Avid Technology HP Z8G4 Instruction Manual

Page 1 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
Avid Configuration Guidelines
HP Z8 G4 workstation
Dual 8 to 28 Core CPU System

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Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
1.) HP Z8 G4 AVID Qualified System Specification:
Z8 G4 HardwareConfiguration
Supported Intel Xeon Scalable family (Skylake) CPU Choices
•Dual Xeon Silver 4114 2.2 Ghz, turbo up to 3.0Ghz 10-core
•Dual Xeon Silver 4116 2.1 Ghz, turbo up to 3.0Ghz 12-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 5118 2.3 Ghz, turbo up to 3.2Ghz 12-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 5120 2.2 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 14-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 6130 2.1 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 16-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 6132 2.6 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 14-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 6134 3.2 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 8-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 6136 3.0 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 12-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 6140 2.3 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 18-core (MC 8.9.3 or higher)
•Dual Xeon Gold 6142 2.6 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 16-core
•Dual Xeon Gold 6148 2.4 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 20-core (MC 8.9.3 or higher)
•Dual Xeon Gold 6152 2.1 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 22-core (MC 8.9.3 or higher)
•Dual Xeon Gold 6154 3.0 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 18-core (MC 8.9.3 or higher)
•Dual Xeon Platinum 8160 2.1 Ghz, turbo up to 3.7Ghz 24-core (MC 8.9.3 or higher)
•Dual Xeon Platinum 8180 2.5 Ghz, turbo up to 3.8Ghz 28-core (MC 8.9.3 or higher)
Note: Dual high power CPUs with high end graphics require the 1450W power supply option
Supported Video Cards
1.) NVIDIA P4000 8GB PCI-e video board
2.) NVIDIA P5000 16GB PCI-e video board
3.) NVIDIA P6000 24GB PCI-e video board
4.) AMD Radeon Pro WX7100 8GB PCI-e video board
System Disk Drive –500 GB (recommended) SATA SSD. HP offers higher performing solid-state, NVMe, and SAS
boot drive options which are acceptable. Recommend a HP qualified drive be selected.
Standard AVID memory configuration:
•Systems using the new Xeon scalable Skylake CPU’s will use DDR4-2666MHz memory (up to 24 DIMMs per system)
•Each CPU has 6 memory lanes - optimal bandwidth when all 12 memory lanes filled
•64GB (8 x 8GB) DDR4 2666MHz ECC memory –(Requires eight 8GB DIMMs) - minimum
•96GB (12 x 8GB) DDR4 2666 ECC memory –(Requires twelve 8GB DIMMs) –Optimal
Memory modules must be installed according to manufacturer’s requirements
Optional AVID memory configuration:
•128GB (16 x 8GB) DDR4 2666 ECC memory –(Requires sixteen 8GB DIMMs)
•128GB (8 x 16GB) DDR4 2666 ECC memory –(Requires eight 16GB DIMMs)
•192GB (24 x 8GB) DDR4 2666 ECC memory –(Requires twenty four 8GB DIMMs)

Page 3 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
•192GB (12 x 16GB) DDR4 2666 ECC memory –(Requires twelve16GB DIMMs)
Memory configuration constraints
- No other memory configurations are formally supported in AVID environments.
- Un-balanced memory configurations which mix and match memory module sizes and locations will
result in a poor performing, non-optimal operating environment.
- NUMA should be disabled in BIOS
2.) Qualified Operating Systems, Avid Client Editing Applications, Hardware and Shared-
Storage support for the HP Z8 G4:
HP Supports:
o Microsoft® Windows 10 Pro / Enterprise 64-bit Edition Version 1703 or 1709 –(MC 8.5 or above)
o Microsoft® Windows 10 Pro for workstations 64-bit Version 1709 –(MC 8.5 or above)
Not Supported –
•Microsoft® Windows 7 –any version
•Microsoft Windows 8 or 8.1 –any version
Media Composer Application
Minimum Rev
Media Composer 8.x
8.8
8.9.3 required for CPU virtual core count > 64
Media Composer 7.x
Not supported
NewsCutter 11.x
Not Supported
*Nvidia P4000, P5000, P6000 require Nvidia driver that ships with the version of MC 8.8 and above
* AMD WX7100 require AMD driver released 17.Q4 or later
The required GPU files and installation instructions for AMD graphics can be found at the following Avid KB link:
http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/download/AMD-Supported-GPU-Drivers

