Hardware Architecture

C H A P T E R 5

This chapter provides information about the hardware architecture.

This chapter contains the following topics:

Section 5.1, Block Diagram

Section 5.2, The AMD Opteron Processor

Section 5.3, Memory

Section 5.4, Networking and I/O

Section 5.5, I/O Components

5.1 Block Diagram

FIGURE 5-1 Block Diagram

5.2 The AMD Opteron Processor

AMD Opteron processors with Direct Connect Architecture include several new features, including seamless quad-core upgradability and DDR2 memory. AMD Opteron processors with DDR2 memory feature a common core architecture that is consistent across 1-way, 2-way, and 8-way systems. Features of the second generation 2.2-GHz AMD Opteron include:

x64 Architecture (64-bit extensions) with AMD Direct Connect Architecture using HyperTransport technology supports simultaneous 32-bit and 64-bit computing

Three HyperTransport links supporting up to 24 Gbyte/sec peak bandwidth per processor

Integrated 128-bit wide DDR memory controller that reduces latency and increases performance

Individual 1-MB L2 cache per core

Low power usage and cooling requirements - AMD Opteron processors running at 68W offer efficient heat dissipation without reducing performance

AMD PowerNow! technology can deliver performance on demand while minimizing power consumption

DDR2-based systems can upgrade to Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors when they are available, within existing power and thermal envelopes

NEBS certified

Socket F 1207-pin

The following processors are supported on the Sun Netra CP3220 blade server:

CPU, Opteron, Dual-Core, 2.2GH 68 W, NFP

CPU, Opteron, Quad-Core, 1.8 GHZ 79W, NFP

FIGURE 5-2 AMD Opteron Processors Block Diagram

5.3 Memory

The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server supports 1-Gbyte, 2-Gbyte, and 4-Gbyte registered DDR2-667 memory, for up to 32 Gbytes memory total. When four DIMM slots or less are populated, the DIMM clock rate will be set to the max clock rate of up to 333 Mhz. When six or eight DIMMs slots are populated, the DIMM clock rate will be set to a max clock rate of up to 267 Mhz.

The AMD Opteron’s processor’s memory controller works in 144-bit mode ECC operation. For optimal performance, memory DIMMs must be installed in like pairs. The controller supports 1 bit per byte ECC and supports DDR2 667 registered DRR SDRAM modules. For more information on supported DIMM configurations, see Section 2.3.6.1, DIMM Requirements.

Additional features of the Sun Netra CP3220 blade server’s memory architecture include:

Dedicated onboard 128-bit wide DDR memory controller

Very low profile (0.72 inch) DIMM support

Memory bandwidth up to 5.3 Gbyte/sec

DDR2 power requirements 4.4W to 7.0W (1.8V)

5.4 Networking and I/O

Networking and I/O are provided by the following chips and interconnects:

nVidia MCP55 (southbridge)

PCI Express Bus

Dual BIOS

Trusted Platform Module

Broadcom 5715C Gbit Ethernet chip

Sun Sun 10 GbE Multithreaded Networking ASIC Dual 10-Gbit + Dual 1-Gbit Ethernet chip

5.4.1 nVidia MCP55

The nVidia MCP55 media and communication processors (MCP) are based on a high-performance, scalable architecture with a low power design and low footprint optimized for power-constrained rack and blade servers. nVidia’s HyperTransport design integrated tightly with the AMD Opteron Direct Connect architecture to deliver 32-bit and 64-bit performance.

The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server uses one nVidia MCP55 for:

8 lanes of PCIe to the Zone 3 Connectors

8 lanes of PCIe to Sun 10 GbE Multithreaded Networking ASIC

4 lanes of PCIe to the base fabric

4 lanes of PCIe to each AMC slot

ATA controller to the compact flash slot

2 USB ports

Low Pin Count (LPC) bus to the BIOS chips, H8 and TPM

2 RGMII ports to the front panel and RTM for serial management

5.4.2 PCI Express Bus

PCI Express 1.0 (PCIe) is a high-speed, point-to-point dual simplex chip interconnect. It is the latest extension of the PCI bus. PCI e operates at 2.5 GHz and supports land widths of x1, x2, x4, x8, x16, and x32. Additional features include:

Serial point-to-point interconnect between two devices

Each lane supports two differential signal pairs, one pair for each data direction

2.5-Gbyte/sec transfer rate

Scalable performance based on the number of lanes implemented per interconnect

5.4.3 Dual BIOS

The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server provides dual 1-Mbyte BIOS chips that support redundant BIOS images for increased reliability. The default chip acts as the primary BIOS chip and automatically selected for update during a firmware upgrade. The secondary BIOS chip retains the original BIOS image, and can be used through manual configuration if the primary BIOS is corrupt.

5.4.4 Trusted Platform Module (TPM)

The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server provides a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) chip, which enables various security features, including hardware and software authentication. This chip is reserved for future use on the Sun Netra CP3220 blade server.

5.4.5 Broadcom 5715C Gigabit Ethernet

The Broadcom 5715C Gigabit Ethernet chip used on the Sun Netra CP3220 blade server provides two 10/100/1000 MBASE-T interfaces to the Zone 2 connectors. It incorporates the media access control (MAC) and physical (PHY) layer functions for the two LANs used as the ATCA base fabric.

5.4.6 Sun Dual 10-Gbit Ethernet/Quad 1-Gbit RGMII Network Interface Chip (Sun 10 GbE Multithreaded Networking ASIC)

The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server is equipped with one Sun Dual 10-Gbit Ethernet/Quad 1-Gbit RGMII Network Interface chip that is specifically designed to support multicore and multithreaded processor with minimum CPU load while maximizing network I/O thoughput.

Sun 10 GbE Multithreaded Networking ASIC provides two 10-Gbit XAUI Ethernet connections to the ATCA back plane extended fabric, where four lanes are driven at 3.125 Gbyte/sec (if the ATCA switch supports 10-Gbit Ethernet) or a single lane at 1.25 Gbyte/sec if the switch is a 1-Gbit Ethernet device.

Sun 10 GbE Multithreaded Networking ASIC also provides two 1 Gbit RGMII ethernet connections to the Broadcom BCM5482H chip, which converts to SERDES and routes the SERDES signals through and 8 port switch and providing two 1Gb LANS to Zone 3-RTM and to each AMC slot.

5.5 I/O Components

5.5.1 AMC Slots

The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server contains two AMC slots, B1 and B2, which are available from the front panel. Both slots are single-width, mid-height slots. If needed, AMC I/O connectivity can be accessed from the front panel (depending on the AMC card installed) and through the optional ARTM.

Each slot has one hot-plug connector for the AMC cards. The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server conforms to the PICMG Advanced Mezzanine Card AMC.0 specification R1.0 ECR_002 D0.9, June 29, 2006, and supports AMC.1 Type 4E2 cards, as defined by the same specification.

5.5.2 EIDE/ATA for Compact Flash

EIDE is an enhanced IDE controller, implemented through the nVidia MCP55 chip. The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server contains one on-board 50-pin Type II Compact Flash connector, for use with an optional compact flash card. The location of the compact flash connector allows access to this component only when the blade server is removed from the ATCA chassis.

5.5.3 SAS/SATA

The Sun Netra CP3220 blade server supports AMC cards with SAS/SATA drives under the following conditions:

AMC cards with drives must use Port 2 or 3 SAS/SATA connections

Sun Netra Dual SAS RTM is installed with the Sun Netra CP3220 blade server

There is no native support for SAS or SATA drives on the Sun Netra CP3220 blade server.