CONFIGURATION
OPTIONS
What
configuration options are available with Density
1500 Series chassis?
8 Single
processor Pentium III blades, 0 PCI 64 bit slots
each, 1 drive each (ATA) (chassis #D501A)
6 Dual or single
processor Pentium III blades, 1 PCI 64 bit slot
each, 2 drives each (hot-plug SCSI, SCSI or ATA)
(chassis #D502A)
4 Dual or single
processor Pentium III blades, 3 PCI 64 bit slots
each, 3 drives each (hot-plug SCSI, SCSI)
(chassis #D503A)
What
applications do the Density Series 1500 systems
address?
Blade
architectures provide good value because of their
processor density, serviceability, and shared
resources, which in the case of the Density
Series include peripherals such as CDs, floppies,
internal KVM switch and redundant N+1 power
supplies to add high availability and excellent
cost effectiveness to the system. While many
blade architectures are limited to single PIII
processors with limited memory and PCI adapter
support, the Density 1500 series is designed for
the higher horsepower applications that
require Dual Processors to run the applications.
These applications include Terminal Servers/
Metaframe, Streaming Video, VPN/Firewalls, Web
Host Services, Beowulf clusters, DNS/DHCP
servers, Database engines and many others. If
rack space is at a premium, Density 1500 offers 6 Dual Pentium III processor blades in 7U of
rack space (including internal KVM and N+1
redundant power supplies) – an industry
leading ratio of less than 1U per Dual Pentium
III processor blade!
DUAL PROCESSOR
BLADES
Do Cubix
servers use industry-standard components and
interfaces?
Yes. Cubix uses
Intel® processors, Intel Ethernet chipsets and
standard PC133 ECC SDRAM DIMMs for memory. Since
it's a standard Intel platform, the Density
System is compatible with popular operating
systems and applications.
What
processors, memory and drives are supported on
the Density 1500's dual processor blade?
The processors are
Intel Pentium III processors with 512K Level 2
cache (Tualitin Class). Each dual processor blade
supports up to 4 GB SDRAM (133 Mhz) and an ATA,
SCSI or hot-plug SCSI drives.
Do Cubix
blade servers communicate with one another inside
the Density enclosure?
No. Cubix server
blades communicate with one another and with
other nodes on the network via an integrated
Ethernet connection. Cubix blades provide two
Ethernet connectors that auto-detect full duplex
10Mbps or 100 Mbps. The only communication that
takes place inside Density is for management and
KVM switching.
Why does
Cubix use ECC SDRAM?
ECC SDRAM provides
a higher level of data integrity than non-ECC
memory modules. Since Cubix computers are used as
servers, data integrity is essential.
Are the dual
10/100 Ethernet controllers auto-detecting?
Yes. The Intel
Ethernet chipset provides dual Ethernet
controllers that automatically detect a 10Mbps or
100Mbps transfer rate. Cubix integrates dual
Ethernet controllers on its blades so that the
PCI slot is free for other adapters, such as a
RAID controller.
Is the
Dual Pentium III processor blade available in a
single Pentium III configuration in the Density
1500 chassis?
Yes. The Dual
Processor PIII blade can run with a single
processor. A terminator board must be installed
in the other PGA370 processor socket. This
configuration would be used if you needed to
support 64 bit PCI adapters and the application
was single-threaded and didn't take advantage of
the secondary processor. If the application
changes at a later date, the socket is field
upgradeable by replacing the terminator board
with a matching speed processor.
Are
Density 1500 dual processor blades supported in
the Density 1220 Chassis?
No. Density 1500's
dual processor blade requires a 64 bit bus
connector in the passive backplane. Density 1220
models support 32 bit PCI connectors.
Are
Density 1000, 1100, or 12xx processor blades
supported in the Density 1500 chassis?
No.
Can 32 bit
PCI cards run in Density's 64 bit PCI slots?
Yes, if the cards
support 3.3 volt logic interface. Most PCI cards,
circa 1999 and newer, fit this specification.
However, if the PCI card uses 5 volt logic
interface, circa 1999 and older, then it cannot
run in a 64 bit slot because of the incompatible
logic interface. The PCI slot connectors are
keyed in accordance to PCI Local Bus
Specification to prevent installation of
non-compatible cards.
Does each
blade server have its own hard drive?
Yes. Each Cubix
server blade is a single-board computer with its
own hard drive. Cubix servers do not share hard
drives within a Density enclosure. Cubix servers
share access to the floppy disk drive and the
CD-RW drive, because servers access these devices
only occasionally. Sharing peripherals lowers
system costs and reduces space requirements.
