POWER7 information

PCI adapter slot priorities for the 8233-E8B

Some adapters must be placed in specific Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI), Peripheral Component Interconnect-X (PCI-X), or PCI Express (PCIe) slots to function correctly or to perform optimally. Use this information to determine where to install PCI adapters.

PCI slot descriptions

Figure 1. Rear view of system with location codes. Table 1 shows the rear view of the system with the location codes for the PCI and GX adapter slots.
Rear view of system with location codes
Table 1. PCI slot locations and descriptions
Slot number Location code Description PHB Adapter size
Slot 1 P1-C1 PCIe x8 PCIe PHB0 Short
P1-C7 GX++    
Slot 2 P1-C2 PCIe x8 PCIe PHB1 Short
P1-C8 GX+    
Slot 3 P1-C3 PCIe x8 PCIe PHB3 Long
Slot 4 P1-C4 PCI-X DDR, 64-bit, 266 MHz PCI-X PHB0 Long
Slot 5 P1-C5 PCI-X DDR, 64-bit, 266 MHz PCI-X PHB1 Long
  • Slot 1 can be used for either a PCIe x8 adapter in slot P1-C1, or a GX+ adapter in slot P1-C7.

    P1-C7 is not active on a single processor card system.

    P1-C7 provides higher bandwidth for a GX adapter than P1-C8. Use P1-C7 for the higher performance GX adapter or where the highest aggregate bandwidth is needed.

  • Slot 2 can be used for either a PCIe x8 adapter in connector P1-C2, or a GX+ adapter in connector P1-C8.
  • All slots support enhanced error handling (EEH).

PCI and PCI-X expansion units

I/O expansion units are used to increase the maximum number of adapters that the 8233-E8B server can support. The feature 5796 Expansion unit is supported on systems running AIX® or Linux operating systems. The system can be configured to support up to eight I/O expansion units.

Note: For optimum performance, you must limit the total number of expansion units containing high-bandwidth and extra-high bandwidth adapters. See Performance notes.

5796 expansion units attach to a GX adapter installed in one or both of the two GX slots available in the system unit. A single processor system supports one 12X Channel Adapter with up to 4 drawers attached. A two processor or larger system supports two GX Adapters, with up to 4 drawers attached to each GX adapter.

PCIe expansion units

PCIe expansion units 5802 and 5877 are supported on the system running AIX, IBM® i, or Linux operating systems. The system can be configured to support up to four I/O expansion units.

Restriction: A single GX adapter that connects one, two, or both of the 5802 or 5877 expansion units cannot have anything else connected to that adapter.
Note: For optimum performance, you must limit the total number of expansion units containing high-bandwidth and extra-high bandwidth adapters. See Performance notes.

The expansion units attach to a GX adapter installed in one or both of the two GX slots available in the system unit.

  • A single processor system supports one GX adapter with up to two drawers attached.
  • A 2 - 4 processor system supports two GX adapters, with up to two drawers attached to each adapter for a total of four drawers.

Maximum number of supported adapters

The 8233-E8B server supports up to four POWER7® processor cards with 8-core, 16-core, 24-core and 32-core configurations. Unless otherwise noted in the tables that follow this list, the maximum number of adapters allowed are shown in this list:

  • One processor system:
    • No I/O expansion unit: 3 PCIe and 2 PCI-X DDR
    • System with four 5796 I/O expansion units: 2 PCIe and 26 PCI-X DDR
    • System with two 5802 or 5877 expansion units: 22 PCIe and 2 PCI-X DDR
  • Two to four processor system:
    • No I/O expansion unit: 3 PCIe and 2 PCI-X DDR
    • System with eight 5796 I/O expansion units: 1 PCIe and 50 PCI-X DDR
    • System with four 5802 or 5877 expansion units: 41 PCIe and 2 PCI-X DDR
Note: For optimum performance, you must limit the total number of expansion units containing high-bandwidth and extra-high bandwidth adapters. See Performance notes.

PCI and PCI-X adapters

Use this information to identify slot placement priorities. Unless otherwise noted in the table, the maximum number of adapters supported is listed in Maximum number of supported adapters.

