Dell PowerEdge R715 Quick start guide

PowerEdge R715
Technical Guide
The PowerEdge R715
provides an
excellent balance of
processor density,
redundancy, memory
capacity and value in
a 2-socket, 2U form
factor.

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide ii
This document is for informational purposes only. Dell reserves the right to make changes without
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Dell, PowerEdge, EqualLogic, PowerVault, OpenManage, and ReadyRails are trademarks of Dell, Inc.
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beyond that permitted by U.S. copyright laws without the written permission of Dell Inc. is unlawful
and strictly forbidden.
November 2010

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide iii
Table of Contents
1Product Comparison ...........................................................................................7
1.1 Overview ..................................................................................................7
1.1.1 Superior Reliability Inspired by You .............................................................7
1.1.2 Technology and Design that goes the Distance ................................................7
1.1.3 Efficient for your Environment ...................................................................7
1.1.4 Intelligent, Connected Systems Management ..................................................8
1.2 Comparison ...............................................................................................8
2Systems Overview..............................................................................................9
3Mechanical .................................................................................................... 12
3.1 Chassis Description..................................................................................... 12
3.2 Dimensions and Weight................................................................................ 12
3.3 Front Panel View and Features ...................................................................... 13
3.4 Back Panel View and Features ....................................................................... 13
3.5 Power Supply Indicators............................................................................... 13
3.6 NIC Indicators........................................................................................... 14
3.7 Side View................................................................................................ 14
3.8 Internal Chassis View .................................................................................. 15
3.9 Rails and Cable Management ......................................................................... 15
3.10 Fans ...................................................................................................... 15
3.11 Cabling................................................................................................... 16
3.12 Control Panel/LCD ..................................................................................... 18
3.13 Security.................................................................................................. 19
3.13.1 Cover Latch ....................................................................................... 19
3.13.2 Bezel ............................................................................................... 19
3.13.3 Hard Drive......................................................................................... 19
3.13.4 TPM................................................................................................. 19
3.13.5 Power Off Security ............................................................................... 19
3.13.6 Intrusion Alert .................................................................................... 19
3.13.7 Secure Mode ...................................................................................... 19
3.14 USB Key.................................................................................................. 20
3.15 Battery................................................................................................... 20
3.16 Field Replaceable Units (FRU)........................................................................ 20
3.17 User Accessible Jumpers, Sockets, and Connectors............................................... 20
4Power, Thermal, Acoustic .................................................................................. 21
4.1 Power Supply Subsystem .............................................................................. 21
4.1.1 Power Distribution Board ....................................................................... 21
4.1.2 Main Power Supply ............................................................................... 21
4.2Power Efficiency ....................................................................................... 22
4.3 Power Supply Specifications Summary .............................................................. 22
4.3.1 Standard 1100W Power Supply ................................................................. 22
4.3.2 Energy Smart 750W Power Supply ............................................................. 22
4.4 Environmental Specifications......................................................................... 23
4.5 ENERGY STAR®Compliance ........................................................................... 24
4.6 Thermal.................................................................................................. 24
4.7 Acoustics ................................................................................................ 25
5Processors..................................................................................................... 26
5.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 26

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide iv
5.2 Features ................................................................................................. 26
5.3 Supported Processors.................................................................................. 27
5.4 Processor Configurations.............................................................................. 27
5.5 Processor Installation.................................................................................. 27
5.6 Additional Processor Information .................................................................... 27
6Memory ........................................................................................................ 28
6.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 28
6.2 DIMMs Supported ....................................................................................... 28
6.3 DIMM Slots............................................................................................... 28
6.4 Speed .................................................................................................... 29
6.5 Sparing................................................................................................... 29
6.6 Mirroring................................................................................................. 29
6.7 Memory Scrubbing...................................................................................... 29
6.8 RAID ...................................................................................................... 29
6.9 Supported Configurations ............................................................................. 29
7Chipset ........................................................................................................ 31
7.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 31
7.2 AMD I/O Bridges ........................................................................................ 31
7.3 HyperTransport 3 (HT3) ............................................................................... 31
7.4 PCI Express Expansion ................................................................................. 31
7.5 Southbridge Link Interface ........................................................................... 31
7.6 Super I/O Controller ................................................................................... 32
8BIOS ............................................................................................................ 33
8.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 33
8.2 Supported ACPI States................................................................................. 33
8.3 Factory BIOS Default Settings ........................................................................ 34
8.4 Power Management Modes............................................................................ 34
8.4.1 OS Control......................................................................................... 34
8.4.2 Active Power Controller......................................................................... 34
8.4.3 Maximum Performance .......................................................................... 34
9Embedded NICs/LAN on Motherboard (LOM) ............................................................. 35
10 I/O Slots ....................................................................................................... 36
10.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 36
10.2 PCI Risers................................................................................................ 36
10.3 Boot Order .............................................................................................. 36
10.4 NIC and LOM Enumeration ............................................................................ 37
10.5 PCI Card Dimensions ................................................................................... 37
11 Storage ........................................................................................................ 38
11.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 38
11.2 Persistent Storage...................................................................................... 39
11.2.1 iDRAC6 Express (Lifecycle Controller)......................................................... 39
11.2.2 Unmanaged Persistent Storage................................................................. 39
11.2.3 Internal Dual SD Module......................................................................... 40
11.2.4 Flash BIOS memory............................................................................... 40
11.3 Storage Controllers .................................................................................... 40
11.3.1 PERC H200......................................................................................... 40
11.3.2 PERC H700......................................................................................... 40
11.3.3 PERC H800......................................................................................... 41
11.4 LED Indicators .......................................................................................... 41
11.5 Optical Drives........................................................................................... 42