What drive
options are supported?
D501A - 8 Single Processor Pentium III blades. Each Blade supports
one ATA drive.
D502A - 6 Dual
Processor Pentium III blades. Each blade supports
up to: 2 ATA drives or 2 Ultra3 SCSI drives, or 2
Ultra3 hot-plug SCA drives.
D503A - 4 Dual
Processor Pentium III blades. Each blade supports
up to: 2 ATA drives or 3 Ultra3 SCSI drives, or 3
Ultra3 hot-plug SCA drives.
How do
drives connect to a Cubix server within the
Density chassis?
Drives are mounted
on a metal carrier called a drive tray. Each
drive is linked to a connector on the tray which
mates with an individual blade. You just slide
the drive tray along nylon guides at the front of
the Density system and plug the tray connector
into the server blade (ATA version).
SCSI drives
connect to a SCSI controller in one of the blade
server's PCI slots. A cable connects the SCSI
controller to a drive(s), mounted on a drive
tray.
How are
hot-plug drives supported?
In a hot-plug
configuration, each blade has a RAID controller
in one of the blade's 64-bit PCI slots. The RAID
controller connects to a hot-plug SCSI backplane
that is mounted to rear wall of the D1500's drive
bay. The hot-plug SCSI backplane has either 2 or
3 drive connectors (6x2 and 4x4 chassis
respectively) per blade server. In a 4x4 chassis
for example, there are four individual hot-plug
backplanes, each with three drive connectors.
Each 80-pin SCA drive is mounted on a carrier
tray that slides into the drive bay, connecting
the drive to the hot-plug SCSI backplane. The
hot-plug SCSI backplane has SCSI termination on
it.
At the front of
the carrier tray are two LED lights, a thumbscrew
and a microswitch. One LED shows drive activity,
and the other indicates power on the SCSI
backplane connector. When you back out the
thumbscrew, the microswitch breaks the power
connection on the hot-plug SCSI backplane to
ensure that power is off that individual drive
before removal and insertion of its replacement.
Although SCA drives are supposed to decouple from
the SCSI backplane without incident, this added
measure prevents inadvertent disruption of the
SCSI bus when replacing drives. When you reseat
the thumbscrew after the replacement drive has
been reinserted into the chassis's drive bay,
power is reapplied to the hot-plug SCSI
connector.
How do I get
keyboard, video and mouse (KVM) access to an
individual Cubix server?
Cubix has
integrated a KVM switch within each Density
chassis. You simply push a button on the Density
front panel which switches the KVM and floppy
drive to that individual server blade.
Why does
Cubix integrate a KVM switch into every Density
System?
KVM switches
eliminate monitors, keyboards, and mice, and the
heat, space and cost associated with them.
Cubix’s internal KVM switch reduces cost
even further because there is no need to buy
additional third-party KVM switches, which also
take up additional rack space. Cubix’s
internal KVM is an efficient design, using
internal circuitry to route KVM signals rather
than three bulky cables per PC as would be needed
with a third-party KVM switch product. A KVM
cable runs from the back of the Density system to
a small KVM connector box where you plug in the
monitor, keyboard and mouse.
How many
systems can be connected to one monitor, keyboard
and mouse?
Up to 8 Density
chassis can be daisy chained into one monitor,
keyboard, and mouse. A single cable runs from the
"video out" connector on the back of
the Density system to a "video in"
connector on the next Density system. This can be
repeated up to the eighth chassis without
significant signal attenuation.
Can Cubix
internal KVM switch be used in conjunction with a
third-party KVM switch?
Yes. In fact only
one connector is required on the third-party
switch to support multiple Density chassis. You
can see the details of this configuration by clicking
here.
How do I
access a floppy disk drive?
The up/down button
on the front panel of the Density system that
switches the KVM signal from blade to blade also
assigns the floppy drive to the blade that you
are viewing.
How do I
access the CD-RW drive?
The Density front
panel features a recessed button for assigning
the CD-RW drive to an individual Cubix server.
You select the CD-RW separately from the KVM
selection. The reason it was designed on a
separate assignment path was to allow you to
assign the CD-RW to a server, for a
time-consuming software copy for example, while
still allowing you to move the KVM from blade to
blade.
How do I
assign a CD-RW drive to a specific Cubix server
blade within Density?
Once you have
selected a server blade by pushing the button on
the Density front panel, you push a recessed
button to assign the CD-RW drive to that
particular blade.
Can I shut
off an individual server blade without affecting
other servers in the Density chassis?
Yes. Cubix
designed Density to allow each blade to be
powered off or on without affecting other blades
within the Density chassis.