Table 2. Adapter slot priorities and maximums for PCI and PCI-X adapters
Feature code Description System unit slot priority Maximum number of adapters supported
2943
8-port Asynchronous EIA-232E/RS-422A PCI Adapter (FC 2943; CCIN 3-B)
  • PCI bus
  • 8 Async ports
  • OS support: AIX operating system
 4, 5 18 per system
5723
2-port Asynchronous EIA-232 PCI Adapter (FC 5723; CCIN 5723)
  • PCI adapter
  • 2-port EIA-232 asynchronous serial communications
  • 16C850 UART equivalent
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 18 per system
1905
4 Gb Single-port Fibre Channel PCI-X 2.0 DDR Adapter (FC 1905; CCIN 1910)
  • PCI-X 2.0a, PCI 3.0, PCI-X Mode 2 - 266 MHz, PCI-X Mode 1 - 133 MHz, PCI - 66 MHz
  • High-speed data networking
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
1910
4 Gb Dual-port Fibre Channel PCI-X 2.0 DDR Adapter (FC 1910; CCIN 1910)
  • PCI-X 2.0a, PCI 3.0, PCI-X Mode 2 - 266 MHz, PCI-X Mode 1 - 133 MHz, PCI - 66 MHz
  • High-speed data networking
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
19771
2 Gb Fibre Channel PCI-X Adapter (FC 1977; CCIN 197E)
  • PCI-X, 64-bit
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
57161
2 Gb Fibre Channel PCI-X Adapter (FC 5716; CCIN 280B)
  • PCI-X, 64-bit
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
57492
4 Gb Dual-port Fibre Channel PCI-X 2.0 DDR Adapter (FC 5749; CCIN 576B)
  • Short, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • OS support: IBM i operating system
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • 64-bit slot required
  • Recommended in DDR slot
  • Maximum of 24 adapters
  • Maximum of four per enclosure
  • Maximum of two per PCI host bridge
  • OS support: IBM i operating system
 4, 5 50 per system
5758
4 Gb Single-port Fibre Channel PCI-X 2.0 DDR Adapter (FC 5758; CCIN 1910)
  • PCI-X 2.0a, PCI 3.0, PCI-X Mode 2 - 266 MHz, PCI-X Mode 1 - 133 MHz, PCI - 66 MHz
  • High-speed data networking
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
57592
4 Gb Dual-port Fibre Channel PCI-X 2.0 DDR Adapter (FC 5759; CCIN 5759)
  • Short, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • High-speed data networking
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
1980
POWER® GXT135P Graphics Accelerator with digital support (FC 1980; CCIN 1980)
  • 32-bit PCI interface
  • 128-bit graphics processor
  • 8-bit or 24-bit color modes
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 8 per system
28491
GXT135P Graphics Accelerator with digital support (FC 2849; CCIN 2849)
  • Short, 32 or 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • High bandwidth
  • Not hot-pluggable
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 8 per system
1954
4-port 10/100/1000 Base-TX PCI-X adapter (FC 1954)
  • PCI-X 1.0a
  • Full-height, 64-bit
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 32 per system
1978
IBM Gigabit Ethernet-SX PCI-X Adapter (FC 1978)
  • 64-bit PCI-X
  • One full-duplex 1000 Base-SX fiber connection to a gigabit Ethernet LAN
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
1979
IBM 10/100/1000 Base-TX Ethernet PCI-X Adapter (FC 1979)
  • 64-bit PCI-X
  • One full-duplex 10/100/1000 Base-TX UTP connection to a gigabit Ethernet
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
19831
2-port 10/100/1000 Base-TX Ethernet PCI-X Adapter (FC 1983; CCIN 5706)
  • Two full-duplex 10/100/1000 Base-TX UTP connections to gigabit Ethernet LANs
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
