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Firmware Description File

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POWER7 Compute Nodes

Applies to:  POWER7 Compute Nodes 1457-7FL, 7895-22X, and 7895-42X.

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 POWER7 Compute Nodes 1457-7FL, 7895-22X and 7895-42X only.

The firmware level in this package is:

  • AF743_110

1.1 Minimum FSM Code Level

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

The Minimum FSM code level for this firmware is:  1.1.0.
For information concerning FSM 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 POWER7 Compute Nodes 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




2.0 Important Information

Using the Update Manager in the FSM to manage firmware installations.
IBM strongly recommends using the Update Manager (UM) in the FSM GUI to manage firmware installations.  The UM will verify that FSM, CMM, and Compute Node firmware levels are compatible and will download and install additional updates if necessary.  

Downgrading firmware from any given release level to an earlier release level is not recommended.
If you feel that it is necessary to downgrade the firmware on your system to an earlier release level, please contact your next level of support.

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:
  •     Number of logical partitions
  •     Partition environments of the logical partitions
  •     Number of physical and virtual I/O devices used by the logical partitions
  •     Maximum memory values given to the logical partitions
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 and/or partition-deferred. Deferred fixes can be installed concurrently, but will not be activated until the next IPL. Partition-deferred fixes can be installed concurrently, but will not be activated until a partition reactivate is performed.  Deferred and/or partition-deferred fixes, if any, will be identified in the "Firmware Update Descriptions" table of this document. For these types of fixes (deferred and/or partition-deferred) 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:

01AFXXX_YYY_ZZZ

  • XXX is the release level
  • YYY is the service pack level
  • ZZZ is the last disruptive service pack level
NOTE: Values of service pack and last disruptive service pack level (YYY and ZZZ) are only unique within a release level (XXX). For example, 01AF740_067_045 and 01AF760_067_053 are different service packs.

An installation is disruptive if:

  • The release levels (XXX) are different.
Example: Currently installed release is AF743, new release is AF760
  • The service pack level (YYY) and the last disruptive service pack level (ZZZ) are the same.
Example: AF743_120_120 is disruptive, no matter which level of AF743 is currently installed on the system
  • The service pack level (YYY) currently installed on the system is lower than the last disruptive service pack level (ZZZ) of the service pack to be installed.
Example: Currently installed service pack is AF743_120_120 and the new service pack is AF743_152_130

An installation is concurrent if:

  • The release level (XXX) is the same, and
  • The service pack level (YYY) currently installed on the system is the same or higher than the last disruptive service pack level (ZZZ) of the service pack to be installed.
Example: Currently installed service pack is AF743_126_120, and the new service pack is AF743_143_120.
 
Filename Size Checksum
01AF743_110_100.rpm 39785484
 20572
   
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 01AF743_110_100.rpm
AF743
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

The complete Firmware Fix History for this Release Level can be reviewed at the following url:
http://download.boulder.ibm.com/ibmdl/pub/software/server/firmware/AF-Firmware-Hist.html
AF743_110

08/24/12

 Impact:  Available.

New Features and Functions in AF743_110:

- Support for booting the IBM i operating system from a USB tape drive.

System firmware changes that affect all systems in AF743_110:

- A problem was fixed that caused a partition migration to fail the validation check with SRC HSCLA358.
- A problem was fixed that allowed the time obtained from the network time protocol (NTP) server to drift by as much as 60 seconds over multiple reboots of the compute node.
- The firmware was enhanced to allow LDAP user authentication into the Advanced System Management Interface (ASMI) on a non-secure LDAP port (389) when the firewall is up. The firmware was also enhanced to reduce the login time for LDAP-authenticated users when the firewall was up.
- A problem was fixed that prevented a compute node's boot list from being set by the bootseq command on the CMM command line interface (CLI).
- A problem was fixed that caused a system firmware installation to fail with SRC E302F842.
-A problem was fixed that caused the suspension of a partition to fail if a large amount of data has to be stored to resume the partition.
- A problem was fixed that caused the default value for Field Core Override to be incorrect in the ASMI menus the first time the system is booted.
System firmware changes that affect certain systems
- On systems on which Internet Explorer (IE) is used to access the ASMI from the FSM, a problem was fixed that caused IE to hang for about 10 minutes after saving changes to network parameters on the ASMI.
- On compute nodes with multi-port communication adapters installed, a problem was fixed that caused the adapter port information to be displayed incorrectly by the properties command on the CMM command line interface (CLI).
- On systems booting from an NPIV (N-port ID virtualization) device, a problem was fixed that caused the boot to intermittently terminate with the message "PReP-BOOT: unable to load full PReP image.". This problem occurs more frequently on the IBM V7000 Storage System running the SAN Volume Controller (SVC), but not on every boot.


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: AF743_110.

5.0 Downloading the Firmware Package

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

Note: If your FSM 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: AFXXX_YYY_ZZZ

Where XXX = release level

  • If the release level will stay the same (Example: Level AF743_075_075 is currently installed and you are attempting to install level AF743_081_075) this is considered an update.
  • If the release level will change (Example: Level AF743_081_075 is currently installed and you are attempting to install level AF743_096_096) this is considered an upgrade.
Instructions for installing firmware updates and upgrades can be found at:
http://ralfss21.raleigh.ibm.com:8099/help/topic/com.ibm.acc.8731.doc/updating_firmware_and_software.html

See also:

http://ralfss21.raleigh.ibm.com:8099/help/topic/com.ibm.acc.7895.doc/updating_firmware.html



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