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide v
11.6 Tape Drives ............................................................................................. 42
11.7 External Storage Support ............................................................................. 42
12 Video........................................................................................................... 43
13 Rack Information............................................................................................. 44
13.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 44
13.2 Rails ...................................................................................................... 44
13.3 Cable Management Arm (CMA) ....................................................................... 46
13.4 Rack View ............................................................................................... 46
14 Operating Systems and Virtualization..................................................................... 48
15 Systems Management........................................................................................ 49
15.1 Overview ................................................................................................ 49
15.2 Server Management.................................................................................... 49
15.3 Embedded Server Management ...................................................................... 50
15.4 Lifecycle Controller and Unified Server Configurator ............................................ 50
15.5 Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller.......................................................... 51
15.6 iDRAC Express........................................................................................... 51
15.7 iDRAC6 Enterprise...................................................................................... 51
15.8 iDRAC6 Enterprise with Virtual Flash (vFlash) Media ............................................. 51
16 USB Peripherals .............................................................................................. 54
Appendix A. Certifications .................................................................................. 55
A.1 Regulatory Certifications ............................................................................. 55
A.2 Product Safety Certifications......................................................................... 55
A.3 Electromagnetic Compatibility....................................................................... 56
A.4 Ergonomics, Acoustics and Hygienics ............................................................... 56
Appendix B. Additional Information and Options ........................................................ 57
Appendix C. Statement of Volatility ....................................................................... 59
Tables
Table 1. Feature Comparison to 2970 and R815.............................................................8
Table 2. Product Features Summary ..........................................................................9
Table 3. Power Supply Status ................................................................................ 14
Table 4. Standard 1100W Power Supply Specifications................................................... 22
Table 5. Energy Smart 750W Power Supply Specifications............................................... 23
Table 6. Environmental Specifications...................................................................... 23
Table 7. Acoustical Performance for Typical Configuration ............................................. 25
Table 8. G34 Processor Features ............................................................................ 26
Table 9. Supported Processors ............................................................................... 27
Table 10. Supported Configurations .......................................................................... 29
Table 11. PCI Expansion Slots ................................................................................. 36
Table 12. Supported Hard Drives.............................................................................. 38
Table 13. RAID Configurations................................................................................. 38
Table 14. Storage Card Support Matrix....................................................................... 41
Table 15. 2D Graphics Video Modes .......................................................................... 43
Table 16. Supported Racks..................................................................................... 45
Table 17. Rail Adjustability Ranges and Depth ............................................................. 46
Table 18. Unified Server Configurator Features and Description......................................... 50
Table 19. Features List for BMC, iDRAC and vFlash ........................................................ 52
Table 20. Product Safety Certifications...................................................................... 55

