International Business Machines Corporation

Alongkorn Kitamorn

Charles Andrew McLaughlin

Gordon David McIntosh

Ashwini Kulkarni

Douglas Craig Bossen

Sheldon Ray Bailey

Daniel James Henderson

Gary Dean Anderson

David R Willoughby

Michael Anthony Perez

Kanisha Patel

Gary Lee Ruzek

Wayne Allan Britson

Wayne L Lemmon

Michael Alan Kobler

Raymond Leslie Hicks

Richard Louis Arndt

Kevin Franklin Reick

David Otto Lewis

George Henry Ahrens, Jr

Rick A Hamilton, Ii

James Stephen Fields, Jr

Naresh Nayar

Richard Martin Tonry

Ravi Shankar

Andrew Henry Wottreng

Edward John Silha

John Steven Langford

Mark Elliott Hack

Wade Byron Ouren

Michael Thomas Vaden

Steven Paul Hartman

John Thomas O'Quin, Ii

George John Dawkins

David Lee Randall

Michael Youhour Lim

Milton Devon Miller, Ii

Christopher Harry Austen

Scott Leonard Daniels

Daniel Morgan Crowell

Douglas Marvin Benignus

Douglas Wayne Oliver

Thomas A Liebsch

Thi Ngoc Tran

Erlander Lo

Stephanie Maria Forsman

Bradley W Bishop

Sayileela Nulu

Chet Mehta

Donald LeRoy Thorson

Naresh Nayer

John Kwangil Chang

Scott Douglas Walton

Allegra R Segura

Leo C Mooney

Susan L Caunt

Brian Anthony Oehlke

Cynthia Joan Armstrong

A mechanism is provided for recovering from a data scan error. A service processor determines the nature of the data scan error and, depending on the nature of the error, performs one of a plurality of data scan error recovery procedures.

Recovery from hardware access errors

Disclosed is a computer implemented method, data processing system, and apparatus to respond to detection of a hardware interface error on a system bus, for example, during a concurrent maintenance operation. The service processor may receive an error on the system bus. The error identifies at least one field replaceable unit and may inhibit the suppression of clock signal to the field replaceable unit. The service processor adds an identifier of the field replaceable unit to an eligible Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) list. The service processor recursively adds at least one field replaceable unit that the field replaceable unit depends upon. The service processor suppresses the clock signal to the field replaceable unit. The service processor inhibits tagging the field replaceable unit as unusable for next initial program load.

Hardware recovery responsive to concurrent maintenance

A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for processing trace data in a logical partitioned data processing system. A partition causing an exception is identified in response to detecting the exception. The partition is one within a set of partitions in the logical partitioned data processing system. The trace data for the identified partition is stored in an error log or other data structure for a machine check interrupt handler.

Apparatus to preserve trace data

A system and method for fast system recovery that bypasses diagnostic routines by disconnecting failed hardware from the system before rebooting. Failed hardware and hardware that will be affected by removal of the failed hardware of the system are disconnected from the system. The system is restarted, and because the failed hardware is disconnected, diagnostic routines may safely be eliminated from the reboot process.

Method for fast system recovery via degraded reboot

A method, apparatus, system, and computer-readable storage medium that, in an embodiment, set uncorrectable error indicators in logical memory blocks in response to detecting an uncorrectable error in memory pages associated with the logical memory blocks. If the logical memory block is allocated to a hypervisor, the memory page may be deallocated in response to detection of the uncorrectable error. When an IPL of a partition is subsequently performed, a determination is made whether a logical memory block allocated to the partition previously encountered the uncorrectable error via the uncorrectable error indicator. If the logical memory block did previously encounter the uncorrectable error, the logical memory block is deallocated from the partition. In an embodiment, if spare memory exists, the logical memory block with the previously encountered uncorrectable error is replaced with the spare memory and the IPL of the partition is continued with the spare memory.

Deallocation of memory in a logically-partitioned computer

A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for preserving trace data in a logical partitioned data processing system. A call is received from a partition in a plurality of partitions to register a buffer in the partition for the trace data. The call includes a pointer to the buffer. The buffer is associated with a trace routine in platform firmware. The trace routine stores the trace data for calls made by the partition to the platform firmware in the buffer.

