ACER ALTOS R910 Series User's Manual

[Page 1] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

Acer Altos R910 Series User’s Guide ...

[Page 2] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

Changes may be made periodically to the information in this publication without obligation to notify any person of such revision or changes. Such changes will be incorporated in new editions of this manual or supplementary documents and publicatio...

[Page 3] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

iii Notices FCC notice Class A equipment This device has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A digital device pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful ...

[Page 4] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

iv Caution! Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the manufacturer could void the user’s authority, which is granted by the Federal Communications Commission, to operate this server. Use conditions This part complies with Part 15 of ...

[Page 5] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

v Important safety instructions Read these instructions carefully. Save these instructions for future reference. 1 Follow all warnings and instructions marked on the product. 2 Unplug this product from the wall outlet before cleaning. Do not use liq...

[Page 6] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

vi d If the product does not operate normally when the operating instructions are followed. Adjust only those controls that are covered by the operating instructions since improper adjustment of other controls may result in damage and will often r...

[Page 7] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

Contents Notices iii FCC notice iii Laser compliance statement iv Important safety instructions v 1 System tour 1 Features summary 3 External and internal structure 7 Front bezel 7 Front panel 8 Rear panel 13 Internal components 16 System...

[Page 8] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

viii Removing a memory board air baffle 42 Installing a memory board air baffle 43 Configuring hot-pluggable components 44 Hard disk drives 45 Installing a HDD 46 System fan assembly 47 Power supply 49 Memory board 51 PCI card 55 Configuring cold-plu...

[Page 9] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

ix Verifying proper operation of key system lights 131 Specific problems and corrective actions 132 Appendix A: Acer Altos R910 rack installation guide 141 Setting up the system rack 143 System rack installation 145 Vertical mounting hole pattern 1...

[Page 10] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

x ...

[Page 11] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour ...

[Page 12] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

The Acer Altos R910 is a rack optimized 64-bit Intel Xeon MP processor-based server system. The system features redundant memory, networking, hot-plug PCI slots, standard-based server management, and server-oriented embedded I/O. Remote monitori...

[Page 13] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 Features summary Listed below are the system’s key features: Processor • Supports one to four physical processors • Dual-core Intel ® Xeon™ processors 7000 sequence • 64-bit Intel Xeon processors MP with 1 MB L2 cache • 667 or 800 MHz...

[Page 14] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 4 • Memory reliability, availability, and serviceability (RAS) features • Memory mirroring • Memory RAID •Memory sparing • Memory hot-plug • x8 SDDC (Single Device Data Correction) for memory error detection and correcti...

[Page 15] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

5 Serial ATA port • One SATA port (reserved for slim-type DVD drive) Networking • Broadcom BCM5704C Gigabit Ethernet Controller with dual ports PCI I/O • One hot-plug x8 PCI Express slot • Three hot-plug x8 PCI Express slots (with x4 through...

[Page 16] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 6 • Two Gigabit LAN ports (RJ-45) • Server management port (RJ-45) 1 Operating system and software • Operating system options: • Microsoft ® Windows ® Server 2003, x64 Edition • Microsoft Windows Server 2003 • Red Hat...

[Page 17] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

7 External and internal structure Front bezel The front bezel provides an interface for system management via status LED indicators. The status LEDs on the bezel mirrors the LEDs on the front panel, indicating HDD activity, LAN1 and LAN2, system st...

[Page 18] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 8 Front panel Item Icon Component Item Icon Component A DVD drive bay F6 Reset button B 5.25-inch drive bays F7 Power button C VGA/monitor port F8 System ID button D NMI button G Hot-swap system fan assembly eject button E USB 2....

[Page 19] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

9 * The hot-swap system fan assembly indicator lights up amber when a fan module fails. Front panel control button functions Below table lists the functions of the front panel control buttons. F2 LAN1 and LAN2 status indicator J Hot-plug HDDs F3 S...

[Page 20] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 10 Front panel LED indicators Below table lists the LED states on the front panel. Item LED indicator Color Status Description A HDD activity indicator Green, on HDD is being initialized. Green, blinking HDD is active. Amber, on ...

