuration, the operating system console can be provided by the Hardware Management Console virtual TTY, IVM virtual TTY, or from a terminal emulator that is connected to a system port. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 133: Power Processor Modes
3.2 POWER processor modes Although, strictly speaking, not a virtualization feature, the POWER modes are described here because they affect various virtualization features. On Power System servers, partitions can be configured to run in several modes, including the following modes: POWER6 compatibility mode This execution mode is compatible with Version 2.05 of the Power Instruction Set Architecture (ISA).
Page 134 The selection of the mode is made on a per-partition basis, from the managed console, by editing the partition profile (Figure 3-2). Figure 3-2 Configuring partition profile compatibility mode from the managed console IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 135: Active Memory Expansion
Table 3-2 lists the differences between these modes. Table 3-2 Differences between POWER6, POWER6+ and POWER7 compatibility mode POWER6 and POWER6+ POWER7 Customer mode mode value 2-thread SMT 4-thread SMT Throughput performance, processor core utilization Vector Multimedia Extension/ Vector scalar extension (VSX) High-performance computing AltiVec (VMX) Affinity OFF by default...
Page 136 To take advantage of the hardware compression offload, AIX 6.1 Technology Level 8 is required. The Active Memory Expansion feature is not supported with the IBM i and Linux operating systems.
Page 137 The knee varies depending on how compressible the memory contents are. This example demonstrates the need for a case-by-case study of whether memory expansion can provide a positive return on investment. To help you do this study, a planning tool is included with AIX 6.1 Technology Level 4 SP2. With the tool, you can sample actual workloads and estimate how expandable the memory of a partition is and how much processor resource is needed.
Page 138 The key is specific to an individual server and is permanent. It cannot be moved to a separate server. This feature is ordered per server, independent of the number of partitions using memory expansion. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 139: Powervm
3.4 PowerVM The PowerVM platform is the family of technologies, capabilities, and offerings that deliver industry-leading virtualization on the IBM Power Systems. It is the umbrella branding term for Power Systems virtualization (Logical Partitioning, IBM Micro-Partitioning®, POWER Hypervisor, Virtual I/O Server, Live Partition Mobility, Workload Partitions, and more). As with Advanced Power Virtualization in the past, PowerVM is a combination of hardware enablement and value-added software.
Page 140: Powervm Editions
It includes unique features like Active Memory Sharing and Live Partition Mobility. Table 3-3 lists the editions of PowerVM that are available on Power 720 and Power 740. Table 3-3 Availability of PowerVM per POWER7+ processor technology-based server model...
Page 141 POWER Hypervisor. The shared processor partitions are created and managed by the HMC. The IBM Power 720 supports up to eight cores, and has the following maximums: Up to 8 dedicated partitions Up to 160 micropartitions (maximum 20 micropartitions per physical active core)
Page 142 When you create a logical partition, you can assign entire processors for dedicated use, or you can assign partial processing units from a shared processor pool. This setting defines the processing mode of the logical partition. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 143 . The operating system (AIX, IBM i, or Linux) sees one physical processor as two or four logical processors if the simultaneous multithreading feature is on. It can be turned off and on dynamically while the operating system is executing (for AIX, use the smtctl command;...
Page 144: Multiple Shared Processor Pools
. The virtual processors that exist within the set of micropartitions are monitored by the POWER Hypervisor, and processor capacity is managed according to user-defined attributes. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 145 If the Power Systems server is under heavy load, each micropartition within a shared processor pool is guaranteed its processor entitlement plus any capacity that it might be allocated from the reserved pool capacity if the micropartition is uncapped. If certain micropartitions in a shared processor pool do not use their capacity entitlement, the unused capacity is ceded and other uncapped micropartitions within the same shared processor pool are allocated the additional capacity according to their uncapped weighting.
Page 146 (above the entitled pool capacity), then the POWER Hypervisor redistributes some of the extra capacity to the uncapped micropartitions. This level of processor capacity management is sometimes referred to as Level capacity resolution. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 147 To redistribute unused processor capacity to uncapped micropartitions in multiple shared processor pools above the entitled pool capacity, the POWER Hypervisor uses a higher level of redistribution, Level Level capacity resolution: When allocating additional processor capacity in excess of the entitled pool capacity of the shared processor pool, the POWER Hypervisor takes the all micropartitions in the system regardless of the uncapped weights of...
