Power7 High-End System Firmware

Applies to: 9119-FHB

This document provides information about the installation of Licensed Machine or Licensed Internal Code, which is sometimes referred to generically as microcode or firmware.


Contents


1.0 Systems Affected

This package provides firmware for Power 795 (9119-FHB) Servers only. Do not use on any other systems.

The firmware level in this package is:


1.1 Minimum HMC Code Level

This section is intended to describe the "Minimum HMC Code Level" required by the System Firmware to complete the firmware installation process. When installing the System Firmware, the HMC level must be equal to or higher than the "Minimum HMC Code Level" before starting the system firmware update.  If the HMC managing the server targeted for the System Firmware update is lower than the "Minimum HMC Code Level" the firmware update will not proceed.

The Minimum HMC Code level for this firmware is:  HMC V7 R7.2.0 (PTF MH01233 or MH01234) and PTF MH01246 (Service Pack 1).

Although the Minimum HMC Code level for this firmware is listed above,  HMC level V7 R7.2.0 with PTF MH01253 (Service Pack 2), or higher is suggested for this firmware level.

For information concerning HMC releases and the latest PTFs,  go to the following URL to access Fix Central.
http://www-933.ibm.com/support/fixcentral/

For specific fix level information on key components of IBM Power Systems running the AIX, IBM i and Linux operating systems, we suggest using the Fix Level Recommendation Tool (FLRT):
http://www14.software.ibm.com/webapp/set2/flrt/home

NOTE: You must be logged in as hscroot in order for the firmware installation to complete correctly.

2.0 Important Information

IPv6 Support and Limitations

IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) is supported in the System Management Services (SMS) in this level of system firmware. There are several limitations that should be considered.

When configuring a network interface card (NIC) for remote IPL, only the most recently configured protocol (IPv4 or IPv6) is retained. For example, if the network interface card was previously configured with IPv4 information and is now being configured with IPv6 information, the IPv4 configuration information is discarded.

A single network interface card may only be chosen once for the boot device list. In other words, the interface cannot be configured for the IPv6 protocol and for the IPv4 protocol at the same time.

Memory Considerations for Firmware Upgrades

Firmware Release Level upgrades and Service Pack updates may consume additional system memory.
Server firmware requires memory to support the logical partitions on the server. The amount of memory required by the server firmware varies according to several factors.
Factors influencing server firmware memory requirements include the following:
Generally, you can estimate the amount of memory required by server firmware to be approximately 8% of the system installed memory. The actual amount required will generally be less than 8%. However, there are some server models that require an absolute minimum amount of memory for server firmware, regardless of the previously mentioned considerations.

Additional information can be found at:
  http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/powersys/v3r1m5/topic/p7hat/iphatlparmemory.htm


3.0 Firmware Information and Description

Use the following examples as a reference to determine whether your installation will be concurrent or disruptive.

Note: The concurrent levels of system firmware may, on occasion, contain fixes that are known as deferred. These deferred fixes can be installed concurrently, but will not be activated until the next IPL. Deferred fixes, if any, will be identified in the "Firmware Update Descriptions" table of this document. For deferred fixes within a service pack, only the fixes in the service pack which cannot be concurrently activated are deferred.

Note: The file names and service pack levels used in the following examples are for clarification only, and are not necessarily levels that have been, or will be released.

System firmware file naming convention:

01AHXXX_YYY_ZZZ

NOTE: Values of service pack and last disruptive service pack level (YYY and ZZZ) are only unique within a release level (XXX). For example, 01AH330_067_045 and 01AH340_067_053 are different service packs.

An installation is disruptive if:

Example: Currently installed release is EH330, new release is EH340 Example: AH330_120_120 is disruptive, no matter what level of AH330 is currently
installed on the system Example: Currently installed service pack is AH330_120_120 and
new service pack is AH330_152_130

An installation is concurrent if:

Example: Currently installed service pack is AH330_126_120,
new service pack is AH330_143_120.