[Page 21] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

11 C Status/ fault indicator Green, on Ready System booted and ready. Green, blinking Degraded CPU or DIMM disabled Amber, on Critical condition Critical power supply, blower, voltage, or temperature failure. Amber, blinking Non- critical c...

[Page 22] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 12 GHot-plug HDD activity indicator Amber, flashing HDD is active. Amber + Green, alternate flashing • HDD is powered on and rebuilding RAID. • HDD is powered on and has a fault condition. Amber, flashing HDD is not po...

[Page 23] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

13 Rear panel * Reserved for remote management of server. This requires installation of an ARMC/3 (Acer remote management card/3). Item Component Item Component A Serial port G1, G2 Hot-swap power supply module status indicators B1 - B7 B1 Hot-p...

[Page 24] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 14 Rear panel LED indicators Below table lists the LED states on the rear panel. Item LED indicator Function Color Description A1 Hot-swap power supply module status indicator Power good indicator Green, on System has power a...

[Page 25] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

15 C LAN port indicators Status Green, on Network link is detected. Green, off No network connection. Green, blinking Network connection in place. Speed Green/ Amber, off 10 Mbps connection Green, on 100 Mbps connection Amber, on 1000 Mbps conn...

[Page 26] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 16 Internal components Item Component Item Component A DVD drive bay D Plastic PCI slot divider and PCI bus slots B CPU air baffle E Memory board C Memory board air baffle F Mainboard ...

[Page 27] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

17 System boards Mainboard The mainboard becomes accessible once you open the system. It should look like the figure shown below. Item Description Item Description A Server management port (RJ-45) * Q BMC or ARMC/3 module connector (optional) B I...

[Page 28] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 18 * Reserved for remote management of server. This requires installation of an ARMC/3 (Acer remote management card/3) D PCI-X 100MHz (Slot 6) T Power distribution board (PDB) signal connector E Hot-plug PCI Express x8 (with x4 thr...

[Page 29] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

19 SCSI backplane board Item Description Item Description A Front panel board connector D Power cable connector to DVD and 5.25” drives B Power distribution board connector E Hot-swap system fan module connectors (two on reverse side) C SCS...

[Page 30] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 20 Hot-plug memory board * Press this button to perform a hot-insertion or hot-removal of a memory board. Item Description Item Description A Mirror mode indicator F Memory board handle B RAID mode indicator G DIMM 1B error indicator...

[Page 31] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

21 Memory board LED indicators The hot-plug memory board has LEDs indicating the configuration and status of the DIMMs installed on it. Feature Color Description Mirror mode indicator Green, on System is in memory mirror configuration. The memor...

[Page 32] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

1 System tour 22 System jumpers Jumper name Settings Function JA41 Password clear 1-2 (default) 2-3 Password enabled Password disabled/cleared JA42 BIOS write protect 1-2 (default) 2-3 BIOS unprotected BIOS write protected J4A3 BIOS recovery 1-2 (d...

[Page 33] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

2 System setup ...

[Page 34] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

This chapter gives you instructions on how to set up the system. Procedures on how to connect peripherals are also explained. ...

[Page 35] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

25 Setting up the system Pre-installation requirements Selecting a site Before unpacking and installing the system, select a suitable site for the system for maximum efficiency. Consider the following factors when choosing a site for the system: �...

[Page 36] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

2 System setup 26 Connecting peripherals Caution! The server operates on 220 VDC only. Do not connect the system to an incorrect voltage source. Refer to the illustration below for specific connection instructions on the peripherals you want to c...

[Page 37] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

27 Turning on the system After making sure that you have properly set up the system and connected all the required cables, you can now power on the system. To power on the system, press the power button on the front control panel. The system start...

[Page 38] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

2 System setup 28 Power-on problems If the system does not boot after you have applied power, check the following factors that might have caused the boot failure. • The external power cable may be loosely connected. Check the power cable connecti...

[Page 39] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

29 Configuring the system OS The Altos R910 comes with Acer EasyBUILD TM that allows you to conveniently install your choice of operating system. To start using EasyBUILD, follow the steps below. 1 Locate the EasyBUILD DVD included in the system ...

