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Why do I need to upgrade to HP G6 Servers
20080521 sp3
20090308.140743 ie8
September, 2009
Intel® Xeon® processor 5500 series
Dual-processor ProLiant G6 servers feature Intel Xeon 5500 series quad-core processors based on the Intel® Microarchitecture, codenamed Nehalem. Xeon 5500 series processors are packed with new and enhanced technologies, such as an integrated memory controller, a three-level cache hierarchy, Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology, Intel® Turbo Boost Technology, and Dynamic Power Management. Through the modular processor design, these technologies become building blocks to construct a range of cost and performance options for ProLiant G6 servers. The new Intel® QuickPath Technology maximizes data transfer between the processors and other system components.
Intel QuickPath Technology
QuickPath Technology unleashes the performance of the new processor microarchitecture. It replaces the shared front-side bus and memory controller hub found in previous-generation architectures with high-speed, point-to-point interconnects directly linked to the processors and I/O chipset. Each Intel® QuickPath Interconnect (QPI) consists of two uni-directional links that operate simultaneously in each direction. Unlike a typical serial bus, each QPI transmits data packets in parallel across multiple lanes. Initially, each QPI has a total bandwidth up to 25.6 GB/s.
Integrated memory controller
One of the most notable improvements in Intel Xeon 5500 series processors is the integrated memory controller. The memory controller uses three channels (up to 1333-MHz each) to access dedicated DDR-3 memory sockets. This delivers a big performance improvement over previous architectures that provide only two memory channels and require processors to share a single pool of system memory. The three memory channels have a total bandwidth of 32 GB/s.
Three-level cache hierarchy
Each Intel Xeon 5500 series processor has a three-level cache hierarchy that consists of an on-core 64-KB L1 cache, a separate 256-KB L2 cache for each core, and a new inclusive, shared L3 cache of up to 8 MB. The L3 cache duplicates the data stored in the L1 and L2 caches of each core. This data duplication eliminates unnecessary searches, or snoops, to those caches and minimizes latency. Additional data tracking technology in the L3 cache ensures inter-core cache coherency. If one processor needs to access the cache or DDR-3 memory of the other processor, it uses the high-speed QPI between the two processors.
Dynamic Power Management
Automatically optimize the performance and power use of the processor, chipset, and memory based on business requirements. In essence, Dynamic Power Management allows Intel Xeon 5500 series processors to provide greater performance using the same amount of power as previous generation Intel processors. Or, it allows them to achieve performance equivalent to previous generation processors using less power.
DDR-3 memory technology
ProLiant G6 servers based on the Intel Xeon 5500 series processor support DDR-3 memory technology-DDR3-800, DDR3-1066, or DDR3-1333. DDR-3 dual in-line memory modules (DIMMs) provide the same reliability, availability, and serviceability as DDR-2 DIMMs; however, DDR3 DIMMs use less power, have lower latency, and deliver higher bandwidth. DDR-3 DIMMs operate at 1.5V, compared to 1.8V for DDR-2 DIMMs. This translates into more than 25% in power savings comparing the fastest DDR-2 DIMM (DDR2-800) to the slowest DDR-3 DIMM (DDR3-800). The power savings increase to almost 35% comparing the most commonly used DIMMs, DDR2-667 and DDR3-1066. It's important to note that there are two types of DDR-3 DIMMs-registered (RDIMMs) and unbuffered (UDIMMs)-and they cannot be used together in a system. ProLiant G6 servers support up to three RDIMMs per channel or up to two UDIMMs per channel. RDIMMs have larger capacity (up to 8 GB each) than UDIMMs (up to 2 GB each). Higher-end ProLiant G6 servers support up to 18 sockets. In these servers, RDIMMs enable total memory capacity of up to 144 GB, compared to 24 GB for UDIMMs. This makes RDIMMs the ideal choice for virtualization, while UDIMMs provide cost and power savings for less memory-intensive applications.
Smart Array controllers
The latest Smart Array controllers, introduced in January 2009, are capable of boosting the I/O performance of ProLiant G6 servers up to 200% over the previous generation of servers. The new modular design is the industry's first to scale from entry RAID solutions for small and medium businesses, to high end RAID functionality for larger enterprises, all through the simple addition of hardware and software expansion options. The latest Smart Array controllers have 3Gb SATA capability. Some ProLiant G6 servers support 6Gb SAS today, and the remaining G6 servers will support 6Gb SAS when a firmware upgrade becomes available in mid-2009. Other Smart Array controller features include SATA native command queuing, improved battery life, and the HP Smart Array Advanced Pack.
Improved battery life
The battery life for battery-backed write cache has been improved so that a single battery can last up to two days. Previously, two days of battery life required two batteries.
Thermal Logic technologies
HP is extending Thermal Logic technologies-originally offered on the HP BladeSystem-to all ProLiant ML, DL, and BL G6 servers. Thermal Logic technologies include Dynamic Power Capping, thermal sensors, and common slot power supplies. Together, these technologies double the power efficiency of ProLiant G6 servers compared to the previous generation of servers.
Dynamic Power Capping
Typically, processors are responsible for about one-third of the power consumed by a server, and indirectly drive the power use and heat generated by other server components. By controlling the processor's power use, you can control power use of the entire system. Dynamic Power Capping takes advantage of this processor-driven model and controls overall server power consumption using two separate mechanisms: changing the processor performance state (P-state) and throttling the processor clock.