 
Filename Size Checksum
01AH720_101_064.rpm 49579078 65454
   
Note: The Checksum can be found by running the AIX sum command against the rpm file (only the first 5 digits are listed).
ie: sum 01AH720_101_064.rpm

AH720
For Impact, Severity and other Firmware definitions, Please refer to the below 'Glossary of firmware terms' url:
http://www14.software.ibm.com/webapp/set2/sas/f/power5cm/home.html#termdefs
AH720_101_064

05/20/11
Impact: Availability           Severity:  HIPER - High Impact/PERvasive, Should be installed as soon as possible. 

System firmware changes that affect all systems

  • HIPER:  IBM testing has uncovered a potential undetected data corruption issue.  The problem can occur in rare instances due to an issue in the firmware and is most likely to impact hypervisor data.  This issue was discovered during internal IBM testing, and has not been reported on any customer system.  However, IBM recommends that  customers running on POWER7 systems with Ax720_090 and earlier firmware move to Ax720_101.  POWER7 systems running with Ax710 firmware do not have an exposure to this issue, so no action is recommended.
  • HIPER:  A problem was fixed that caused the hypervisor to delay dispatching a partition even though it was ready to run, which added latency (delays) that adversely affected performance.  This problem can affect POWER7 systems running any level of Ax720 firmware prior to Ax720_101.
  • A problem was fixed that caused certain service processor error log entries with a severity of "predictive", and a failing subsystem of "service processor firmware", to be erroneously converted to "informational".
  • A problem was fixed that caused three B181951C SRCs to be erroneously logged, and the system IPL time to increase by as much as an hour.  This problem is more likely to occur on systems with firmware level AL720_082 or AL720_090, AM720_084 or AM720_090, or AH720_082 or AH720_090 installed.
  • A problem was fixed that caused the EnergyScale firmware to erroneously go into safe mode when processor 0 was guarded out.
  • A problem was fixed that caused SRC B1812A61 to be erroneously logged.
  • A problem was fixed that prevented the setting of the boot diagnostic level in the power on/off menu (in the Advanced System Management
    Interface (ASMI)) from being shown correctly after it was changed.
  • A problem was fixed that prevented a system dump from being off-loaded from the service processor.  When this occurred, additional dumps were not allowed.
  • The firmware was enhanced so that a message is displayed if setting the brand keyword in the ASMI menu (System Configuration -> Program Vital Product Data -> System brand) fails because the service processor is not in the correct state.
  • The firmware was enhanced such that a call home is not made when an error logged by the system controller, node controller, or service processor is informational, or recovered, and the reset/reload bit is set.
  • A problem was fixed that caused multiple DR_DMA_MIGRATE_FAIL entries in the AIX error log.
  • A problem was fixed that caused SRC B7000803 to be erroneously logged multiple times.
  • A problem was fixed that prevented processor resources from being moved to another partition by a DLPAR (dynamic LPAR) operation.
  • A problem was fixed that prevented partitions from booting.
  • A problem was fixed that caused the HMC component interval activity report to always show 100% uncapped CPU available.
  • A problem was fixed that caused incorrect data to be displayed in the "Deconfiguration Records" menu option on the ASMI (System Service Aids > Deconfiguration Records) when a service processor was guarded out. 
  • A problem was fixed that prevented the hypervisor from displaying updated vital product data (VPD) after the replacement of a 24" power subsystem part.
  • A problem was fixed that caused an administrative service processor fail-over (AFO), followed by another AFO without a reset in between, to fail.
  • During a re-ipl of the system controller (SC), the firmware tries to reconfigure the primary node controller (NC) that was previously configured.  It terminates after 30 minutes if the same primary NC is not found.  This causes the service processor fail-over to fail, which results in the server outage.
  • A problem was fixed that caused VIOS partitions to fail to boot.
  • A problem was fixed that caused a partition suspend operation to hang.  When this problem occurred, all subsequent suspend operations were locked out as well.
  • A problem was fixed that could cause the target partition to crash after a successful P6 to P7 partition migration.  Possible AIX error log entries include:  label: DSI_PROC, resource:  SYSVMM, with description: "DATA STORAGE INTERRUPT, PROCESSOR".  Other partition-related crash descriptors may also be logged.
  • A problem was fixed that could cause AIX error log entries following a successful partition migration.  Possible AIX error log entries include: label: RTAS_ERROR, resource: sysplanar0, with description: "INTERNAL ERROR CODE".  Other errors may also be logged.
  • A problem was fixed that caused the installation of some versions of Linux to fail.

