IBM Z10 BC manual Parallel Sysplex Coupling Connectivity

	z/OS	ICF	ICF	z/OS
System z10 / z9					System z10 / z9
zSeries 990 / 890					zSeries 990 / 890

A robust failure recovery capability

Parallel Sysplex Coupling Connectivity

The Coupling Facilities communicate with z/OS images in the Parallel Sysplex environment over specialized high- speed links. As processor performance increases, it is important to also use faster links so that link performance does not become constrained. The performance, avail- ability and distance requirements of a Parallel Sysplex environment are the key factors that will identify the appro- priate connectivity option for a given confi guration.

When connecting between System z10, System z9 and z990/z890 servers the links must be confi gured to operate in Peer Mode. This allows for higher data transfer rates to and from the Coupling Facilities. The peer link acts simultaneously as both a CF Sender and CF Receiver link, reducing the number of links required. Larger and more data buffers and improved protocols may also improve long distance performance.

12x PSIFB Up to 150 meters

1x PSIFB Up to 10/100 Km

z10 EC, z10 BC

Introducing long reach InfiniBand coupling links

Now, Infi niBand can be used for Parallel Sysplex coupling and STP communication at unrepeated distances up to 10 km (6.2 miles) and even greater distances when attached to a qualifi ed optical networking solution. Infi niBand cou- pling links supporting extended distance are referred to as 1x (one pair of fi ber) IB-SDR or 1x IB-DDR.

•Long reach 1x Infi niBand coupling links support single data rate (SDR) at 2.5 gigabits per second (Gbps) when connected to a DWDM capable of SDR

•Long reach 1x Infi niBand coupling links support double data rate (DDR) at 5 Gbps when connected to a DWDM capable of DDR.

Depending on the capability of the attached DWDM, the link data rate will automatically be set to either SDR or DDR.

The IBM System z10 introduces Infi niBand coupling link technology designed to provide a high-speed solution and increased distance (150 meters) compared to ICB-4 (10 meters).

Infi niBand coupling links also provide the ability to defi ne up to 16 CHPIDs on a single PSIFB port, allowing physi- cal coupling links to be shared by multiple sysplexes.

This also provides additional subchannels for Coupling Facility communication, improving scalability, and reduc- ing contention in heavily utilized system confi gurations. It also allows for one CHPID to be directed to one CF, and

.. .. .. ..
HCA2-O	HCA2-O LR
	.. .. .. ..
	HCA2-O

12x PSIFB Up to 150 meters

z9 EC and z9 BC S07

New ICB-4 cable

ICB-4 10 meters

another CHPID directed to another CF on the same target server, using the same port.

Like other coupling links, external Infi niBand coupling

MBA

HCA2-C

IFB-MP

z10 EC, z10 BC, z9 EC,

z9 BC, z990, z890

ISC-3

ISC-3

ISC-3

ISC-3

ISC-3Up to 10/100

Km

links are also valid to pass time synchronization signals for Server Time Protocol (STP). Therefore the same coupling links can be used to exchange timekeeping informa-

I/O Drawer

z10	z10 EC, z10 BC, z9 EC,
	z9 BC, z990, z890

tion and Coupling Facility messages in a Parallel Sysplex environment.

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