Page 148: Virtual I/O Server
Because the Virtual I/O Server is an operating system-based appliance server, redundancy for physical devices attached to the Virtual I/O Server can be provided by using capabilities such as Multipath I/O and IEEE 802.3ad Link Aggregation. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 149 Installation of the Virtual I/O Server partition is performed from a special system backup DVD that is provided to clients who order any PowerVM edition. This dedicated software is only for the Virtual I/O Server (and IVM in case it is used) and is supported only in special Virtual I/O Server partitions.
Page 150 Ethernet adapter in the Virtual I/O Server. This leaves the SEA without the IP address, allowing for maintenance on the SEA without losing IP connectivity in case SEA failover is configured. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 151 Virtual SCSI Virtual SCSI is used to see a virtualized implementation of the SCSI protocol. Virtual SCSI is based on a client/server relationship. The Virtual I/O Server logical partition owns the physical resources and acts as a server or, in SCSI terms, a target device. The client logical partitions access the virtual SCSI backing storage devices provided by the Virtual I/O Server as clients.
Page 152 For more information about the System Planning Tool, see 3.5, “System Planning Tool” on page 149. IBM Systems Director agent and several preinstalled IBM Tivoli® agents, such as the following examples: – Tivoli Identity Manager, to allow easy integration into an existing Tivoli Systems Management infrastructure –...
Page 153: Powervm Live Partition Mobility
Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 5 Update 1 or later The Virtual I/O Server partition itself cannot be migrated. Requirement for IBM i: Live Partition Mobility on IBM i is not supported on POWER6 or POWER6+-based servers. Chapter 3. Virtualization...
Page 154 Virtual I/O Servers, which are designated as the mover service partitions for the mobile partition, to participate in active mobility. Other requirements include a similar time-of-day on each server, systems must not be running on battery power, IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 155: Active Memory Sharing
Active Memory Sharing is available only with the Enterprise edition of PowerVM. The physical memory of an IBM Power System can be assigned to multiple partitions in either dedicated or shared mode. The system administrator can assign some physical memory to a partition and some physical memory to a pool that is shared by other partitions.
Page 156: Active Memory Deduplication
Active Memory Sharing shared memory pool, increasing the system’s overall performance by avoiding paging. Deduplication can cause the hardware to incur fewer cache misses, which also leads to improved performance. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 157 Figure 3-14 shows the behavior of a system with Active Memory Deduplication enabled on its Active Memory Sharing shared memory pool. Duplicated pages from separate LPARs are stored only once, providing the Active Memory Sharing pool with more free memory. LPAR1 LPAR2 LPAR3...
Page 158 Enable and disable Active Memory Deduplication at an Active Memory Sharing pool level. Display deduplication metrics. Display and modify the deduplication table size. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 159: Dynamic Platform Optimizer
RHEL 6.2 or later 3.4.8 Dynamic Platform Optimizer Dynamic Platform Optimizer (DPO) is an IBM PowerVM feature that helps the user to configure the logical partition memory and CPU affinity on the POWER7+ processor-based servers, thus, improve performance under some workload scenarios.
Page 160: Dynamic System Optimizer
To explicitly protect partitions from DPO, use the -x or --xid options of the optmem command. For more information about DPO, see IBM PowerVM Virtualization Managing and Monitoring, SG24-7590. Note: Single-socket systems do not require DPO, and there is no performance penalty when accessing memory in the same card.
Page 161: Linux Support
Requires AIX 6.1 TL7 or later. g. Requires AIX 7.1 TL1 or later. h. Requires IBM i 7.1.4 or later. i. Requires IBM i 7.1 TR4 PTF group or later. Access this link for more details: http://bit.ly/11im9sa j. Only supports two threads.
