PowerEdge M420 Technical Guide Dell PowerEdge M420, a two-socket, quarter-height blade server that delivers unprecedented computational density with 32 individually serviceable nodes.
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Table of contents 1 System overview ..................................................................................................................................................................5 Introduction .........................................................................................................................................................................5 New technologies ...............................................................................................................
Tables Table 1. Table 2. Table 3. Table 4. Table 5. Table 6. Table 7. Table 8. Table 9. Table 10. Table 11. Table 12. Table 13. Table 14. Table 15. Table 16. Table 17. Table 18. Table 19. Table 20. Table 21. Table 22. Table 23. Table 24. Table 25. New technologies ................................................................................................................................................ 6 Comparison of PowerEdge M420, M520 and M620 .......................................................
1 System overview Introduction Enjoy remarkable computational density with the Dell™ PowerEdge™ M420 capable of deploying 32 server nodes in just 10U of rack space. Scaling up to 16 processor cores and 192GB of RAM, each M420 couples processing power and memory capacity with tremendous I/O throughput, with up to four ports of 10Gb Ethernet available in an exceptionally compact, individually serviceable form factor.
New technologies A number of new technologies are featured on the PowerEdge M420 system, as shown in Table 1. Table 1. New technology New technologies Detailed description ® Intel Xeon processor E5-2400 product family This new family of Intel processors has embedded PCI Express (PCIe) lanes for improved I/O performance and additional new features. See the Processors section for details. Intel C602 series chipset The Intel Platform Controller Hub (PCH) chip is implemented on the M420.
2 System features Compared to the previous generation of Dell PowerEdge blade servers, the M420 has similar memory scalability, as well as more processor cores in a much denser form factor than ever before. Features include DDR3 memory, PCIe 3.0, dual internal SD module, and Dell’s next-generation iDRAC solution known as iDRAC7 Enterprise with Lifecycle Controller.
Feature PowerEdge M420 PowerEdge M520 PowerEdge M620 RAID H310 S110, H310, H710, H710P S110, H310, H710, H710P Express Flash drives Not supported Not supported Up to 2 Mezzanine slots 1 PCIe 3.0 x8 mezzanine card slot 2 PCIe 3.0 x8 mezzanine card slots 2 PCIe 3.
Feature Technical specification Chipset Intel C602 Video Integrated Matrox G200 Primary storage Hot-plug hard drive options: Up to 2 x 1.8” uSATA SSD drives (50GB and 200GB) External storage: For information about Dell external storage options, visit Dell.
Feature Dell OpenManage Systems Management (Agent-free or with OpenManage Server Administrator [OMSA] Agent) Technical specification OpenManage Essentials OMSA Agent OpenManage Power Center (requires iDRAC7 Enterprise with Lifecycle Controller) Chassis Management Controller 4.
3 Module views and features The Dell PowerEdge M420 implements a new module design, with a quarter-height blade server that requires an M1000e chassis to operate. It occupies one slot vertically in the M1000e rack chassis, which is populated with a sleeve and contains four blades. The M1000e chassis can contain a maximum of 32 blades with eight sleeves.
The M420 is optimized for a densely populated chassis with effective and efficient cooling. Figure 2 shows one of eight sleeves containing four stackable blades in a fully loaded M1000e enclosure. Figure 2.
The chassis design of the M420 is optimized for easy access to components and for airflow for effective and efficient cooling. Figure 3 shows the fully loaded M1000e chassis enclosure comprised of eight sleeves, each with four stackable blades, for a total of 32 M420 modules. Figure 3. M1000e chassis enclosure with 32 M420 blades The M420 module shown in Figure 4 supports up to six DIMMS, two processors, and many other features that are described in this guide. Figure 4.
Module features Table 4 lists the modules features for the M420 system. For additional information on these features, see the Dell PowerEdge M420 Systems Owner’s Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals. Table 4. Module features Feature Description USB connectors 2 front-accessible USB connectors Status indicator Indicator for M420 power status Drives 2 front-accessible, hot-plug, 1.
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4 Processors The Dell PowerEdge M420 system features the Intel Xeon processor E5-2400 product family, which offers an ideal combination of performance, power efficiency and cost.
Supported processors The M420 supports up to two processors with up to eight cores per processor. Table 5 lists the Intel Xeon processors supported by the PowerEdge M420. For the latest information on supported processors, visit Dell.com/PowerEdge. Table 5. Supported processors Model Speed Cache QPI Cores Turbo TDP E5-2470 2.3GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 95W E5-2450L 1.8GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 70W E5-2450 2.0GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 95W E5-2440 2.5GHz 15M 7.
5 Memory More memory options are available than ever before with the Dell PowerEdge M420 — greater capacities, higher frequencies and more flexibility. The M420 supports up to 192GB of memory using up to six DIMMs in a dual-processor configuration, and speeds up to 1600MT/s, providing high performance in a variety of applications. High memory density means there is no compromise when it comes to virtualization.