[Page 40] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

2 System setup 30 Turning off the system There are two ways by which you can turn off the server. These include: • If you are using a Windows OS on your server, you can turn off the server by clicking the Start button on the Windows taskbar, poin...

[Page 41] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade ...

[Page 42] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

This chapter discusses the precautionary measures and installation procedures you need to know to upgrade the system. ...

[Page 43] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

33 Installation precautions Before you install any server component, we recommend that you read the following sections. These sections contain important ESD precautions along with pre-installation and post-installation instructions. ESD precaution...

[Page 44] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 34 Warning! Failure to properly turn off the server before you start installing components may cause serious damage. Do not attempt the procedures described in the following sections unless you are a qualified service technician....

[Page 45] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

35 Opening the server Caution! Before you proceed, make sure that you have turned off the system and all peripherals connected to it. Read the “Pre- installation instructions” on page 33. You need to open the server before you can install additi...

[Page 46] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 36 Installing the front bezel Slide the front bezel onto the chassis. Removing the top cover 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Loosen the two captive screws located on the face...

[Page 47] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

37 4 Lift the top cover away from the server and put it aside for reinstallation later (B). Installing the top cover 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Place the top cover on the chassis so that...

[Page 48] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 38 Removing the CPU air baffle You will need to remove the CPU air baffle to perform the following procedures: • Removing and installing a heat sink • Removing and installing a CPU • Removing and installing a DVD drive To rem...

[Page 49] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

39 Installing the CPU air baffle 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Insert the front of the CPU air baffle under the two metal tabs at the front of the baffle, just below the SCSI backplane board...

[Page 50] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 40 Removing the center brace You will need to remove the center brace to remove and install an optional processor core VRM. To remove the center brace 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on p...

[Page 51] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

41 Installing the center brace 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Slide the center brace into position in the chassis (A). 3 Slide the latches at each side of the chassis to the locked position ...

[Page 52] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 42 Removing a memory board air baffle You will need to remove the memory board air baffle to perform the following procedures: • Removing and installing a memory board • Removing and installing a PCI card To remove the memory ...

[Page 53] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

43 Installing a memory board air baffle 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Insert the memory board air baffle into the memory board slot with arrow on the tab pointing to the right. The memory ai...

[Page 54] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 44 Configuring hot-pluggable components Hot-pluggable components are the components that can be removed and replaced while the system is powered on. For this server model, it refers to the following: • Hard disk drives • Syst...

[Page 55] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

45 Hard disk drives The server’s hard disk drive bay supports five hot-plug SCSI drives. Use only Acer-qualified HDDs. To purchase an HDD, contact your local Acer representative. Caution! To ensure proper airflow and server cooling, all drive b...

[Page 56] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 46 Installing a HDD Note: To puchase a HDD carrier, contact your local Acer representative. 1 Perform steps 1 to 4 of the “Removing a HDD” on page 45. 2 Remove the four screws that secure the air baffle to the HDD carrier (A...

[Page 57] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

47 7 Use the lever to push the HDD carrier until it docks into place (A), then close the HDD carrier lever (B). System fan assembly The system has two cooling fan assemblies — two fan modules each — located on the front panel. Each assembly ha...

[Page 58] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 48 Installing the system fan assembly Warning! To ensure proper system cooling, the replacement of a failed system fan module should be completed within one minute. 1 If a system fan assembly is installed in the fan bay, perform ...

[Page 59] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

49 Power supply The server has two hot-swap power supply module bays on the rear panel that accept hot-swap redundant power supply modules. The system ships out with two power supply modules installed. A redundant power configuration enables a ful...

[Page 60] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 50 Removing a power supply Caution: Power suppy hot-swap operations should be performed only if a failure occurs in the power supply. 1 Observe the ESD precautions described on page 33. 2 Remove the DC power cord from the power ...

[Page 61] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

51 4 Rotate the handle to the closed position (B). 5 Tighten the thumbscrew to secure the power supply (C). 6 Plug the power cord into the DC receptacle on the power supply. 7 Verify that the LEDs on the power supply are functioning. Refer to the...