1986
1-Gb iSCSI TOE PCI-X Adapter (FC 1986; CCIN 573B)
  • Copper media adapter
  • iSCSI TOE (TCP/IP offload engine)
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 27 per system
1987
1-Gb iSCSI TOE PCI-X Adapter (FC 1987; CCIN 573C)
  • Optical media adapter
  • iSCSI TOE (TCP/IP offload engine)
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 27 per system
5700
IBM Gigabit Ethernet-SX PCI-X Adapter (FC 5700; CCIN 5700)
  • One full-duplex 1000 Base-SX fiber connection to a gigabit Ethernet LAN
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5
5701
IBM 10/100/1000 Base-TX Ethernet PCI-X Adapter (FC 5701; CCIN 5701)
  • One full-duplex 10/100/1000 Base-TX UTP connection to a gigabit Ethernet
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5
57061
2-port 10/100/1000 Base-TX Ethernet PCI-X Adapter (FC 5706; CCIN 5706)
  • Short, 32-bit or 64-bit, 3.3 V or 5 V
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
57131
1 Gb-TX iSCSI TOE PCI-X Adapter (FC 5713; CCIN 573B)
  • Short, 32-bit or 64-bit, 3.3 V or 5 V
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 42 per system
57141
1 Gb iSCSI TOE PCI-X on Optical Media Adapter (FC 5714; CCIN 573C)
  • Short, 32-bit or 64-bit, 3.3 V or 5 V
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 42 per system
57211
10 Gb Ethernet-SR PCI-X 2.0 DDR Adapter (FC 5721; CCIN 573A)
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating system
 4, 5 32 per system
57221
10 Gb Ethernet-LR PCI-X 2.0 DDR Adapter (FC 5722; CCIN 573A)
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 32 per system
5740
4-port 10/100/1000 Base-TX PCI-X adapter (FC 5740; CCIN 1954)
  • PCI-X 1.0a
  • Full-height, 64-bit
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 32 per system
2738
2-port USB PCI Adapter (FC 2738; CCIN 28EF)
  • Short, 32-bit
  • 3.3 or 5 V
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 8 per system
4764
PCI-X Cryptographic Coprocessor (FC 4764; CCIN 4764)
  • Short, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 32 per system
5900
PCI-X DDR Dual-x4 3 Gb SAS Adapter (FC 5900; CCIN 572A)
  • Short, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • Supports a dual controller mode in a multi-initiator configuration
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
59022
PCI-X DDR Ext Dual-x4 3 Gb SAS RAID Adapter (FC 5902; CCIN 572B)
  • Long, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • The adapter must be connected and configured in a dual controller mode in a multi-initiator configuration, and this configuration requires that the adapters are installed in pairs.
  • This adapter supports disk expansion units. This adapter does not support media expansion units.
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
59042
PCI-X DDR 1.5 GB cache SAS RAID Adapter (FC 5904; CCIN 572F, 575C)
  • Long, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • No blind-swap cassette
  • Double-wide adapter requires two adjacent slots:
    • 572F is the CCIN on the SAS controller side of the double-wide adapter.
    • 575C is the CCIN on the write-cache side of the double-wide adapter.
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4 1 per system
59082
PCI-X DDR 1.5 GB cache SAS RAID Adapter (FC 5908; CCIN 572F, 575C)
  • Long, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • Generation 3 blind-swap cassette
  • Double-wide adapter requires two adjacent slots:
    • 572F is the CCIN on the SAS controller side of the double-wide adapter.
    • 575C is the CCIN on the write-cache side of the double-wide adapter.
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4 16 per system
59122
PCI-X DDR Dual-x4 3 Gb SAS Adapter (FC 5912; CCIN 572A)
  • Short, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • Supports a dual controller mode in a multi-initiator configuration
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
1912
PCI-X DDR 2.0 Dual Channel Ultra320 SCSI Adapter (FC 1912; CCIN 571A)
  • Short, 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linuxoperating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
57361
PCI-X DDR 2.0 Dual Channel Ultra320 SCSI Adapter (FC 5736; CCIN 571A)
  • Short, 32-bit or 64-bit, 3.3 V
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 50 per system
57782
PCI-X Dual Channel Ultra320 SCSI RAID Adapter with Auxiliary Write Cache (double-wide) (FC 5778; CCIN 571F)
  • Long, 64-bit, 3.3 V, 266 MHz
  • Dual-mode capable adapter
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • Double-wide adapter, requires two, adjacent slots. The SCSI controller side of the adapter pair requires a 64-bit slot. The controller side is the side with the external SCSI connectors.
  • When used in a logical partition (LPAR) environment, this double-wide adapter must have both slots of the adapter assigned to the same logical partition. When using DLPAR, both slots of the adapter must be managed together.
  • Because of the complexity of this adapter, concurrent maintenance is not supported through the HMC. Concurrent maintenance must be done from the Hardware Service Manager (HSM).
  • OS support: IBM i operating system
 4 1
57822
PCI-X Dual Channel Ultra320 SCSI RAID Adapter with Auxiliary Write Cache (double-wide) (FC 5782; CCIN 571F and 575B)
  • Long, 64-bit, 3.3 V, 266 MHz
  • Dual-mode capable adapter
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • Double-wide adapter, requires two adjacent slots. The SCSI controller side of the adapter pair requires a 64-bit slot. The controller side is the side with the external SCSI connectors.
  • OS support: IBM i operating system
 4 1 per system
2947
IBM ARTIC960Hx 4-port Multiprotocol PCI Adapter (FC 2947)
  • 32-bit PCI
  • Provides 4-ports with different protocols, EIA-232, EIA530, RS-449, X.21, or V.35
  • OS support: AIX operating system
 4, 5 8 per system
2962
2-port Multiprotocol PCI Adapter (FC 2962)
  • Provides a two-port connection to X.25 packet switched networks
  • Two high-speed WAN connections
  • OS support: AIX operating system
 4, 5 20 per system
6805
PCI 2-Line WAN IOA (FC 6805; CCIN 2742)
  • Short, 32-bit, 66 MHz
  • No IOP
  • OS support: IBM i and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 81 per system
6808
PCI Quad Modem IOA (FC 6808; CCIN 2805)
  • Long, 32-bit, 66 MHz
  • Non-CIM
  • OS support: IBM i operating system
 4, 5 50 per system
6809
PCI Quad Modem IOA (FC 6809; CCIN 2805)
  • Long, 32-bit, 66 MHz
  • CIM
  • OS support: IBM i operating system
 4, 5 50 per system
6833
PCI 2-Line WAN with Modem No IOP (FC 6833; CCIN 2793)
  • Two lines per port WAN with modem adapter
  • Non-CIM
  • OS support: IBM i and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 81 per system
6834
PCI 2-Line WAN with Modem No IOP CIM (FC 6834; CCIN 2793)
  • Two lines per port WAN with modem adapter
  • CIM
  • OS support: IBM i and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 81 per system