Page 162 Tickless idle Improved energy utilization and virtualization of partially to fully idle partitions. See the following sources for information: Advance Toolchain: http://ibm.co/106nMYI Release notes: – ftp://linuxpatch.ncsa.uiuc.edu/toolchain/at/at05/suse/SLES_11/release_notes.a t05-2.1-0.html – ftp://linuxpatch.ncsa.uiuc.edu/toolchain/at/at05/redhat/RHEL5/release_notes.a t05-2.1-0.html IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 163: System Planning Tool
3.5 System Planning Tool The IBM System Planning Tool (SPT) helps you design systems to be partitioned with logical partitions. You can also plan for and design non-partitioned systems by using the SPT. The system plan resulting output of your design is called a , which is stored in a .sysplan file.
Page 164: New Powervm Version 2.2.2 Features
– Linked clones allow for sharing of partition images, which greatly accelerates partition deployment and reduces the storage usage. – System pool management for IBM workload provides increased flexibility and resource utilization. For further details about the appropriate System Director VMControl release, visit the following location: http://www.ibm.com/systems/software/director/vmcontrol...
Page 165: Chapter 4. Continuous Availability And Manageability
Serviceability: Indicates how well faults and their effects are communicated to system managers and how efficiently and nondisruptively the faults are repaired Each successive generation of IBM servers is designed to be more reliable than the previous server family. POWER7+ processor-based servers have new features to support new levels of virtualization, help ease administrative burden, and increase system utilization.
Page 166: Reliability
L3 cache into the processor chip for a higher integration of parts. Parts selection also plays a critical role in overall system reliability. IBM uses three grades of components; grade 3 is defined as industry standard (“off-the-shelf” components). As shown...
Page 167: Placement Of Components
POWER7+ cores, which include redundant bits in L1 instruction and data caches, L2 caches, and L2 and L3 directories Power 720 and Power 740 main memory DIMMs, which use an innovative ECC algorithm from IBM research that improves bit error correction and memory failures...
Page 168: Partition Availability Priority
In this way, exposure to both permanent and intermittent errors in the processor core is significantly reduced. Intermittent errors, often because of cosmic rays or other sources of radiation, are generally not repeatable. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 169: Memory Protection
POWER7+ processor first automatically retries the instruction. If the source of the error was truly transient, the instruction succeeds and the system can continue as before. Before POWER6: On IBM systems prior to POWER6, such an error typically caused a checkstop. Alternate processor retry Hard failures are more difficult, being permanent errors that will be replicated each time that the instruction is repeated.
Page 170 The remaining eight bytes are used to hold check bits and additional information about the ECC word. This innovative ECC algorithm from IBM research works on DIMM pairs on a rank basis. rank is a group of nine DRAM chips.) With this ECC code, the system can dynamically...
Page 171: Cache Protection
Upon reboot, if not enough memory is available to meet minimum partition requirements, the POWER Hypervisor will reduce the capacity of one or more partitions. Depending on the configuration of the system, the HMC Service IBM Focal Point™, OS Service Focal Point, or service processor will receive a notification of the failed component, and will trigger a service call.
Page 172: Special Uncorrectable Error Handling
4.2.5 Special Uncorrectable Error handling While it is rare, an uncorrectable data error can occur in memory or a cache. IBM POWER processor-based systems attempt to limit the impact of an uncorrectable error to the least possible disruption, using a well-defined strategy that first considers the data source.
Page 173: Pci Enhanced Error Handling
PHB chips can enable the system to recover transparently, without partition loss. 4.2.6 PCI Enhanced Error Handling IBM estimates that PCI adapters can account for a significant portion of the hardware-based errors on a large server. Whereas servers that rely on boot-time diagnostics can identify failing components to be replaced by hot-swap and reconfiguration, runtime errors pose a more significant problem.
Page 174: Serviceability
Figure 4-2 PCI Enhanced Error Handling 4.3 Serviceability IBM Power Systems design considers both IBM and the client’s needs. The IBM Serviceability Team has enhanced the base service capabilities and continues to implement a strategy that incorporates best-of-breed service characteristics from diverse IBM Systems offerings.
