Business Strategy > Migration

The Next Great Transition

Preparing for the new POWER7 processor-based server line

On Feb. 8, IBM announced another major step in the roadmap for the Power Systems servers. In the announcement, they provided details on the new POWER7 processor-based line of servers and some new software announcements. Adding a POWER7 processor-based server to your IT center can be simple, with these data-center preparation tips.

The four servers announced are the Power 750, Power 755, Power 770 and Power 780. The 750 and 755 are both 4U servers while the 770 and 780 are modular node-based systems (4U per node) that are built and linked together in a similar fashion to the POWER6 processor-based Power 570 servers. All of the new Power servers take advantage of the new features in the POWER7 chips. Some features were announced as being available immediately, whilst others will be merged into the product line in the next six months. It’s critical the configurations be correct, as there will be no upgrade (MES) functions available in the configurator until April, and those upgrades won’t ship until June. Solutions-assurance reviews should be completed on all POWER7 processor-based servers to avoid waiting for upgrades if something is forgotten.

The Power 770 and 780 by default include some features that clients have been requesting. For instance, the backplane on each node is now split into two sets of three disks and the media is floated. You no longer need to add cards in order to support internal VIO (virtual I/O) server disks. Thus, all of the slots are now available for client LPAR use. This should be factored into planning data sheets. For the Power 750 this isn’t the case; the backplane isn’t split by default and customers will still need to add a card and cable to perform that split. Be aware that splitting the backplane on the 750 means you can’t attach a 5886 I/O drawer to the serial-attached SCSI (SAS) external port. The Power 755 doesn’t have a split backplane option and has no virtualization capability, as it’s designed as a high-performance computing (HPC) node. Additionally, it’s now possible to use the built-in serial ports and USB ports on the Power 770 and 780. The 750 has two PCI-X and three PCI-E slots, whereas each node on the 770 and 780 has six PCI-E slots. There are no PCI-X slots on the Power 770 or 780. This means customers should plan to move any PCI-X cards to I/O drawers that support PCI-X and that are supported on POWER7.

Planning for new POWER7 Servers

It should be noted that all servers require 200-volt power. There will be no 110-volt options on the Power 750 through 780, so power options in the data center need to be planned accordingly. Additionally, the cable that connects the Power 780 nodes together is a thicker cable and has specific rack requirements. On the 7014-T42 racks, a thin trim kit is required and it’s also possible a new door may be required for the Power 780; more details on this will be available shortly. The mandatory technical delivery assurance (TDA) on the Power 770 and 780 will provide details on the exact features that will need to be ordered. Non-IBM racks will need to be checked to ensure they meet the requirements for these cables. All four servers will go into 19-inch racks and will have very close to the same power-distribution unit (PDU), cooling and power requirements as the current POWER6 processor-based servers; additional details are in the solutions assurance documents.

The Power 770 and higher mandate a HMC, and all of the POWER7 processor-based servers will require a HMC that is a model CR3 or C05 or higher. Additionally, should you need to run a significant number of LPARs or to have IBM Systems Director integrate with the HMC in the future, then it’s recommended those HMCs be upgraded by adding 2GB of memory to bring them up to 3GB. The most recent HMCs (CR5 & C07) have 4GB of memory and won’t require upgrades. I normally configure any HMC with at least 3GB of memory, as it improves performance when you have multiple HMC users on the system. It’s an inexpensive upgrade and is well worth putting in place. If HMCs are older than the CR3, they’ll need to be replaced with more recent HMCs in order to support the POWER7 processor-based server line. Additionally, the HMC must be running v7r710 of the HMC software, at a minimum. Keep in mind when the HMC is upgraded (including the software) it’s important to check the matrix that shows minimum firmware and operating system versions for any servers currently attached to that HMC; this will help avoid problems.

Next page: >>