System firmware changes that affect certain systems

  • On systems with two HMCs attached, a problem was fixed that caused one of the HMCs to frequently go to an incomplete state.
  • On systems running IBM i partitions, a problem was fixed that caused a RAID array of SCSI disks to be exposed if an MES upgrade was done, or a system plan was created.
  • On systems running IBM i partitions, a problem was fixed that caused SRC BA040030 to be erroneously logged, and a call home to be made, even though the partition booted successfully.
  • On systems using the host Ethernet adapter (HEA) function, a problem was fixed that caused the HMC to erroneously report that deleting a logical port had failed.
  • On partitions running Advanced Memory Sharing (AMS), a problem was fixed that prevented shutdown of a partition when all paging VIOS's servicing the partition were hung and unable to complete outstanding I/O operations.
  • On systems running Advanced Memory Sharing (AMS), a problem was fixed that caused an AMS partition to crash with SRC B700F103.  This problem may occur when reducing the size of the AMS pool (or doing a hot node repair on a model MMB or MHB) at the same time as dynamically creating an AMS partition, or changing an AMS partition's maximum memory.
  • A problem was fixed that caused AIX licensing issues when migrating a partition from a POWER6 to a POWER7 system.
  • The "USB Service Functions" option was removed from the ASMI menus on 9117-MMB, 9179-MHB and 9119-FHB systems, which do not support this function.
  • On systems with a F/C 5803 or 5873 I/O expansion drawer, a problem was fixed that caused SRC B7006907 to be erroneously logged.
  • On systems with a F/C 5803 or 5873 I/O expansion drawer, a problem was fixed that caused SRC 10009133 to be erroneously logged.
  • On systems with a F/C 5803 or 5873 I/O expansion drawer, a problem was fixed that caused SRCs 1402131B, 1402130A, and 1402130F to be erroneously logged, and the "health check" that is done before the HMC attempts to install firmware on the managed system, to fail.
  • The ASMI menu was enhanced to generate an error message if the turbo core option is enabled on a system with fewer than three nodes.
  • On systems at an altitude of 7001 feet (2134 meters) or higher, a problem was fixed that caused numerous 11007221 and 11007222 SRCs to be erroneously logged.
  • On systems with a F/C 5803 or 5873 I/O expansion drawer, a problem was fixed that caused the lamp test on the HMC to turn off all of the LEDs when the test was complete instead of returning them to their original states.
  • On systems on which a NIM installation is being set up using the system management services (SMS) menus, the firmware was changed to limit the packet size options to 512 and 1024 bytes.
  • On systems with Selective Memory Mirroring and the Enhanced Cache Option enabled, a problem was fixed that caused unpredictable system behavior when a processor hardware failure occurred.
AH720_090_064

03/07/11
Impact: Data           Severity:  HIPER - High Impact/PERvasive, Should be installed as soon as possible.

System firmware changes that affect certain systems
  • HIPER: IBM testing has uncovered a potential undetected data corruption issue when a mobility operation is performed on an AMS (Active Memory Sharing) partition.  The data corruption can occur in rare instances due to a problem in IBM firmware.  This issue was discovered during internal IBM testing, and has not been reported on any customer system.
  • On systems  with a F/C 5803 or 5873 I/O drawer attached, a problem was fixed that caused a partition to crash during a page migration operation.
AH720_082_064

12/13/10
Impact:  Function         Severity:  HIPER - High Impact/PERvasive, Should be installed as soon as possible.

New Features and Functions

  • Support for partition suspend/resume.  AIX 61 TL6 SP3 or later, or AIX 71 TL0 SP2 or later, is required for partition suspend/resume.