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide vi
Table 21. Electromagnetic Compatibility Certifications................................................... 56
Table 22. Ergonomics, Acoustics and Hygienics............................................................. 56
Table 23. Industry Standards .................................................................................. 57
Table 24. Statement of Volatility ............................................................................. 59
Figures
Figure 1. R715 Chassis Dimensions ........................................................................... 12
Figure 2. Front View (without Bezel) ........................................................................ 13
Figure 3. Front View (with Bezel) ............................................................................ 13
Figure 4. Back View ............................................................................................ 13
Figure 5. Side View ............................................................................................. 14
Figure 6. Internal Chassis View ............................................................................... 15
Figure 7. Cabling Diagram ..................................................................................... 17
Figure 8. LCD Panel ............................................................................................ 18
Figure 9. Power Supply ........................................................................................ 21
Figure 10. R715 ReadyRails Sliding Rails with Optional CMA............................................... 44
Figure 11. 2U Threaded Rack Adapter Brackets Kit ......................................................... 45
Figure 12. R715 Mounted in the B2 Sliding Rails............................................................. 46
Figure 13. R715 CMA Mounted on the Side Opposite the Power Supplies (Recommended)............ 47

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 7
1Product Comparison
1.1 Overview
The Dell™ PowerEdge™R715 is a 2-socket rack server offering the latest AMD Opteron™ processors,
designed to handle your most demanding workloads with superior stability, efficiency and long-term
value.
Dell aims to bring value to your business by including the features and technology you need for your
specific IT environment. Our goal is to deliver performance-driven, intelligent platforms based on
industry standards and purposeful, innovative design.
1.1.1 Superior Reliability Inspired by You
We’ve designed the PowerEdge R715 for optimal reliability and ease of use, incorporating customer-
inspired features that range from robust metal hard-drive carriers and industrial-quality materials to
embedded diagnostics and an interactive LCD screen. The PowerEdge R715 also includes an internal
dual SD module to provide failover at the hypervisor level.
1.1.2 Technology and Design that goes the Distance
We have listened to our customers and built servers endowed with reliability, availability, and
quality. Dell’s reliability promise is simple: Deliver quality products that stand the test of time.
To help meet your needs in the data center and beyond, we’re dedicated to improving server
reliability processes by:
Utilizing robust, durable industrial materials to enable longer product lifecycles
Introducing a Unified Server Configurator (USC), which helps to minimize downtime by
offering embedded and persistent diagnostics with no media required
Improving redundancy generation over generation with features such as an internal dual SD
module that provide failover at the hypervisor level
Implementing a one-touch quality-control process to ensure that one person is responsible for
the entire server build
Ensuring that every fully configured Dell server is tested—and re-tested—before it leaves the
factory
1.1.3 Efficient for your Environment
PowerEdge servers drive energy efficiency as a design standard without compromising the
performance you need to meet cost and environmental goals. Built with Energy Smart technologies,
Dell servers can better help manage power in your specific environment.
The PowerEdge R715 features highly efficient fans that help to conserve energy by spinning in
accordance with server workload demands. In addition, the internal shrouding and logical layout of
internal components aid with airflow direction, helping to cool the server.
The PowerEdge R715 also includes power-management features such as programmable voltage
regulators, power-regulating processors and an interactive LCD screen for easy access to power-
consumption information.

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 8
1.1.4 Intelligent, Connected Systems Management
The Dell Lifecycle Controller (an integrated chip) is the engine for advanced embedded management
that is delivered as part of the iDRAC6 Express or optional iDRAC6 Enterprise in the PowerEdge R715.
It is accessed through a single console called the Unified Server Configurator. Administrators can
simplify tasks by performing a complete set of provisioning functions such as system deployment,
system updates, hardware configuration, and diagnostics in the pre-OS environment. This avoids the
need to use and maintain multiple pieces of disparate CD/DVD media. The PowerEdge R715 also
features an interactive LCD screen positioned on the front of the server for ease of monitoring.
1.2 Comparison
Table 1. Feature Comparison to 2970 and R815
PowerEdge 2970
R715
R815
Architecture
AMD
AMD
AMD
Branding
PE 2970
PE R715
PE R815
# Sockets
2S
2S
4S
# DIMMs
8 x DDR2
16 x DDR3
32 x DDR3
# PCI
3 PCIe Gen 1
6 PCIe Gen 2
6 PCIe Gen 2
# HDs
8 x 2.5 or 6 x 3.5
6 x 2.5
6 x 2.5
HDDs
Hot plug
Hot plug
Hot plug
Power Supply
Hot-plug redundant
1+1 (optional)
Hot-plug redundant
1+1 (optional)
Hot-plug redundant
1+1 (optional)
Cooling
Hot-plug redundant
Hot-plug redundant
Hot-plug redundant
LOM
2 x 1GBe
4 x 1GbE TOE
4 x 1GbE TOE
Diagnostic
LCD
LCD
LCD
Remote
Management
9G DRAC
11G iDRAC6 Express +
Optional iDRAC6
Enterprise
11G iDRAC6 Express +
Optional iDRAC6
Enterprise
Security
TPM
TPM, TCM for China
TPM, TCM for China
Persistent
storage
No
Yes, Managed (Lifecyle
Controller)
Yes, Managed (Lifecyle
Controller)
ID
9G PE
11G PE
11G PE
Overall Length
29.25‖
29.7‖
28.4‖
Rackable
Yes
Yes
Yes
Acoustic
Category IID
Category II-D for 2S
configurations
Category II-D for 2S
configurations (up to 16 x
4GB DIMMs)
Category I-B for 4S
configurations

