International Business Machines Corporation

Lenovo (singapore) Pte. Ltd.

Michael Charles Elles

Tu T Dang

Jeffrey Buchanan Williams

Paul Klustaitis

Ralph Saul Cooper

Ketan B Patel

Robert Anthony Fenoglio

James A O'Connor

Jeffery Michael Franke

Mark G Noll

Alan David Seid

Juan Q Hernandez

Paul L Anderson

Dwayne A Lowe

Luis Quinones Sepulveda

William Edward Atherton

Challis Llewellyn Purrington

James Scott Womble

Sumanta Kumar Bahali

Michael Leo Scollard

Ivan R Zapata

David W Smith

Anouar Braham

Loc X Nguyen

Robert L Ayers

Challis L Purrington, Sr

Luis Rene Quinones Supelveda

Danny L Woodruff

Yamilka F Cranford

A fan system for improved external case fan design with self-cleaning bristles, the fan system includes a housing a housing defining an opening and an interior space that extends along an axis, a plurality of fan blades positioned within the interior space and configured to rotate about the axis, and bristles positioned proximate to the opening of the housing. The fan system also includes one or more brushes configured to rotate about the axis and to be moved to a position to engage the bristles for cleaning and a mechanism configured to move the brushes to the position for engaging the bristles.

Fan systems including brushes and bristles for self-cleaning

At initiation of boot of a computing device, a processor executes a firmware interface of the computing device, like a basic input/output system (BIOS) or a unified extended firmware interface (UEFI). The processor executes the firmware interface to detect whether a dynamic hardware configuration (DHC) function has been enabled. In response to detecting that the DHC function has been enabled, the processor executes the firmware interface to configure hardware components of the computing device according to a DHC, such as to selectively disable the hardware components. After configuring the hardware components according to the DHC, the processor proceeds to boot the computing device.

Dynamic hardware configuration via firmware interface at computing device boot

A method includes running a system mainline initialization process on a compute node that includes an expansion card with read-only memory storing expansion card initialization code. The method obtains and executes the expansion card initialization code from the read-only memory to perform initialization of the expansion card. The method further includes updating a current operational progress state of the expansion card initialization stored in non-volatile memory of the node as the expansion card initialization moves through a plurality of operational progress states, detecting a fault, such as a hung condition, during the expansion card initialization in response to exceeding a predetermined time period in the current operational progress state, and storing a fault indication in the non-volatile memory, wherein the fault indication identifies the card experiencing the fault. Optionally, the method may reset the node and bypass initializing the card associated with the fault indication.

Detecting and handling an expansion card fault during system initialization

A method is provided for cabling a plurality of hardware components. A chassis controller establishes a wireless connection to a wireless device. The chassis controller, via a wireless interface, transmits a chassis map to the wireless device over the wireless connection. The chassis controller, via the wireless interface, transmits to the wireless device, an indication of a first port to be cabled over the wireless connection, the first port. The first port is of a first hardware component of the plurality of hardware components. The chassis controller tests the first port to determine whether cabling of the first port has been performed correctly.

Automated cabling process for a complex environment

One embodiment provides a method for scalable predictive failure analysis. Embodiments of the method may include gathering memory information for memory on a user computer system having at least one processor. Further, the method includes selecting one or more memory-related parameters. Further still, the method includes calculating based on the gathering and the selecting, a single bit error value for the scalable predictive failure analysis through calculations for each of the one or more memory-related parameters that utilize the memory information. Yet further, the method includes setting, based on the calculating, the single bit error value for the user computer system.

Scalable prediction failure analysis for memory used in modern computers

A method, system, and computer program product to manage license key information in a system including a feature requiring the license key information are described. The method includes storing, automatically, a backup copy of the license key information from a primary copy of the license key information after installation of a feature requiring the license key information on the system. The method also includes recovering, automatically, the license key information whenever the license key information is required to be installed.

Automatic recovery of license key information

Embodiments of the present invention provide an approach for protecting electronic devices against the use of unqualified and/or unauthorized (e.g., 'grey market') hardware components. Specifically, in a typical embodiment, a hardware component that a user is attempting to use with an electronic device will be detected. Then, the device information associated with the hardware component (e.g., serial number, vital product data (VPD), etc.) will be identified from the hardware component (e.g., as stored therein).

Protecting an electronic device against unathorized hardware use

A method, computer program product, and computer system for monitoring for electrostatic discharge (ESD) events. An ESD monitor for potential of electrostatic discharge events in a sensed area through a plurality of ESD sensors coupled to the ESD monitor. The monitor senses for a charge level which could cause ESD event and entry of an operator into a sensed area. If an ESD event is detected, issue an ESD event alert to the operator and recording data to a tangible storage device; determine environmental factors at time and date of the ESD event; compare the ESD event and associated environmental factors to other ESD events with associated environmental factors; and determine if a correlation exists between the ESD event and associated environmental factors and the other ESD events with associated environmental factors.

Built-in automated electrostatic discharge monitor for computing units

One embodiment provides an error detection method wherein single-bit errors in a memory module are detected and identified as being a random error or a repeat error. Each identified random error and each identified repeat error occurring in a time interval is counted. An alert is generated in response to a number of identified random errors reaching a random-error threshold or a number of identified repeat errors reaching a repeat-error threshold during the predefined interval. The repeat-error threshold is set lower than the random-error threshold. A hashing process may be applied to the memory address of each detected error to map the location of the error in the memory system to a corresponding location in an electronic table.

Use of hashing function to distinguish random and repeat errors in a memory system

A dual-sided connector pin interposer includes a substrate comprising a first side opposite a second side. The interposer includes a first plurality of flexible pins protruding from the first side of the substrate. The first plurality of flexible pins is positioned for installation in a first plurality of pad connectors of the pinless socket. The interposer includes a second plurality of flexible pins protruding from the second side of the substrate. The second plurality of flexible pins is positioned for installation in a second plurality of pad connectors of the pinless integrated circuit component. The first plurality of flexible pins are electrically connected to the second plurality of flexible pins through the substrate to provide electrical contact points between the pinless socket and the pinless integrated circuit component when the interposer is installed.

Removable and replaceable dual-sided connector pin interposer

Operating system ('OS')-firmware interface update recovery including determining, for each of a plurality of available OS-firmware interface images for booting a computer, whether each available OS-firmware interface image is corrupted or uncorrupted; setting, for each corrupted OS-firmware interface image, a predictive failure analysis ('PFA') bit in nonvolatile memory available to the OS-firmware interface update recovery module; selecting an uncorrupted OS-firmware interface image; initiating a boot for the computer with the selected OS-firmware interface image; determining whether a previous update to one of the available OS-firmware interface images was interrupted; and notifying a user that the previous update was interrupted if the previous update to one of the available OS-firmware interface images interrupted.

Growing community of inventors

Apex, NC, United States of America

Michael Charles Elles