Page 4 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
3.) Qualified O.S., Hardware and shared storage supported:
Qualified / Supported
Nitris DX / Mojo DX
NOT SUPPORTED
(requires PCIe gen 1 or 2 slot which is not
available on this system)
Artist DNxIO/ DNxIQ (PCIe or
thunderbolt connection)
Artist DNxIV (thunderbolt only
connection) –not shipping until 1H’18
Yes –Supported
PCIe Guidance
PCIe preferred as it requires less system over-head due
to direct PCIe to PCIe connection between the host
CPU and Artist DNxIO.
Thunderbolt Guidance
Thunderbolt 2 & 3 - higher system over-head, not
recommended to share Thunderbolt devices on the
same Thunderbolt bus with DNxIO, DNxIQ, DNxIV
Support for HP Thunderbolt card will be first half 2018
DNxIO would require TB3 to TB2 converter
Thunderbolt 3 offers support of cable lengths up to
60-meters (via qualified Corning Thunderbolt cables)
for users needing to physically place the Artist DNxIO
at longer distances from the host CPU Workstation.
3
rd
Party Qualified Hardware
See release notes and Avid website for
information regarding supported 3
rd
party
hardware(vendorqualified)
NEXIS / ISIS Single 1Gb Ethernet Client
NEXIS Dual 1Gb Ethernet Client
Intel i350, i219, i210
ISIS 5500 / 5000 , 7500 / 7000
NEXIS Pro, E2, E4, E5 V7.9
NEXIS / ISIS Hi-res (single 10Gbit) client
Myricom Single-Port 10Gbit
Atto FFRM-NS1, Intel X710
ISIS 5500 / 5000 , 7500 / 7000
NEXIS Pro, E2, E4, E5 V7.9
NEXIS / ISIS Ultra Hi-res (dual 10Gbit)
Myricom Dual-Port 10Gbit
Atto FFRM-NS2, Intel X710
ISIS 5500 / 5000
NEXIS Pro, E2, E4, E5 V7.9

Page 5 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
4.) AVID qualified HBA info
AVID qualified HBA
AVID Part Number
Slot
Location
Function
Avid Artist DNxIO HBA
Avid Artist DNxIQ HBA
Avid part # 7030-30048-02
BMD PCie cable kit
#5
Avid Artist DnxIO interface HBA
Avid Artist DNxIQ interface HBA
HP Thunderbolt 3 adapter
card
Not stocked by AVID
#1
TB3 not available until 1H’18
Atto R680, H680
Not stocked by AVID
#4
Local SAS Storage
Support –Avid
VideoRAID ST (5-bay)
Xtore StudioRAID 5Ti
(5-bay)
LSI 9200-8e SAS controller
7030-30036-01
#4
SAS Local Storage:
XtoreStudioRAID 16Re (16-bay)
chassis Xtore StudioRAID 5Te (5-bay)
chassis
Vendor qualified 3
rd
party hardware
x8 PCI-E
Not stocked by AVID
#5 or #1
Vendor qualified 3
rd
party hardware interface.
See release notes and Avid website for
information regarding supported 3
rd
party
hardware
Atto FFRM-NS11/NS12
10 Gb single or dual port
Not stocked by AVID
#6
Shared Storage: NEXIS Optical Gb-Ethernet
Intel i350-T2 –Dual Gb NIC
Not stocked by AVID
#6
Shared Storage: NEXIS Copper Gb-Ethernet
Dual Gb NEXIS Connectivity
Intel X710 dual port 10Gb
Not stocked by AVID
#6
Shared Storage: NEXIS Optical Gb-Ethernet
Myricom 10G-PCIE-8B-S
Myricom 10G-PCIE-8B2-2S
7030-30041-01
#6
Shared Storage: NEXIS 10Gb-Ethernet
Notes:
•Avid HIB part # 7030-30048-01 is no longer supported with DNxIO (use # 7030-30048-02 only)
•Avid artist DnxIQ requires BMD cable kit and PCIe card –Avid HIB card is NOT supported with DNxIQ
•HP thunderbolt 3 PCIe card will be supported in Z8 G4, Z6 G4 and G4 G4. For older HP workstations, use
Thunderbolt 2 PCIe card from HP.