The M420 server supports the DIMMs listed in Table 7. For the latest information on supported memory, visit Dell.com/PowerEdge. Table 7. Capacity (GB) Speed (MT/s) Type DIMMs supported Ranks per DIMM Data width SDDC support Voltage 2 1333 RDIMM 1 x8 Advanced ECC 1.35 2 1600 RDIMM 1 x8 Advanced ECC 1.35 4 1333 RDIMM 2 x8 Advanced ECC 1.35 4 1333 RDIMM 1 x4 All modes 1.35 4 1600 RDIMM 2 x8 Advanced ECC 1.35 4 1600 UDIMM 2 x8 Advanced ECC 1.
maximum speed supported by the processor, the speed settings in the BIOS and the operating voltage of the system. Table 8 lists the memory configuration and performance details for the M420, based on the population of the number and type of DIMMs per memory channel. Table 8.
Feature Description Memory thermal throttling This feature helps to optimize power/performance and can also be used to prevent DIMMs from overheating. For information on memory mirroring and sparing configurations, see the Dell PowerEdge M420 Systems Owner’s Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals. Memory RAID is not supported.
6 Storage The Dell PowerEdge M420 provides comprehensive internal storage options, including an SSD and an H310 embedded storage controller. The M420 currently supports up to 400GB of internal storage. SSDs can provide vastly accelerated performance over previous technologies. Internal storage The M420 is available with a single-drive backplane option. Table 10 lists the backplane, storage controller, and drive type for the M420. Table 10.
RAID controller feature support Table 12 lists the features supported by the RAID controller on the M420. Table 12. RAID controller feature support Feature 23 PERC option H310 iMR firmware stack SSD support uSATA backplane SAS hard drives Unconfigured drive support (non-RAID) RAID 0 RAID 1 Microsoft Windows support Linux support Virtualization support Embedded on system board PCIe 3.
7 Networking and mezzanine cards The Dell PowerEdge M420 offers balanced, scalable I/O capabilities, including one integrated PCIe 3.0 capable mezzanine card slot. System management integration With the PowerEdge M420, the process of deploying, updating and monitoring is fast and easy. System management integration features include: Pre-boot: Use the Dell Lifecycle Controller graphical user interface (GUI) to set configuration such as bandwidth allocation or firmware revision level.
Mezzanine cards The M420 provides one PCIe 3.0 mezzanine connector for add-in cards. The M420 is designed to be PCIe 3.0-compliant to take full advantage of the processor capabilities. Installation of a mezzanine card requires an M1000e I/O Module (IOM) of the same fabric technology to be installed in the corresponding fabric slot of the mezzanine card to support data flow through the fabric/slot. Table 13 lists the supported mezzanine cards for the M420. Table 13.
Figure 6. M420 connectivity matrix for 32 blades Examples of fabric interconnectivity and their associated parameters are illustrated in Figure 7.
Figure 7.
8 Power, thermal and acoustics Lower overall system-level power draw is a result of Dell’s breakthrough system design. The PowerEdge M420 blade server and M1000e chassis enclosure maximize performance per watt through a combination of power and cooling, energy-efficient technologies and tools. Additionally, the M420 has an extensive collection of sensors that automatically track thermal activity, which helps regulate temperature thereby reducing server noise and power consumption.
Feature Description Intel Node Manager is an embedded technology that provides individual server-level power reporting and power limiting functionality. Dell offers a complete power management solution comprised of Intel Node Manager accessed through Dell iDRAC7 Enterprise and OpenManage Power Center that allows policy-based management of power and thermals at the individual server, rack and data center level. Active power management Hot spare reduces power consumption of redundant power supplies.
Thermal control also detects and responds to hardware configuration. Thermal management adjusts cooling according to what the system really needs, and draws lower fan power draw and generates lower acoustical noise levels than those without such controls. Environmental specifications: The optimized thermal management makes the PowerEdge M420 reliable under a wide range of operating environments as shown in Table 23. When operating above 30°C ambient, performance impacts may be seen.
9 Operating systems and virtualization The Dell PowerEdge M420 supports a wide range of industry-standard operating systems and virtualization software. Supported operating systems Table 16 lists the operating systems supported on the M420. For the latest information on supported operating systems, see Dell.com/OSsupport. Table 16.
Supported virtualization One of the key features for virtualization on the M420 is the support for a fail-safe hypervisor. By running the hypervisor on an optional SD card and installing a backup copy on the other mirrored SD card, you can protect against hardware failure and maximize virtualization uptime. Table 18 highlights the virtualization support for the M420. Table 18. Install version Factory options Internal dual SD module install support vSphere v5.1 ESXi DIB Yes vSphere v5.
10 Dell OpenManage systems management Whether your IT environment consists of a few servers or a few thousand servers, Dell OpenManage systems management solutions provide comprehensive management for evolving IT environments. OpenManage is based on open standards and provides agent-based and agent-free server lifecycle management functionality for Dell PowerEdge servers. OpenManage solutions help you automate and streamline essential hardware management tasks.