Method and apparatus for preserving trace data in a logical partitioned data processing system

Method and apparatus to preserve trace data

A method, apparatus, and computer instructions in a data processing system for managing clocks. The functionality of clock sources in the data processing system is verified to identify a set of valid clock sources in response to beginning an initial load process. Hardware is initialized in the data processing system using a valid clock source from the set of valid clock sources.

Method and apparatus for enhancing system clock availability

A method, system, and computer program product are disclosed for improving isolation of I/O errors in logical partitioned data processing systems. A machine check is generated that indicates that an I/O error has occurred in the system. The PCI host bridge (PHB) that generated the machine check is identified. The system includes multiple PHBs, each with its own set of slots. Some of these slots may be enabled for enhanced error handling while others of them are not. The adapters that are not enabled for enhanced error handling and that are coupled to the PHB that generated the machine check are identified. It is then determined that the I/O error occurred in at least one of these slots that are not enabled for enhanced error handling.

Method, system, and product for improving isolation of input/output errors in logically partitioned data processing systems

A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for reporting errors occurring in a data processing system. Responsive to an error occurring in a host bridge in the data processing system, a determination is made as to whether a device required for generating an error report is located below the host bridge. Responsive to the device required for generating an error report being located below a host bridge, the host bridge is isolated from other portions of the data processing system, wherein only a processor analyzing the error is able to access the host bridge. An error reporting process is performed. The error reporting process is able to access the host bridge and the device.

Apparatus for reporting and isolating errors below a host bridge

A method and apparatus for coordinating dynamic memory page deallocation with a redundant bit line steering mechanism are provided. With the method and apparatus, memory scrubbing and redundant bit line steering operations are performed in parallel with handling of notifications of runtime correctable errors. When a correctable error is encountered during runtime, and the correctable error is determined to be persistent, then dynamic memory page deallocation is requested of a hypervisor. The determination of persistence is based on a history CE table that is populated by the operation of the memory scrubbing and redundant bit line steering mechanism of a service processor. Thus, only those correctable errors that persist for longer than one memory scrubbing cycle are subject to memory page deallocation.

Method and apparatus for coordinating dynamic memory deallocation with a redundant bit line steering mechanism

A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for managing error logs. A request is received from a partition within a plurality of partitions in the logical partitioned data processing system to access error information. A determination is made as to whether the error information is located in a buffer. The error information is retrieved from a non-volatile memory in response to the error information being absent in the buffer. The retrieved error information retrieved from the non-volatile memory is stored in the buffer. This error information is stored in the buffer only for a selected period of time. After that period of time, this error information is deleted or removed from the buffer. In this manner, outdated error information is not returned to the plurality of partitions.

Method and apparatus for reporting error logs in a logical environment

The present invention provides an improved method, an system, and a set of computer implemented instructions for handling a cache containing multiple single-bit hard errors on multiple addresses within a data processing system. Such handles will prevent any down time by logging in the parts to be replaced by an operator when certain level of bit errors is reached. When a hard error exists on a cache address for the first time, serviceable first hard error, that cache line is deleted. Thus the damaged memory device is no longer used by the system. As a result, the system is running with 'N&#x2212;x' lines wherein 'N' constitutes the total number of existing lines and &#x201c;x&#x201d; is less than &#x201c;N&#x201d;. An alternative method is to exchange the damaged memory device to a spare memory device. In order to provide such services, the system must first differentiate whether an error is a soft or hard error.

Method and system for handling multiple bit errors to enhance system reliability

A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for processing errors in a hierarchical input/output sub-system having an input/output bridge with a plurality of hardware devices in a level below the bridge. A value is read from a selected register to form a read value in response to detecting an error. The selected register is reset. Each bit in the read value associated with the error is cleared to form a cleared value. The cleared value is written into the selected register such that errors occurring since the register was cleared are preserved. The error registers below the bridge are scanned in response to an absence of an error being detected in a bridge within the input/output sub-system. A determination is made as to whether the error has previously occurred in response to a presence of an error being found by scanning the registers below the bridge. The error is reported in response to an absence of a determination that the error has previously occurred.

Method and apparatus for analyzing hardware errors in a logical partitioned data processing system

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Austin, TX, United States of America

Alongkorn Kitamorn