Page 6 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
5.) Slot Configuration:
Slot Configuration Information
Slot #
Electrical
Mechanical
1
X8 PCI-E Gen 3
CPU2
x8 Open-
ended
Connector
HP Thunderbolt 3 adapter card
Or 3rd party PCIe OpenIO card
2
x16 PCI-E Gen 3
(75Watts)
x16
GraphicsCard:
Nvidia P4000, P5000*,P6000*
AMD WX-7100
Please Note: Dual slot graphics cards will block access to slot #3
3
X16 PCI-E Gen 3
CPU2
x16
Optional HP Zturbo SSD storage cards
Or Pro Tools HD h/w
4
x16 PCI-E Gen 3
(75Watts)
x16
Local SAS Storage Controllers:
or Pro Tools HD h/w
5
X4 PCI-E Gen 3
X4 open
ended
Avid/BMD HIB card for DNxIO/DNxIQ
Or 3rd party PCIe Open IO card
6
x16 PCI-E Gen 3
CPU2
x16
Shared Storage Controllers Nexis/ISIS
Intel X710, i350-T2
Atto FFRM-NS11/NS12
Myricom 10G-PCIE-8B-S
7
X4 PCI-E Gen 3
X4
open
ended
HP Zturbo SSD storage cards
EmbeddedIntel
I219-LM Gb NIC
PCI-E x1
Gen 3
Qualified for Avid Nexis/ISIS
EmbeddedIntel
I210 Gb NIC
PCI-E x1
Gen 3
Qualified for Avid Nexis/ISIS
6.) Use of embedded NIC ports for Nexis/ISIS connectivity Important Information
The Z8 G4 has two embedded NIC ports. Both ports are qualified for Nexis
For proper operation and connectivity of the Intel network interface with NEXIS the following settings are required:
1. For the Intel NIC driver, under the performance settings, change the following parameters:
- Receive Buffers to 1024
- Transmit Buffers to 1024
2. Disable the windows firewall.

Page 7 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
7.) Required system BIOS settings for AVID environments:
Use latest version from Vendor website
Please Note: CPU Hyper-threading should be enabled in all configurations. It is currently enabled by
default by HP for shipping Z8 G4 systems
Z8 G4 Required system BIOS changes:
1. Verify CPU Processors are set to Hyper-Threading
2. Memory option for NUMA –Disable
Set Z8 G4 Required system BIOS changes:
- During boot up press F10 at the HP splash screen to invoke Set Up.
- Select the Performance tab
- Select Hyper-Threading
- Verify setting is Enabled (or enable if currently set to disable)
- Select Non-Uniform Memory Access
- Uncheck the box (Avid MC runs best with NUMA disabled)
8.) Graphics Qualified
Drivers:
AVIDSoftware
Version(s)
GPU
Driver Required
Media Composer
8.8.x
Nvidia P4000, P5000,
P6000
Nvidia 385.08
Media Composer
8.8.x
AMD WX7100
AMD 17Q4
After installation of the AVID software the supported Nvidia driver can be found in the following directory:
Program Files / Avid / Utilities / Nvidia.
** The AMD graphics driver is NOT included with MC release builds. You can find this driver on the AMD web page
http://support.amd.com/en-us/download

Page 8 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
Set optimized Nvidia driver settings for Avid editing environments:
1. See picture below
2. Right-Click on the desktop and select Nvidia Control Panel
3. Select the “Desktop”menu selection in the control panel menu bar.
4. Enable “Desktop -> Video Editing Mode
5. Select Manage 3D Settings
6. Select “Global Settings”Tab
7. Under the “Global Settings”tab select “3D App –Default Global Settings”
8. Scroll down and locate the “Power Management Mode”feature. The default setting is “Adaptive”

Page 9 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
9. For the “Power management mode”feature, select “Prefer maximum performance”as shown in
the picturebelow.
10. Depress the “Apply”button.
11. Nvidia driver optimization settings for Avid environments are complete.