How do I
shut off or turn on a particular Cubix server
blade?
Once you have
selected a server blade by pushing the Density
front panel button, you push a recessed button to
turn on or turn off that specific blade.
How do I
reset a particular Cubix blade?
Once you have
selected a blade by pushing the Density front
panel button, you push a recessed button to reset
that specific blade.
Does Cubix
Density provide redundant power?
Yes. Each Density
provides 3 power supplies. Any two are required
to run the system.
Are Density
power supplies hot swappable?
Yes. You can
remove and replace a Density power supply while
the servers are running.
Does Density
have redundant power cords?
Yes. Each Density
provides 3 power cords. Any two will provide
continuous power. This also means you only need 3
outlets to power 8 servers.
How much
power does each Density system require?
The typical power
requirement for a Density fully loaded with
computers, drives and adapter cards is about 450
Watts AC power. The system maximum is 600W.
Compare this to stand-alone computers, which
typically consume 150W to 250W each
(approximately 2KW total).
How should I
size my UPS for a Density system?
Just as you would
for any computer: add up the total Watts for all
computers, adapters and drives within each
system, add up the total Watts for all the
systems, multiply the total Watts by 2.2 to
account for power factors and power supply
efficiencies to arrive at the total Volt-Amperes
(VA) for all systems. All UPS vendors size their
products using VA or KiloVA (KVA).
Does Density
provide adequate cooling?
Yes. Cubix uses
three system fans and a fan within each of the
three power supplies for a total of six fans.
This provides more than adequate cooling for a
Density system, even though it is fully loaded
with computers, drives and adapters.
How many
BTU/hr does a fully-loaded Density produce?
Less than 2,000
BTU/hr. In comparison, just four
similarly-configured standalone computers produce
over 5,000 BTU/hr.
MANAGEMENT
Are there
cost advantages to Cubix's management
architecture?
Yes. Many
server manufacturers require a dedicated
management subsystem for each server, which
drives up their cost. In contrast, a
single, authorized Cubix GlobalVision™
supervisor subsystem can manage up to 31 Density
chassis for a total of up to 248 server
blades. Click here to link to a GlobalVision datasheet
that explains the features and capabilities of
GlobalVision.
Why do I
need GlobalVision if I have the Density front
panel controls?
GlobalVision
allows you to remotely perform most of the
functions found on the front panel. In
fact, a graphic display of the front panel is
remotely controllable by the network
administrator. Through the GlobalVision
Remote Console, you can manage the Cubix server
blades and Density chassis across the LAN or WAN.
Will
GlobalVision work if the network is down?
Yes. Cubix
provides an alternative to a site's
local network
called the Cubix Data Highway. This Data Highway
is running as long as the Cubix Density chassis
have power. You can manage in two ways: (1) the
local GlobalVision console can see and manage
every Density chassis and server blade across the
Data Highway, even if the network is down or
excessively busy; and (2) an
authorized remote
GlobalVision console can use dial-up networking
to dial into a modem connected to the local
GlobalVision console and manage the Cubix Density
chassis and blades as well.
Are the
Density 1500's Intelligent Environmental Sensor
(IES) board and Global Vision software compatible
with other Density models?
Yes. The IES
subsystem, which includes the internal KVM switch
and peripheral muxing, is the same as that used
in the Density 12xx Series systems. This means
the external connections are compatible.
Therefore, Density 1500 chassis can be added to
existing Density KVM daisy chain cabling and IES
out-of-band data highway cabling. Density 1500
can be managed by an existing Global Vision
supervisory system.
How many
copies of GlobalVision do I need to purchase?
A
single GlobalVision local console can manage 31
Density chassis. Purchase of Global Vision is
required for every local
console. You can install as many copies of the
GlobalVision Console as you wish, anywhere you
wish, as long as they are running on Microsoft
Windows 2000 Pro, NT Server / Workstation or
Windows 2000 Server.
Can I
rackmount Density within my existing racks?
Yes, as long as
your racks can support front- and rear-mounted
slide rails. Density uses the standard rackmount
width of 19 inches.
Does Cubix
offer rackmount cabinets?
Yes. Cubix offers
cabinets that can mount three, four or six
Density chassis with proper power and cooling.
Do Cubix
rackmount cabinets support third-party equipment?
Yes. The equipment
should adhere to the rackmount standard of 19
inches wide.
Are Cubix
rackmount cabinets fault tolerant like the
Density chassis?
Yes. Each cabinet
provides three or four power cords. Any one of
them can be disconnected or can fail, and all
Density chassis in the cabinet will continue
running.
|