System firmware changes that affect all systems

  • HIPER:  A problem was fixed that caused repeated reset/reloads of the service processor, and fail-overs, to occur after a hypervisor-initiated reset/reload of the service processor was completed.  That led to loss of communication between the service processor and the hypervisor (indicated by SRC B182951C).
  • A problem was fixed that caused disks that were not bootable to be displayed in the system management services boot menus.  This problem also prevented the operating system level from being displayed for bootable hard disks in the system management services boot menus.
  • A problem was fixed that caused an error log indicating a dynamic LPAR (DLPAR) error when no DLPAR operations were done, and unrecoverable SRCs BA180010 and BA250010 to be erroneously logged, when a recoverable enhanced error handling (EEH) error was logged on an I/O adapter.
  • A problem was fixed that caused a service processor reset/reload, a service processor dump to be taken, and B181EF88 to be logged.
  • The firmware was enhanced to log a predictive SRC if the Ethernet cables are misplugged (swapped) on a node controller.
  • A problem was fixed that caused the managed system to go to the incomplete state on the HMC.
  • A problem was fixed that caused the system to hang at C700406E during boot.
  • A problem was fixed that caused the platform to become unresponsive; this was indicated by an "incomplete" state on the HMC.  When this problem occurred, the partitions on the managed system became unresponsive.

System firmware changes that affect certain systems

  • On systems running AEM (advanced energy manager), a problem was fixed that caused the AEM to display erroneous power trending data if only one line cord was connected, or if there was any type of command failure getting power trending data from a BPC (bulk power controller). 
  • A problem was fixed that caused a virtual SCSI or virtual fibre channel adapter to be seen by the operating system as not bootable when it was added to a partition using a dynamic LPAR (DLPAR) operation.
  • A problem was fixed that caused the system ID to change, which caused software licensing problems, when a live partition mobility operation was done where the target system was an 8203-E4A or an 8204-E8A.
  • PARTITION-DEFERRED:  A problem was fixed that caused SRC BA210000 to be erroneously logged on the target system when a partition was moved (using Live Partition Mobility) from a Power7 system to a Power6 system.
  • A problem was fixed that caused SRC BA280000 to be erroneously logged on the target system when a partition was moved (using Live Partition Mobility) from a Power7 system to a Power6 system.
  • A problem was fixed that caused a partition to hang following a partition migration operation (using Live Partition Mobility) from a system running Ax720 system firmware to a system running Ex340, or older, system firmware.
  • A problem was fixed that caused a system or partition running Linux to crash when the "serv_config -l" command was run.
  • On systems using the HEA broadcast/multicast application to send and receive millions of packets, such as video streaming, the packet storm mitigation algorithm was enhanced so that a packet will only be dropped when a packet storm is detected.
  • A problem was fixed that caused a partition to fail to reboot with SRC B2001230 and word 3 = 000000BF.  This failure can be seen on a partition that owns a PCI, PCI-E, or PCI-X slot.
AH720_064_064

09/17/10

Impact:  New            Severity:  New
GA Level


4.0 How to Determine Currently Installed Firmware Level

You can view the server's current firmware level on the Advanced System Management Interface (ASMI) Welcome pane. It appears in the top right corner. Example: AH350_038.

5.0 Downloading the Firmware Package

Follow the instructions on the web page. You must read and agree to the license agreement to obtain the firmware packages.

Note: If your HMC is not internet-connected you will need to download the new firmware level to a CD-ROM or ftp server.


6.0 Installing the Firmware

The method used to install new firmware will depend on the release level of firmware which is currently installed on your server. The release level can be determined by the prefix of the new firmware's filename.

Example: EHXXX_YYY_ZZZ

Where XXX = release level

Instructions for installing firmware updates and upgrades can be found at http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/powersys/v3r1m5/index.jsp?topic=/p7ha1/updupdates.htm

7.0 Change History

Date
Description
July 26, 2011
Fix description updates for firmware level AH720_101
June 10, 2011
Fix description update for firmware level AH720_101