Page 10 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
E.) GPU monitor connectivity:
The Nvidia Quadro P4000 graphics card has four Display-Port ports. All 4 ports can be used simultaneously.
The Nvidia Quadro P5000 & P6000 graphics cards have one DVI port and four Display-Port ports. 4 of the 5
ports can be used simultaneously.
The AMD WX7100 graphics card has four full size display ports.
(Important: Display-ports are not HDMI ports; at first glance they do look very similar to HDMI ports)
F.) Serial Port Deck Control
The HP Z8 G4 workstation does have an embedded serial port. The embedded serial-port has been qualified by
Avid and will maintain frame accuracy in Avid environments. Primary or secondary / additional serial port deck
control can be established via two methods (both of which have been qualified by Avid and will maintain frame
accuracy in Avid environments)
1. Addenda model RS-USB / 4 direct USB-to-RS422 serial adapter. This is a simple device which connects directly
from a USB port to the RS422 port of a deck.
http://www.addenda.com/addenda-elect/products/rsUSB4.php
2. Combination of a Keyspan (Tripp-Lite) Model USA-19HS USB-to-serial-port adapter with Addenda
Rosetta Stone model RS –2/8 RS232-to-RS422 converter
- Keyspan (Tripp-Lite) Model USA-19HS (AVIDP/N7080-20013-01)
http://www.tripplite.com/en/products/model.cfm?txtSeriesID=518&EID=13384&txtModelID=3914
- Addenda Rosetta Stone (or equivalent) model RS –2/8 RS232-to-RS422 converter (AVID
P/N 7070-00507-01)
http://www.addenda.com/addenda-elect/products/rs28.php
To connect the Keyspan 19HS / Addenda RS -2/8 combination:
- Install the Keyspan 19HS driver before plugging the device into USB port.
- Once the Keyspan 19HS driver is installed then plug the Keyspan 19HS into a USB port.
- The Keyspan 19HS will now show up in device driver.
- Using a serial cable, connect the 9-pin serial port of the Keyspan 19HS USB adapter to the port of
the Addenda marked RS232 from PC
- Using a 2
nd
serial port cable connect the port of the Addenda marked “RS422 to VTR”to the deck control
serial port of the deck.
G.) O.S. setting recommendations for optimum performance with Avid Editing applications:
The following links provide O.S. setting suggestions for ensuring optimum performance when working
with your Avid editing application with a Windows operating system.
- Optimizations for Video Editors - Windows 7, windows 10
http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/troubleshooting/en349411

Page 11 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
H.) Set Windows “Visual Effects”for “best performance”:
1.
Right-Click on My Computer
2. SelectProperties
3. On the left side of the menu, locate and select “Advanced system settings”
4. Underthe “Advanced” tab depress the “Settings...” button for performance.
5. The “performance Options” window will be displayed.
6. Under the “Visual Effects” tab select the “Adjust for best performance” selection. (Picture below).
7. Depress the “Apply”button
8. Required Windows visual performance settings for Avid environments are now complete.

Page 12 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
I.) Intel NIC Port(s) for NEXIS connectivity:
For proper operation and connectivity of any Intel NIC port used with NEXIS the settings below are required. Example below
is for the Intel PRO 1000 PT.
1. For the performance settings, change the following parameters:
- Receive Buffers to 1024
- Transmit Buffers to 1024
2. Disable the windows firewall.
To set the Intel NIC Receive / Transmit buffers:
Go to device manager and select each instance of the network adapter device which will be used for NEXIS connectivity.
Select performance options and then select Properties.
Set Receive Buffers to 1024 Set Transmit Buffers to 1024

Page 13 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
Perform this for each instance of and Intel NIC port which will be used for NEXIS connectivity.
J.) Disable the windows firewall:
Navigate to Control Panel / Windows Firewall -- Select Turn Windows Firewall on or off

Page 14 of 14
Dave Pimm –Avid Technology –Dec 22, 2017
Rev A
Select Turn off windows firewall in both network locations, OK to save
RevisionUpdate
Revision
Date
Name
Update
Rev A
Dec 22,2017
Dave Pimm
Initial release of the HP Z8 G4 configuration guide