Dynamic Power Capping allows an administrator to set a maximum power consumption level for one or more ProLiant G6 servers. Then it monitors each server and uses P-states and/or clock throttling to limit processor power use and control overall system power use. If a server exceeds the power use cap set by the administrator, Dynamic Power Capping lowers the server's power use in a controlled manner, regardless of changes in the server workload or environment. If a server experiences a sudden increase in workload, Dynamic Power Capping can bring it back under its power cap in less than half a second, preventing any surge in power demand that could trip a typical data center circuit breaker.1 This allows an administrator to electrically provision a power distribution unit (PDU) or a rack to something less than the combined faceplate power rating of all the servers in the rack. The first step in power capping is to measure the server's power use with Systems Insight Manager or Insight Power Manager; however, only Insight Power Manager monitors server power over time. Administrators can then set individual power caps for servers using HP iLO Advanced or Insight Power Manager (IPM). Using IPM, administrators can also set power caps for groups of ProLiant ML and DL servers and for groups of BladeSystem enclosures. To set a power cap for an individual enclosure, the administrator can use the BladeSystem Onboard Administrator or IPM. To control the power use of a group of servers, IPM separately sums the minimum power use, the maximum power use, and power supply ratings of servers in the group. It then displays these three totals in a graphic user interface. The interface allows the administrator to apply a group power cap that is between the total minimum power use and the total power supply rating. Then IPM assigns each server a proportion of the total power. These individual power caps will remain in place until an administrator changes them through the HP iLO Advanced or IPM interfaces. It gets even better for the HP BladeSystem. Enclosure Dynamic Power Capping is a special implementation of Dynamic Power Capping designed specifically for HP BladeSystem enclosures. Enclosure Dynamic Power Capping monitors the workloads of the individual server blades and then reapportions the individual power caps of the servers after a predetermined monitoring cycle. This allows the busiest server blades to draw more of the total enclosure power.
'Sea of Sensors'
In each ProLiant G6 server, up to 32 sensors monitor the internal server environment and make real-time adjustments to optimize power use. For example, the sensors can save power by adjusting fan speeds to prevent overcooling, and they can reduce power to unused I/O and memory sockets.
Common Slot Power Supplies
Many ProLiant G6 servers have common power slots that accommodate a range of power supplies. This new generation of universal, hot-pluggable power supplies reduces the number of spares and lowers power use by allowing you to right-size the power supply for the server configuration. There are three common slot AC power supplies: 460 watt, 750 watt and 1200 watt. The AC power supplies work with input voltages from 100 to 240 volts, making them usable worldwide. These power supplies provide up to 92% efficiency, which meets Climate Savers Gold qualifications. The new HP Power Advisor calculator removes the guesswork in selecting the right power supply for each server's configuration.
Onboard Administrator
HP Onboard Administrator, which is included at no additional charge with every ProLiant G6 server, is like having a programmable administrator inside each server. On HP ProLiant 100 series G6 servers, ProLiant Onboard Administrator Powered by iLO100 works hand-in-hand with HP Systems Insight Manager, RBSU, ORCA, and the embedded Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) to provide entry-level remote management and control.
Lights-Out remote administration
Use Integrated Remote Console to save time and money by interacting directly with the server OS or pre-OS environment without leaving your desk. Use Virtual Media, including Virtual Folders, to deliver emergency updates of remote servers. Take advantage of the multi-user console and video record and playback to more effectively collaborate with IT staff across multiple locations
Virtualization technologies
HP Insight Dynamics-VSE
HP ID-VSE is the first integrated solution that lets you analyze and optimize physical and virtual resources in the same way. It makes the infrastructure adaptive, with the freedom and flexibility of virtualization delivered across the physical infrastructure.
Virtual Connect Flex-10 technology
Virtual Connect Flex-10 is a hardware-based solution that allows you to obtain maximum virtual machine (VM) density through finer control of 10 gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) networking bandwidth. As you add VMs to a single physical ProLiant server blade, Flex-10 allows you to partition each 10GbE network connection and regulate the speed of each partition based on the performance requirements of each VM. Manage it all more easily with Virtual Connect Enterprise Manager which lets system administrators add, replace, and recover servers across the data center in minutes without impacting LAN and SAN availability. This flexible change-ready infrastructure also lays the foundation for the logical server management and other capabilities delivered with HP Insight Dynamics-VSE and HP Insight Orchestration software.
Flex-10 technology enables Virtual Connect to configure a single 10Gb network port of a server blade to represent four physical network interface controller (NIC) devices (also called FlexNICs) with a total bandwidth of 10 Gb/s. These four FlexNICs appear to the operating system (OS) as discrete NICs, each with its own driver. Each dual-port Flex-10 device supports up to eight FlexNICs, four on each physical port. Each Flex-10 Interconnect Module can support up to 64 FlexNICs. Using the 9
Virtual Connect interface, you can adjust the bandwidth available to each FlexNIC from 100Mb to 10Gb in 100Mb increments. The advantages of using Flex-10 technology are significant. The 10GbE infrastructure becomes more cost efficient and easier to manage because Flex-10 allows you to fully utilize the 10-Gb bandwidth. The fact that Flex-10 is hardware based means that multiple FlexNICs are added without the additional processor overhead or latency associated with server virtualization. Flex-10 also reduces infrastructure costs by eliminating the need for some server NIC mezzanine cards and interconnect modules.
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Updated September 1, 2009