International Business Machines Corporation

Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions Holdings Corporation

Donald Eugene Johnson

Jeffery Michael Franke

David Robert Woodham

Carl A Morrell

Gerhard Nikolaus Buckler

David John Steiner

Jesse Vernon Corbett, Jr

Gregory William Dake

Michael Scott Rollins

Keith Manders Campbell

Edward Klodnicki

Brian Edward Blair

Jeffrey Michael Franke

Brooks Johnston

Shane Michael Lardinois

A hard disc drive (HDD) of a larger native capacity is clipped to emulate a smaller capacity drive by allocating storage space in tracks in at least both a radially innermost region and radially outermost region of the platter(s). During normal operation, when data is written to or read from the clipped HDD, the actuator arm will move through its entire, normal range of motion, as the read/write heads seek tracks in both the radially inner and outer regions of the platter(s). In some embodiments, storage space is also allocated from tracks in regions interposed between the inner and outer regions. In one embodiment, all tracks on the platter(s) are divided into regions of substantially equal data storage capacity, and the storage space is allocated for the clipped HDD is divided substantially evenly across all the regions.

Method for clipping hard drives while preserving full actuator arm movement

A method and system for recovering a server blade, in a multiple server blade computer, that is lost during a flash update operation on a service processor in the server blade. Because of the flash update failure, the lost server blade is unaware of its location on a management pathway, which in an exemplary form may be a midplane or a bus, which connects the server blade and a management module in a server blade chassis. The lost server blade puts a signal on the management pathway indicating that the flash failed. The signal is put on a special channel reserved for such messages. The management module receives the signal, and then determines which of the multiple server blades are lost due to the flash update failure.

Method and system to recover a failed flash of a blade service processor in a server chassis

A system for recovering a server blade, in a multiple server blade computer, that is lost during a flash update operation on a service processor in the server blade. Because of the flash update failure, the lost server blade is unaware of its location on a management pathway, which in an exemplary form may be a midplane or a bus, which connects the server blade and a management module in a server blade chassis. The lost server blade puts a signal on the management pathway indicating that the flash failed. The signal is put on a special channel reserved for such messages. The management module receives the signal, and then determines which of the multiple server blades are lost due to the flash update failure.

System to recover a failed flash of a blade service processor in a server chassis

A computer program product is presented for recovering a server blade, in a multiple server blade computer, that is lost during a flash update operation on a service processor in the server blade. Because of the flash update failure, the lost server blade is unaware of its location on a management pathway, which in an exemplary form may be a midplane or a bus, which connects the server blade and a management module in a server blade chassis. The lost server blade puts a signal on the management pathway indicating that the flash failed. The signal is put on a special channel reserved for such messages. The management module receives the signal, and then determines which of the multiple server blades are lost due to the flash update failure.

Computer program product for recovery of a failed flash of a blade service processor in a server chassis

An array of electronic devices includes at least one throttlable device in the array of devices and a management module connected to the at least one throttlable device for reducing heat effects to an overheating device from neighboring devices in the array of electronic devices device. The management module is configured to detect the overheating of the overheating device, detect at least one throttlable device neighboring the overheating device and in the array of devices, and throttle the at least one throttlable device. The array of devices are an array of blade servers within a blade center, and the management module is separate from the at least one throttlable device.

Device throttling system from neighboring device

An apparatus is provided and includes a power source, a system board on which an electrical component is installed, a heat sink including a plurality of heat transfer surfaces to contact the electrical component and to thereby remove heat from the electrical component, a fan reversing control card coupled to the system board and configured to generate normal and reverse cycle rotation signals, and a fan coupled to the fan reversing control card and configured to receive the normal and reverse cycle rotation signals and to thereby operate in normal and reverse cycles in which the fan rotates in first and second directions, respectively, the fan being disposed within the computer such that the first and second directional rotations of the fan generate air flows in first and second directions with respect to the heat transfer surfaces, respectively.

Method of removing foreign particles from heat transfer surfaces of heat sinks

A method of operating an apparatus for use with a computer, including a power source, a system board, and a heat sink. The method includes operating a fan reversing control card, which is coupled to the system board, to generate normal and reverse cycle rotation signals in predetermined intervals, and controlling a fan, which is coupled to the fan reversing control card, by receiving the normal and reverse cycle rotation signals, and operating in normal and reverse cycles in which the fan rotates in first and second directions, respectively. The method further includes installing the fan within the computer sufficiently proximate to the heat transfer surfaces such that the first and second directional rotations of the fan generate air flows in first and second directions with respect to the heat transfer surfaces, respectively.

An apparatus including a power source, a system board, coupled to the power source and disposed within the computer, on which an electrical component, which controls operations of the computer, is installed, a heat sink including heat transfer surfaces which are configured to contact the electrical component and to thereby remove heat therefrom, a fan reversing control card coupled to the system board and configured to generate normal and reverse cycle rotation signals in predetermined intervals, and a fan coupled to the fan reversing control card and configured to receive the rotation signals and to thereby operate in normal and reverse cycles in which the fan rotates in first and second directions, respectively. The fan is disposed proximate to the heat transfer surfaces such that the first and second directional rotations of the fan generate air flows in first and second directions with respect to the heat transfer surfaces, respectively.

Apparatus to remove foreign particles from heat transfer surfaces of heat sinks

A data processing network includes a set of servers, at least one switch module to interconnect the servers, and a management module. The management module consults power state information stored in the network following a power transition and restores power to at least some of the servers and switch modules based on the power state information. The power state information prevents the management module from restoring power to servers and switch modules having incompatible communication protocols. In one embodiment, the plurality of servers and the switch modules are hot-swappable modules that are all inserted into a single chassis. In this embodiment, the server modules and at least one switch module share selected resources of the network including system power. The switch modules and servers may employ Ethernet, fiber channel, optical, and serial communication protocols.

Restoring power in a hot swappable multi-server data processing environment

In a chassis based server a programmed processor determines the fabric type that allows the maximum numbers of processor modules and switches to be powered on. The processor then allows power to be applied to processor modules and switches whose fabric type is the same as the determined fabric type.

Apparatus, method and program product for automatically distributing power to modules within a server

When a blade and/or interconnect device is inserted into the chassis of a powered or live server the procedure is known as hot-plugging. Before power is applied to the hot-plugged blade and/or interconnect device the fabric type of already installed blades and/or interconnect devices is correlated with fabric types of newly hot-plugged blade and/or interconnect device. Depending upon results of the correlation, power to the hot-plugged blade and/or interconnect device is allowed or denied.

Apparatus, method and program product for automatically distributing power to modules inserted in live chassis

A chassis controller can identify a blade that spans more than one power plane. If power is healthy and available on all power planes then the blade may be granted permission to power on. The chassis controller validates that when a blade spans multiple power planes that the necessary power is available before permitting the blade to go to fully power operation.

Growing community of inventors

Apex, NC, United States of America

Donald Eugene Johnson