[Page 62] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 52 Caution! Do not attempt to hot-remove or hot-add a memory board in a non-redundant configuration. If your server is not configured in the BIOS setup utility for maximum compatibility, memory RAID, or memory mirroring, you must...

[Page 63] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

53 Removing a hot-plug memory board Note: If you remove a memory board from the server, you must either replace it with a new memory board or install a memory board air baffle. 1 Observe the ESD precautions described on page 33. 2 Press the attent...

[Page 64] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 54 6 Install a memory board or memory board air baffle. For instructions on how to install a memory board, refer to section below. For instructions to install a memory board air baffle, refer to “Installing a memory board air b...

[Page 65] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

55 The BIOS setup utility executes a memory test prior to configuring the memory in POST and when a memory board is inserted into the system during a memory hot-removal or hot-add operation. If a DIMM fails the memory test, an LED will light on th...

[Page 66] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 56 8 Install the slot cover over the empty slot, then rotate the retention latch downward (C). 9 Observe the post-installation instructions described on page 34. Installing a hot-plug PCI card 1 If your server is operating, use y...

[Page 67] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

57 Configuring cold-pluggable components Cold-pluggable components are the components that require the system to be powered down before you can remove or replace them. The cold-pluggable components installed in the server include: • DVD drive �...

[Page 68] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 58 DVD drive Removing the DVD drive 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Disconnect the power and SATA cables from the SATA-to-IDE converter board on the rear of the media device ...

[Page 69] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

59 3 Lift the rear right corner of the media device to remove it from the carrier (A) and (B). 4 Remove the SATA-to-IDE converter board (C). 5 Remove the new drive from its protective packaging. 6 Attach the SATA-to-IDE converter board to the med...

[Page 70] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 60 5.25-inch drive The 5.25-inch drive bay allows you to install additional drives such as another backup hard drive, CD-ROM drive, or a tape drive. These options provide the system with additional storage capacity. Installing a ...

[Page 71] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

61 7 Slide the 5.25-inch peripheral device into the server until it clicks into place. 8 Observe the post-installation instructions described on page 34. ...

[Page 72] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 62 Processor The server supports up to four processors, the following models are supported: • dual-core Intel Xeon processor 7000 sequence • 64-bit Intel Xeon processor MP with 1 MB L2 cache CPU upgrading guidelines When insta...

[Page 73] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

63 2 If necessary, remove the CPU air baffle. Perform instructions described in “Removing the CPU air baffle” on page 38. 3 Locate the CPU you want to remove. 4 Loosen the four screws on the heat sink. 5 Lift the heat sink to remove it. 6 Pla...

[Page 74] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 64 8 Pull out the CPU from the socket. Store it in an anti-static bag. Installing a CPU 1 Perform steps 1 to 3 of the “Removing a CPU” section. 2 If a heat sink is installed, remove it. 3 Pull the CPU socket retainer lever t...

[Page 75] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

65 5 Position the CPU over the socket, matching the two triangle markers (A) and lining up the CPU pins with the socket (B). 6 Press the retainer lever down to lock the CPU in place. 7 If the heat sink does not have thermal grease on the bottom, ap...

[Page 76] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 66 Processor core VRMs Use processor core 10.2 VRMs with processors installed in CPU sockets 3 and 4. Processor core VRM requirements This server requires the installation of VRMs when upgrading the CPU in CPU sockets 3 and 4. R...

[Page 77] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

67 Removing the processor core VRM Note: The two processor core VRMs are located under the center brace. 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Remove the memory boards or memory air baffles from DI...

[Page 78] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 68 5 Gently pull the VRM upward to remove it from the socket (B). 6 Observe the post-installation instructions described on page 34. Installing a processor core VRM Caution! The processor core VRM connector is slotted to ensure pro...

[Page 79] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

69 6 Insert the VRM into the correct VRM connector and press down firmly (B). 7 Press the holding clips inward to lock the VRM in place. 8 Install the VRM baffle over the processor 4 core VRM, if installed. 9 Observe the post-installation instructi...

[Page 80] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 70 Removing a memory board Caution! Damage to the system occurs if power is not removed from the system prior to removal or installation of memory boards. 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described...