1 High-bandwidth adapter. See the Performance notes before installing this adapter.

2Extra-high bandwidth adapter. See the Performance notes before installing this adapter.

PCIe adapters

Use this information to identify slot placement priorities. Unless otherwise noted in the table, the maximum number of adapters supported is listed in Maximum number of supported adapters.

Table 3. Adapter slot priorities and maximums for PCIe adapters
Feature code Description System unit slot priority Maximum number of adapters supported
5289
PCIe 2-port Async EIA-232 PCIe 1X LPC Adapter (FC 5289; CCIN 57D4)
  • Short, x1
  • PCIe 1.1
  • Two ports through RJ45 by using the DB9 connector
  • EIA-232 Compatible
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 12 per system
5785
4 Port Async EIA-232 PCIe Adapter (FC 5785; CCIN 57D2)
  • Short, x1
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 18 per system
57352
8 Gb PCI Express Dual-port Fibre Channel Adapter (FC 5735; CCIN 577D)
  • Short, x8
  • Extra-high bandwidth: If only one port is planned to be active in normal operation, the adapter is counted as an extra-high bandwidth adapter. If both ports are planned to be active, the adapter must be treated as two extra-high bandwidth adapters.
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3
  • 41 per system
  • If only one port is planned to be active in normal operation, the adapter is counted as an extra-high bandwidth adapter. If both ports are planned to be active, the adapter needs to be treated as two extra-high bandwidth adapters.
57731
4 Gb PCI Express Single Port Fibre Channel Adapter (FC 5773; CCIN 5773)
  • Short, x4
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
57742
4 Gb PCI Express Dual-port Fibre Channel Adapter (FC 5774; CCIN 5774)
  • Short, x4
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
5748
POWER GXT145 PCI Express Graphics Accelerator (FC 5748; CCIN 5748)
  • Short, x1
  • Not hot-pluggable
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 8 per system
57082
10 Gb FCoE PCIe Dual-port Adapter (FC 5708; CCIN 2B3B)
  • Low-profile capable
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • PCIe 2.0 adapter with x8 generation 1
  • Convergence enhanced Ethernet (CEE) supported
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i with VIOS, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3
  • 32 per system
  • If only one port is planned to be active in normal operation, the adapter is counted as an extra-high bandwidth adapter. If both ports are planned to be active, the adapter needs to be treated as two extra-high bandwidth adapters.
57171
4-port 10/100/1000 Base-TX PCI Express Adapter (FC 5717; CCIN 5717)
  • Short, x4
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 32 per system
57322
10 Gb Ethernet-CX4 PCI Express Adapter (FC 5732; CCIN 2B43)
  • Short, x8
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 32 per system
57671
2-port 10/100/1000 Base-TX Ethernet PCI Express Adapter (FC 5767; CCIN 5767)
  • Short, x4
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
57681
2-port Gigabit Ethernet-SX PCI Express Adapter (FC 5768; CCIN 5768)
  • Short, x4
  • High bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
57692
10 Gb Ethernet-SR PCI Express Adapter (FC 5769; CCIN 2B44)
  • Short, full-high, x8
  • Regular-height
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 32 per system
57722
10 Gb Ethernet-LR PCI Express Adapter (FC 5772; CCIN 576E)
  • Short, x8
  • Regular-height card
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 32 per system
5899
PCIe2 4-port 1 GbE Adapter (FC 5899; CCIN 576F)
  • Regular-height adapter
  • PCIe generation 1 or generation 2, x4
  • High bandwidth
  • Four-port 1 Gb Ethernet
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 4, 5 41 per system
2738
2-port USB PCI Adapter (FC 2738; CCIN 28EF)
  • Short, 32-bit
  • 3.3 or 5 V
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 8 per system
4807
PCIe Cryptographic Coprocessor (FC 4807; CCIN 4765)
  • PCIe x4, full-height, half-length
  • OS support: AIX, and IBM i operating systems
 1, 2, 3 2 per system
4808
PCIe Cryptographic Coprocessor (FC 4808; CCIN 4765)
  • Generation 3 blind-swap cassette
  • PCIe x4, full-height, half-length
  • OS support: AIX and IBM i operating systems
 1, 2, 3 10 per system
2054
PCIe RAID and SSD SAS Adapter 3 Gb Low-profile (FC 2054; CCIN 57CD)
  • Short, x8
  • Double-wide, low-profile adapter, requires two slots
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
  • VIOS attachment requires version 2.2, or later
 1 1 per system
2055
PCIe RAID and SSD SAS Adapter 3 Gb with Blind-Swap Cassette (FC 2055; CCIN 57CD)
  • Short, x8
  • Double-wide, low-profile adapter, requires two slots
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
  • VIOS attachment requires version 2.2, or later
 1 20 per system
5805
PCIe 380 MB Cache Dual - x4 3 Gb SAS RAID Adapter (FC 5805; CCIN 574E)
  • Short, dual x4
  • SAS RAID adapter
  • Installed in pairs
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
59012
PCIe Dual - x4 SAS Adapter (FC 5901; CCIN 57B3)
  • Short
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
59032
PCIe 380 MB Cache Dual x4 3 Gb SAS RAID Adapter (FC 5903; CCIN 574E)
  • Short
  • Extra-high bandwidth
  • Installed in pairs
  • OS support: AIX and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
59132
PCIe2 1.8 GB Cache RAID SAS Tri-port 6 Gb Adapter (FC 5913; CCIN 57B5)
  • Full-height, short, PCIe2 x8
  • Transfer speed of 6 Gbps
  • Write cache backup of 1.8 GB
  • One PCIe x8 slot per adapter
  • Adapters are installed in pairs
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 34 per system
2893
PCI Express 2-Line WAN with Modem (FC 2893; CCIN 576C)
  • Short, x4
  • Non-CIM
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system
2894
PCI Express 2-Line WAN with Modem (FC 2894; CCIN 576C)
  • Short, x4
  • CIM
  • OS support: AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems
 1, 2, 3 41 per system

1 High-bandwidth adapter. See the Performance notes before installing this adapter.

2Extra-high bandwidth adapter. See the Performance notes before installing this adapter.

Performance notes

Use the information in this section to help determine the maximum number of adapter that can be placed in a system while still maintaining optimum performance.