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 9
2Systems Overview
Table 2. Product Features Summary
Feature
Technical Specification
Form Factor
2U rack
Processors
AMD Opteron™ 6100 series processors
Processor Sockets
2
Front Side Bus
or
HyperTransport
Hyper-Transport Links
Cache
L2: 512K/core
L3: 12MB (shared)
Chipset
AMD SR5650, SR5670 and SP5100
Memory1
Up to 256GB (16 DIMM slots) 1GB/2GB/4GB/8GB/16GB DDR3 (up to 1333MHz)
I/O Slots
6 PCIe G2 slots + 1 Storage Slot:
Five x8 slots (Three with x16 connectors)
One x4 slot (with x8 connector)
One x4 storage slot (with x8 connector)
RAID Controller
Internal Controllers:
PERC H200
PERC H700
External Controllers:
PERC H800
SAS 5/E with 512MB battery- backed cache
PERC 6/E with 512MB battery- backed cache
6GBs SAS HBA
Drive Bays
Up to six 2.5‖ hot-swappable SAS, SATA, or SSD drives
Maximum Internal
Storage
3TB
Hard Drives1
2.5‖ SATA (7.2K RPM): 160GB, 250GB,
500GB
2.5‖ Near Line SAS (7.2K RPM): 500GB
2.5‖ SAS (10K RPM): 146GB, 300GB
2.5‖ SAS (15K RPM): 73GB, 146GB
2.5‖ SATA SSD: 50GB, 100GB
Communications
Optional add-in NICs :
Broadcom®BMC57710 10Base-T
Cooper Single-Port NIC, PCIe x8
Broadcom®5709 IPV6 Dual-Port
Gigabit Ethernet NIC, Copper, w/TOE
PCIe x4
Broadcom®5709 IPV6 Dual-Port
Gigabit Ethernet NIC, Copper,
Optional add-in HBAs:
Qlogic®QLE 2462 FC4 Dual-Port 4 Gbps Fiber
Channel HBA
Qlogic®QLE 220 FC4 Single-Port 4 Gbps
Fiber Channel HBA
Qlogic®QLE 2460 FC4 Single-Port 4 Gbps
Fiber Channel HBA
Qlogic®QLE2562 FC8 Dual-channel HBA,

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 10
Feature
Technical Specification
TOE/iSCSI PCIe x4
Broadcom®NetXtreme™ II 57711 Dual
Port 10Gb Ethernet SFP+
Broadcom®NetXtreme™ II 5709 Gigabit
Copper Quad- Port NIC w/TOE and
iSCSI offload, PCIe x4
Intel®10GBase-T Copper Single-Port
NIC, PCIe x8
Intel®10GB, Dual-Port SFP+,PCIe x8
NIC
Intel®Gigabit ET Dual-Port Server
Adapter
Intel®Gigabit ET Quad-Port Server
Adapter
Brocade®CNA BR1020
PCIe Gen 2 x4
Qlogic®QLE2560 FC8 Single-channel HBA,
PCIe Gen 2 x4
Qlogic®QLE8152 Dual-Port 10 Gbps FCoE
Converged Network Adapter
Emulex®LPe-1150 FC4 Single-Port 4 Gbps
Fiber Channel HBA, PCIe x4
Emulex®LPe-11002 FC4 Dual-Port 4 Gbps
Fiber Channel HBA, PCIe x4
Emulex®LPe-12000 FC8 Single-Port 4 Gbps
Fiber Channel HBA, PCIe Gen 2 x4
Emulex®LPe-12002 FC8 Dual-Port 4 Gbps
Fiber Channel HBA, PCIe Gen 2 x4
Power Supply
One hot-pluggable non-redundant
750W power supply
or
One hot-pluggable non-redundant
1100W power supply
Two hot-pluggable redundant 750W power
supplies
or
Two hot-pluggable redundant 1100W power
supplies
Availability
Hot-pluggable hard drives, hot-pluggable redundant power supply, internal dual SD
module, ECC memory, interactive LCD screen
Video
Matrox®G200eW w/ 8MB memory
Remote Management
iDRAC6 Express (standard), iDRAC6 Enterprise and vFlash (upgrade optional)
Systems Management
BMC, IPMI 2.0 compliant
Dell OpenManage™ featuring Dell Management Console
Unified Server Configurator
Lifecycle Controller enabled: iDRAC6 Express, optional iDRAC6 Enterprise and vFlash
Rack Support
ReadyRails™ sliding rails with optional cable management arm for 4-post racks
(optional adapter brackets required for threaded hole racks)
Operating Systems
Microsoft®Windows Server®2003 R2 SP2, x86/x64
Microsoft®Windows Server®2008 SP2, x86/x64 (x64 includes Hyper-V™ )
Microsoft®Windows Server®2008 R2, x64 (includes Hyper-V™ v2)
Windows®HPC Server 2008 R2
Novell®SUSE®Linux®Enterprise Server
Red Hat®Enterprise Linux®
Sun®Solaris™
Optional Embedded Hypervisors:
Citrix®XenServer™
VMware®vSphere™ 4.1 (including VMware ESX®4.1 or VMware ESXi™ 4.1)