[Page 81] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

71 Installing a memory board 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Locate an empty memory board slot. 3 If necessary, remove the memory board air baffle. Perform the instructions described in “Re...

[Page 82] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 72 DIMM modules Each memory board on the server has four DIMM slots. Within the memory board, the four DIMM slots are organized into two groups. Each groups is referred to as a bank. You must install the correct type of memory in...

[Page 83] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

73 • The system does not support combination of single-channel with dual-channel memory. • Use only DDR2 DIMMs. Other DIMMs will not fit into the socket. Attempts to force a non-DDR2 DIMM into a socket will damage and/or the socket or the DIMM...

[Page 84] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 74 (4) Lift the cover from the memory board (D). 4 Locate the DIMM slots on the memory board. 5 Open the clips on the DIMM slot(s) (A). 6 Align (B) then insert the DIMM into the socket (C). 7 Press the holding clips inward to lo...

[Page 85] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

75 8 Install the memory board DIMM cover on the memory board: (1) Align the DIMM cover tabs with the top of the memory board (A). (2) Press the retainer tab inward (B). (3) Press the DIMM cover down until it clicks into place. 9 Install the memory...

[Page 86] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 76 3 Install the memory board. For instructions, see “Hot-insertion of a Memory Board” on page 54 or “Cold Insertion of a Memory Board”on page 71, depending on your server configuration. 4 Observe the post-installation ins...

[Page 87] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

77 ARMC/3 (optional) or BMC module The ARMC/3 or BMC module provides server management firmware and functionality for the system. Removing the ARMC/3 or BMC module 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 3...

[Page 88] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 78 3 Insert the standoff into the hole in the ARMC/3 or BMC module connector (A). The standoff installs on the bottom side of the module. 4 Attach the module to the connector and snap the standoff into the matching hole on the m...

[Page 89] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

79 Configuring integrated SCSI hardware RAID components The system supports hardware RAID through the storage I/O processor in conjunction with the LSI SCSI controller. The server platform supports RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 configurations. Functionalit...

[Page 90] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 80 RAID activation key Removing the RAID activation key 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Remove the memory boards or memory air baffles from DIMM slots C and D. See “Cold Re...

[Page 91] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

81 5 Align then insert the activation key into the RAID activation key connector on the mainboard. . 6 Replace the memory board air baffle. 7 Replace the PCI card. 8 Observe the post-installation instructions described on page 34. RAID cache The RA...

[Page 92] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 82 5 Close the clips. 6 Replace the memory boards and memory air baffles. 7 Observe the post-installation instructions described on page 34. Installing the RAID cache 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions...

[Page 93] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

83 Note: RAID activation key and RAID cache is required to activate integrated hardware RAID. For instructions on installing RAID activation key, see page 80. 7 Observe the post-installation instructions described on page 34. RAID BBU Removing the...

[Page 94] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 84 4 Disconnect the battery cable from the mainboard (A) and detach it from its chassis holder (B). 5 Remove the battery holder from the chassis. 6 Open the battery holder by pinching the top and bottom covers of the holder (A),...

[Page 95] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

85 Installing the RAID BBU 1 Observe the ESD precautions and pre-installation instructions described on page 33. 2 Remove the memory boards or memory air baffles from DIMM slots C and D. See “Cold Removal of Memory Board” on page 70 and “Rem...

[Page 96] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

3 System upgrade 86 8 Engage the hooks on the back of the battery into the matching slots on the chassis. 9 Replace the memory boards and memory air baffles. 10 Observe the post-installation instructions described on page 34. ...

[Page 97] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

4 BIOS setup ...

[Page 98] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

This chapter gives information about the system BIOS and discusses how to configure the system by changing the settings of the BIOS parameters. ...

[Page 99] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

89 Introduction BIOS setup is a hardware configuration program built into the system's Basic Input/Output System (BIOS). Since most systems are already properly configured and optimized, there is no need to run this utility. BIOS setup loads...

[Page 100] Acer ALTOS R910 Series

4 BIOS setup 90 System options menu During the boot process, the system will display the boot progress on the monitor. The SCSI BIOS scan is displayed followed by the BIOS splash screen. Press any key on the keyboard to access the System options ...