Page 175: Detecting
By delivering on these goals, IBM Power Systems servers enable faster and more accurate repair, and reduce the possibility of human error. Client control of the service environment extends to firmware maintenance on all of the POWER processor-based systems. This strategy contributes to higher systems availability with reduced maintenance costs.
Page 176 When an error is encountered in the core, the POWER7+ processor will first automatically retry the instruction. If the source of the error was truly transient, the instruction will succeed and the system will continue as before. On IBM systems prior to POWER6, this error would have caused a checkstop.
Page 177 Figure 4-3 shows this option using the ASMI. Figure 4-3 ASMI Auto Power Restart setting panel Partition availability priority Also available is the ability to assign availability priorities to partitions. If an alternate processor recovery event requires spare processor resources to protect a workload, when no other means of obtaining the spare resources is available, the system will determine which partition has the lowest priority and attempt to claim the needed resource.
Page 178 Error checkers IBM POWER processor-based systems contain specialized hardware detection circuitry that is used to detect erroneous hardware operations. Error checking hardware ranges from parity error detection coupled with processor instruction retry and bus retry, to ECC correction on caches and system buses.
Page 179 Figure 4-4 shows a schematic of a fault isolation register implementation. Error checkers Text Text Text Fault isolation register (FIR) Text Unique fingerprint of each Text captured error Text Text Text Text Text Text Text Service Text Processor L2 / L3 Text Text Log error...
Page 180: Diagnosing
Provide fault detection and problem isolation procedures. Support remote connection ability to be used by the IBM Remote Support Center or IBM Designated Service. Provide interactive intelligence within the diagnostics with detailed online failure information while connected to an IBM back-end system.
Page 181: Reporting
IBM service organization.This information will also contain the client contact information as defined in the IBM Electronic Service Agent (ESA) guided setup wizard.
Page 182 The data is formatted and prepared for transmission back to IBM either to assist the service support organization with preparing a service action plan for the service representative or for additional analysis.
Page 183: Notifying
After a Power Systems server detects, diagnoses, and reports an error to an appropriate aggregation point, it then takes steps to notify the client, and if necessary the IBM support organization. Depending on the assessed severity of the error and support agreement, this client notification might range from a simple notification to having field service personnel automatically dispatched to the client site with the correct replacement part.
Page 184: Locating And Servicing
After the repair, the LEDs shut off automatically when the problem is fixed. Guiding Light Midrange and high-end systems, including model 760 and later, are usually repaired by IBM Support personnel. In the Light Path LED implementation, the system can clearly identify components for...
Page 185 In other cases, a client might be in the process of moving or redesigning a data center or planning a major upgrade. At those times, flexibility is crucial. The IBM POWER7 and POWER7+ processor-based systems are designed for redundant or concurrently maintainable power, fans, physical storage, and I/O towers.
Page 186 Concurrent Firmware Maintenance (CFM) option when concurrent service packs are available. CFM is the IBM term used to describe the IBM Power Systems firmware updates that can be partially or wholly concurrent or nondisruptive. With the introduction of CFM, IBM is significantly increasing a client’s opportunity to stay on a given release level for longer...
Page 187: Manageability
Reattaching a loose or disconnected component Correcting a configuration error Removing or replacing an incompatible FRU Updating firmware, device drivers, operating systems, middleware components, and IBM applications after replacing a part Repair and verify procedures can be used by service representative providers who are familiar with the task and those who are not.
Page 188 Various repair procedures require connection to the ASMI. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 189 The ASMI is accessible through the management console. It is also accessible by using a web browser on a system that is connected directly to the service processor (in this case, either a standard Ethernet cable or a crossed cable) or through an Ethernet network. ASMI can also be accessed from an ASCII terminal, but this is only available while the system is in the platform powered-off mode.
Page 190 Figure 4-5 shows that the operator panel on a Power 720 and Power 740 is pulled out. Release Lever (slide left to release operator panel and pull out from chassis) Figure 4-5 Operator panel is pulled out from the chassis...
Page 191 (DST) as part of the IBM i licensed machine code (Licensed Internal Code) and System Service Tools (SST) as part of the IBM i operating system. DST can be run in dedicated mode (no operating system loaded). DST tools and diagnostics are a superset of those available under SST.