The section Maximum number of supported adapters shows maximum number adapters allowed for connectivity. However, for optimum performance, you might want to further limit the total number of high-bandwidth and extra-high bandwidth adapters.

The following four tables provide guidelines on the maximum number of high-bandwidth and extra-high-bandwidth adapters you can use and still maintain optimum performance.

Note: Because of the many types of application workloads, these guidelines cannot cover all cases. The numbers in the following tables are suggestions for single types of adapters that are running exclusively. For systems with mixed adapter types or that have high aggregate bandwidth requirements, consult an IBM representative for additional guidelines.

Extra-high bandwidth storage adapters

Table 4. Maximum number of extra-high bandwidth storage adapters for best performance
System configuration Adapters in system unit including both PCI-X DDR and PCIe slots Adapters in any expansion unit connected to a 5616 adapter in slot P1-C8 Adapters in a 5796 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 Adapters in a 5802 or 5877 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 System maximum1
1-processor card 5 3     6
2-processor card 5 3 6 9 10 for 5796

12 for 5802 or 5877
3-processor card 5 3 6 9 10 for 5796

12 for 5802 or 5877
4-processor card 5 3 6 9 10 for 5796

12 for 5802 or 5877

1If 5708 or 5735 adapters are used in an application with both ports active, each adapter counts as two extra-high bandwidth adapters.

High-bandwidth storage adapters

Table 5. Maximum number of high-bandwidth storage adapters for best performance
System configuration Adapters in system unit including both PCI-X DDR and PCIe slots Adapters in any expansion unit connected to a 5616 adapter in slot P1-C8 Adapters in a 5796 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 Adapters in a 5802 or 5877 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 System maximum1
1-processor card 5 8     12
2-processor card 5 8 12 18 20 for 5796

24 for 5802 or 5877
3-processor card 5 8 12 18 20 for 5796

24 for 5802 or 5877
4-processor card 5 8 12 18 20 for 5796

24 for 5802 or 5877

Extra-high bandwidth Ethernet adapters

Table 6. Maximum number of extra-high bandwidth Ethernet adapters for best performance
System configuration Adapters in system unit including both PCI-X DDR and PCIe slots Adapters in any expansion unit connected to a 5616 adapter in slot P1-C8 Adapters in a 5796 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 Adapters in a 5802 or 5877 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 System maximum1
1-processor card 1   01 NA NA   1
2-processor card 2   0 1   2   2
3-processor card 2   0 2   3   3
4-processor card 2 0 2 4 4
Notes:
  1. Extra-high bandwidth adapters are not recommended in expansion units connected to GX controllers in P1-C8.
  2. For optimum performance, no more than one 10 Gb Ethernet port per one processor (of 8 cores) should be used in a system.
  3. If 5708 adapter is used and both ports are used by the application, then each 5708 counts as two extra-high bandwidth adapters.
  4. For optimum performance, place PCIe 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters in the 5802 or 5877 expansion drawer if it exists and not in the system unit internal slots. Follow the I/O expansion unit adapter placement guidelines if multiple adapters are used.
  5. For optimum performance, only connect a single I/O expansion drawer to the 5609 GX controller. Do not chain expansion drawers on the same 5609 GX controller.

High-bandwidth Ethernet adapters

Table 7. Maximum number of high-bandwidth Ethernet adapters for best performance
System configuration Adapters in system unit including both PCI-X DDR and PCIe slots Adapters in any expansion unit connected to a 5616 adapter in slot P1-C8 Adapters in a 5796 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 Adapters in a 5802 or 5877 I/O expansion unit connected to a 5609 GX adapter in slot P1-C7 System maximum1
1-processor card 5  3 NA NA 8
2-processor card 5  3  6 10 14
3-processor card 5  3  6 10 14
4-processor card 5  3  6 10 14

Each adapter might be single port, dual port, or quad port. For optimum performance, no more than two 1 Gb Ethernet ports per POWER7 core must be used in a system. Each POWER7 processor might have up to eight cores. Assign enough cores to your logic partition (LPAR) to meet the sizing (one core per two high-bandwidth ports).
Parent topic: Supported PCI adapters for the 8233-E8B or 8236-E8C

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Last updated: Mon, January 14, 2019