OpenManage systems management The Dell OpenManage systems management portfolio includes powerful hardware and software management tools and consoles. OpenManage simplifies the lifecycle of deploying, updating, monitoring, and maintaining your Dell PowerEdge servers. iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller The Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller 7 (iDRAC7) with Lifecycle Controller is the heart of the second generation of Dell PowerEdge server embedded management functionality.
Feature Electronic licensing Function Benefit To obtain a software license key for iDRAC7 Express for Blades or iDRAC7 Enterprise after server purchase, submit a request to purchase a software license key through the Dell Licensing Portal or with a Dell sales representative If iDRAC7 Express for Blades or iDRAC7 Enterprise is ordered during initial point of sale, license key is installed.
iDRAC7 Enterprise iDRAC7 Express for Blades SNMP alerts ∞ ∞ Comprehensive monitoring ∞ ∞ Virtual Console ∞ ∞ Virtual Media ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ Power control ∞ ∞ Power monitoring ∞ ∞ Virtual Console chat ∞ Support for customer-supplied SD cards for vFlash media Virtual flash partitions ∞ Virtual folders ∞ Remote file share ∞ Crash video playback ∞ Boot record/playback ∞ Part replacement ∞ Backup and restore configurations ∞ Power capping ∞ Enterprise group power management ∞ Dir
Agent-free systems management Because Dell PowerEdge 12th generation servers include the embedded server management feature, iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller, in many cases, there is no need to install an OpenManage systems management software agent into the operating system of a Dell PowerEdge server. This greatly simplifies and streamlines the management footprint.
RACADM — The RACADM command-line utility provides a scriptable interface that allows local or remote configuration of iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller. IPMITool — The IPMITool includes scriptable console application programs used to control and manage remote systems using IPMI version 1.5 and later versions.
efficiently, you must perform all of these functions easily and quickly. iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller technology provides you with these intelligent capabilities embedded within the server infrastructure. This allows you to invest more time and energy on business improvements and less on maintenance. Figure 9 illustrates the various operations that can be performed during the server’s lifecycle. Figure 9.
Operation Update One-to-one One-to-many iDRAC7 with LifeCycle Controller GUI Repository Manager DUP SUU SBUU OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter Dell OpenManage Essentials Lifecycle Controller Remote Services Dell Update Catalogs for Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager Dell Lifecycle Controller Integration (DLCI) for Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller with GUI OMSA Dell OpenManage Essentials BMC ProactiveNet Perf
Appendix A. Additional specifications Module dimensions and weight Figure 10 details the dimensions of the M420 module. Figure 10. Xb Y Zb (handle closed) Zb (handle open) 93.8mm 50.5mm 501.5mm 564.9mm Xa 97.5mm Module dimensions The weight of a maximum-configured M420 blade server is 12.0 kg (26.5 lb). Video specifications The Dell PowerEdge M420 iDRAC7 incorporates an integrated video subsystem. The graphics controller is the 2D Matrox G200.
Environmental specifications For additional information about environmental measurements for specific system configurations, see Dell.com/environmental_datasheets. Table 23 details environmental specifications for the M420. Table 23. Environmental specifications Fresh Air: temperature, humidity, altitude de-rating Continuous operation 10°C to 35°C (50°F to 95°F) at 10% to 80% relative humidity with 26°C (78.8°F) maximum dew point (maximum wet bulb temperature).
Maximum shock Operating One shock pulse in the positive z axis (one pulse on each side of the system) of 31G for up to 2.6ms Storage Six consecutively executed shock pulses in the positive and negative x, y, and z axes (one pulse on each side of the system) of 71G for up to 2ms Altitude Operating –15.2m to 3048m (–50 ft to 10,000 ft) Storage –15.2m to 12,000m (–50 ft to 39,370 ft) Airborne contaminant level Class G1 or lower as defined by ISA-S71.
Appendix B. Standards compliance The M420 system conforms to the industry standards in Table 24. Table 24. Industry standards documentation Standard URL for information and specifications ACPI Advance Configuration and Power Interface Specification, v2.0c acpi.info Ethernet IEEE 802.3-2005 standards.ieee.org/getieee802/802.3.html HDG Hardware Design Guide Version 3.0 for Microsoft Windows Server microsoft.com/whdc/system/platform/pcdesign/desguide/se rverdg.
Standard URL for information and specifications USB Universal Serial Bus Specification, Rev. 2.0 usb.org/developers/docs Windows Logo Windows Logo Program System and Device Requirements, v3.10 microsoft.com/whdc/winlogo/hwrequirements.
Appendix C. Additional resources Table 25 includes a list of documents and websites that provide more information on the Dell PowerEdge M420. Table 25. Additional resources Resource Description of contents Location Dell PowerEdge M420 Systems Owner’s Manual This manual, available in PDF format, provides the following information: Dell.
Resource Description of contents Location Energy Smart Solution Advisor (ESSA) The Dell online advisor console enables easier and more meaningful estimates to help you determine the most efficient configuration possible. Use ESSA to calculate the power consumption of your hardware, power infrastructure, and storage. Dell.com/ESSA Power and cooling technologies Provides details for improving energy efficiency in the data center. Dell.
Appendix D. System board block diagram Figure 11.