Page 192: Ibm Power Systems Firmware Maintenance
The firmware and microcode can be downloaded and installed either from an HMC, from a running partition, or from USB port number 1 on the rear of a Power 720 and Power 740, if that system is not managed by an HMC.
Page 193 If there is an HMC to manage the server, the HMC interface can be use to view the levels of server firmware and power subsystem firmware that are installed and that are available to download and install. Each IBM Power Systems server has the following levels of server firmware and power subsystem firmware: Installed level This level of server firmware or power subsystem firmware has been installed and will be installed into memory after the managed system is powered off and then powered on.
Page 194: Concurrent Firmware Update Improvements With Power7
IBM provides the Concurrent Firmware Maintenance (CFM) function on selected Power Systems. This function supports applying nondisruptive system firmware service packs to the system concurrently (without requiring a reboot operation to activate changes). For systems that are not managed by an HMC, the installation of system firmware is always disruptive.
Page 195: Electronic Services And Electronic Service Agent
Installation and use of IBM Electronic Service Agent for problem reporting enables IBM to provide better support and service for your IBM server. To learn how Electronic Services can work for you, visit the following site; an IBM ID is required: http://www.ibm.com/support/electronic...
Page 196: Power7+ Ras Features
System inventory information is stored in a secure database, which is protected behind an IBM firewall. It is viewable only by the customer and IBM. The customer's business applications or business data is never transmitted to IBM.
Page 197: Power-On Reset Engine
Table 4-2 gives an overview of features for continuous availability that are supported by the various operating systems running on power systems. In the table, the word “Most” means most functions. Table 4-2 Operating system support for RAS features IBM i RHEL RHEL SLES11...
Page 198 Storage Protection Keys Dynamic Trace Operating System FFDC Error log analysis Freeze mode of I/O Hub Service processor support for: Built-in self-tests (BIST) for logic and arrays Wire tests Component initialization IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 199 IBM i RHEL RHEL SLES11 RAS feature Serviceability Boot-time progress indicators Most Most Most Electronic Service Agent Call Home from management console Firmware error codes Operating system error codes Most Most Most Inventory collection Environmental and power warnings Hot-plug fans, power supplies...
Page 200 (CPU and memory) Redundant power for I/O drawers a. Not available on Power 710 and Power 730. b. Need mid-tier and large-tier POWER7 systems or later, including Power 770, 780, and 795. IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 201: Related Publications
The publications listed in this section are considered particularly suitable for a more detailed discussion of the topics covered in this paper. IBM Redbooks The following IBM Redbooks publications provide additional information about the topic in this document. Note that some publications referenced in this list might be available in softcopy only.
Page 202: Other Publications
Other publications These publications are also relevant as further information sources: IBM Power Facts and Features - IBM Power Systems, IBM PureFlex and Power Blades http://www.ibm.com/systems/power/hardware/reports/factsfeatures.html Specific storage devices supported for Virtual I/O Server http://www14.software.ibm.com/webapp/set2/sas/f/vios/documentation/datasheet.html IBM Power 710 server data sheet http://public.dhe.ibm.com/common/ssi/ecm/en/pod03048usen/POD03048USEN.PDF...
Page 203: Online Resources
Online resources These websites are also relevant as further information sources: IBM Power Systems Hardware Information Center http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/powersys/v3r1m5/index.jsp IBM System Planning Tool website http://www.ibm.com/systems/support/tools/systemplanningtool/ IBM Fix Central website http://www.ibm.com/support/fixcentral/ Power Systems Capacity on Demand website http://www.ibm.com/systems/power/hardware/cod/ Support for IBM Systems website http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/Overview?brandind=Hardware~Systems~Power...
Page 204 IBM Power 720 and 740 Technical Overview and Introduction...
Page 206 Features 8202-E4D This IBM Redpaper publication is a comprehensive guide covering the INTERNATIONAL IBM Power 720 and Power 740 servers that support IBM AIX, IBM i, and 8205-E6D servers TECHNICAL and Linux operating systems. The goal of this paper is to introduce the...

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