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8 Chipset

The PowerEdge M910 system board incorporates the Intel® 7500 chipset for I/O and processor interfacing. The 7500 chipset is designed to support Intel® Xeon® processor 6500 and 7500 series 4S family, Intel® QPI Interconnect, DDR3 memory technology, and PCI Express Generation 2 (PCIe 2). The 7500 chipset consists of the IOH QuickPath Interconnect (QPI), Intel® 7500 Scalable Memory Buffer, and the ICH10 South Bridge.

8.1 Intel 7500 I/O Hub (IOH)

The PowerEdge M910 system board incorporates an Intel 7500 series IOH to provide a link between the 4S processors and the I/O components. The main components of the IOH consist of two full‐width QPI links (one to each processor), 36 lanes of PCIe Gen2, and a x4 DMI link to connect directly to the ICH10 (Intel I/O Controller Hub 10) South Bridge.

8.2 IOH QuickPath Interconnect (QPI)

The QPI architecture consists of serial point‐to‐point interconnects for the processors and the IOH. The PowerEdge M910 has a total of four QPI links including one link connecting the processors and links connecting both processors with the IOH. Each link consists of 20 lanes (full‐width) in each direction with a link speed of 6.4 GT/s. An additional lane is reserved for a forwarded clock. Data is sent over the QPI links as packets.

The QPI architecture features the following four layers:

∙The Physical layer consists of the actual connection between components. It supports Polarity Inversion and Lane Reversal for optimizing component placement and routing.

∙The Link layer is responsible for flow control and the reliable transmission of data.

∙The Routing layer is responsible for the routing of QPI data packets.

∙Finally, the Protocol layer is responsible for high‐level protocol communications, including the implementation of a MESIF (Modify, Exclusive, Shared, Invalid, Forward) cache coherence protocol.

8.3PCI EXPRESS GENERATION 2

PCI Express (PCIe) is a serial point‐to‐point interconnect for I/O devices. PCIe Gen2 doubles the signaling bit rate of each lane from 2.5 Gb/s to 5 Gb/s. Each of the PCIe Gen2 ports is backward‐ compatible with Gen1 transfer rates.

8.4 Direct Media Interface (DMI)

The DMI (previously called the Enterprise Southbridge Interface) connects the Intel 7500 Legacy IOH with the Intel I/O Controller Hub (ICH). The DMI is equivalent to a x4 PCIe Gen1 link with a transfer rate of 1 GB/s in each direction.

8.5 Intel I/O Controller Hub 10 (ICH10)

ICH10 is a highly integrated I/O controller, supporting the following functions:

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Six x1 PCIe Gen1 ports, with the capability of combining ports 1‐4 as a x4 link PCI Bus 32‐bit Interface Rev 2.3 running at 33 MHz

Six UHCI and two EHCI (High‐Speed 2.0) USB host controllers, with up to twelve USB ports

Dell PowerEdge M910 Technical Guide

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Dell M910 manual Chipset, Intel 7500 I/O Hub IOH, IOH QuickPath Interconnect QPI, Direct Media Interface DMI
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M910 specifications

The Dell M910 is a powerful and versatile rack server designed for high-performance computing and data-intensive applications. This server is particularly well-suited for organizations looking to optimize their IT infrastructure for demanding workloads. It boasts an array of features, technologies, and characteristics that make it a reliable choice for enterprises seeking robust performance and scalability.

At the heart of the Dell M910 is its ability to support multi-core Intel Xeon processors. This technology allows the server to handle multiple tasks simultaneously, making it ideal for virtualization, database management, and other resource-heavy applications. The M910's processor options deliver a significant increase in performance, enabling businesses to run the latest software efficiently without bottlenecks.

In terms of memory, the M910 offers substantial capacity and speed, supporting up to 1.5TB of DDR3 RAM across 18 DIMM slots. This extensive memory complements the processing capabilities, ensuring that applications run smoothly and that users experience minimal latency. Coupled with advanced memory technologies, the M910 can easily handle large datasets and complex computations.

Another standout feature of the Dell M910 is its storage capabilities. The server supports a range of hard drives and solid-state drives, allowing organizations to tailor their storage solutions to meet their unique needs. With multiple drive configurations, including RAID options, businesses can ensure data redundancy and improve access speeds, crucial for mission-critical applications.

The design of the M910 emphasizes ease of management and maintenance. Dell's OpenManage systems management tools provide comprehensive monitoring and control, allowing IT administrators to easily manage server health, performance, and security. This feature streamlines the maintenance process, reducing downtime and promoting efficiency.

Moreover, the M910 is built with energy efficiency in mind. Utilizing advanced power management technologies, it not only reduces overall power consumption but also helps organizations lower their operational costs. This is increasingly important for businesses aiming to minimize their environmental footprint while maintaining high performance.

In conclusion, the Dell M910 is an exemplary rack server that combines powerful processing capabilities, extensive memory options, versatile storage configurations, and advanced management tools. With its focus on performance, scalability, and reliability, it meets the needs of modern enterprises and positions them well for future growth. Whether for virtualization, data analysis, or other demanding workloads, the Dell M910 proves to be a formidable choice for organizations aiming to leverage technology effectively.
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