Specifications

System architecture
HP 9000 midrange servers are built around HP sx2000 chipset which is based on a modular cell-
based architecture. Cell-based architecture allows for components (cell boards, IO and more) to be
configured to effectively cover a wide range of computing needs. Both the HP 9000 rp7440 and
rp8440 Servers support a variety of system configurations, ranging from one to sixteen PA-8900
processors. Both servers can be configured as large symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) systems or as
multiple independent hard partitions called nPartitions (nPars). The basic components in the HP 9000
midrange servers are the cell board with processors and memory, the PCI-X based I/O subsystem,
and, in the HP 9000 rp8440 Server, the crossbar backplane. These components fit together to
provide a high-performance computing platform that is scalable, highly available, and flexible.
HP 9000 rp7440 Server architecture
The HP 9000 rp7440 Server architecture is designed around the ability to operate the system as a
single one- to eight-processor SMP server or to divide it into two independent hard partitions (nPars).
Figure 4 shows the primary components of the HP 9000 rp7440 Server architecture. When the
system is configured as a non-partitioned server, all resources shown in Figure 4 are available to
perform together as one logical server. When it is configured as two nPars, system resources are
divided into two logical servers, or independent partitions, each containing a cell board with a
dedicated set of I/O resources. For example, in Figure 4, imagine that the solid line connecting the
upper and lower cell boards is no longer there. The drawing would then reflect a system divided into
two independent partitions. The cell board, I/O bay, core I/O, and peripheral bay in the upper half
of the drawing would be an independent hard partition, which is isolated from the second partition
shown in the lower half of the drawing.
Figure 4. Architecture of the HP 9000 rp7440 Server, showing the basic modular building blocks of the system
All OL AR
Peripheral bay
Processor
Memory
Cell board
Cell
controller
Processor
Processor
Processor
ProcessorProcessor
Memory
Memory
Cell board
Cell
controller
Cell
controller
Processor Processor
ProcessorProcessor
Processor Processor
7/8 P CI- X 266
IO slots
I/O c ontrollerI/O c ontroller
I/O c ontrollerI/O c ontroller
Processor
Memory
Cell board
Cell
controller
Processor
Processor
Processor
Processor Processor
Memory
Memory
Cell board
Cell
controller
Cell
controller
Processor Processor
Processor Processor
ProcessorProcessor
LAN/
SCSI
LAN/
SCSI
MP/
SCSI
LAN/
SCSI
LAN/
SCSI
MP/
SCSI
Core I/OI/O bayCell boards
7 P CI- X 266
IO slots
3x cros s bar links
9