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 11
Feature
Technical Specification
For more information on the specific versions and additions, visit
www.dell.com/OSsupport.
Featured Database
Applications
Microsoft®SQL Server®solutions (see Dell.com/SQL)
Oracle®database solutions (see Dell.com/Oracle)
1GB means 1 billion bytes and TB equals 1 trillion bytes; actual capacity varies with preloaded material and
operating environment and will be less.

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 12
3Mechanical
3.1 Chassis Description
The PowerEdge R715 chassis is a 2U rack-mount design that provides the following features:
Slide-out drive bay section to allow servicing of DIMMs below drives
Updated industrial design including a new LCD, bezel, and hard drive carriers
Toolless rack latches
Pull-out tray for Express Service Tag and customer labels
Support for persistent storage (internal USB and SD card slots and external SD card slot)
Updated power supply removal process
3.2 Dimensions and Weight
Xa
Xb
Y
Za
w/ bezel
Za
w/o bezel
Zb
Zc
482.4 mm
440.6 mm
86.3 mm
35.0 mm
20.4 mm
720.6 mm
757.5 mm
Figure 1. R715 Chassis Dimensions
Maximum configuration weight is 26.1 kg.

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 13
3.3 Front Panel View and Features
Figure 2. Front View (without Bezel)
Figure 3. Front View (with Bezel)
See the Front-Panel Features and Indicators section in the About Your System chapter of the
PowerEdge R715 Hardware Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com for more information.
3.4 Back Panel View and Features
Figure 4. Back View
See the Back-Panel Features and Indicators section in the About Your System chapter of the
PowerEdge R715 Hardware Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com for more information.
3.5 Power Supply Indicators
The PowerEdge R715 power supplies have one status bi-color LED: green for AC power present and
amber for a fault.

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 14
Table 3. Power Supply Status
LED
Power Supply Status
AC Power is not present
AC Power is present
Fault of any kind is detected
DC Power is applied to the system
↔
PSU mismatch (when hot-
plugged/swapped)
See the Power Indicator Codes section in the About Your System chapter of the PowerEdge R715
Hardware Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com for more information.
3.6 NIC Indicators
See the NIC Indicator Codes section in the About Your System chapter of the PowerEdge R715
Hardware Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com for more information.
3.7 Side View
Figure 5. Side View

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 15
3.8 Internal Chassis View
Figure 6. Internal Chassis View
3.9 Rails and Cable Management
Sliding ReadyRailsTM for 4-post Racks support the following:
Toolless installation in 19‖ EIA-310-E compliant square or unthreaded round hole 4-post racks
including all Dell 42xx and 24xx racks (threaded 4-post racks require the static ReadyRails™
kit or third-party conversion kits available through Dell Software and Peripherals).
Full extension of the system out of the rack to allow serviceability of key internal components
Optional cable management arm (CMA)
Measurements and adjustment ranges for the rack:
Rail depth without the CMA: 755 mm (with outer CMA brackets removed)
Rail depth with the CMA: 883 mm
Square-hole rack adjustment range: 686–883 mm
Round-hole rack adjustment range: 672–876 mm
Threaded-hole rack adjustment range: 651-897 mm
3.10 Fans
Six hot-swappable fans are mounted in a fan gantry that is located in the chassis behind the
processors. Each fan has a blind mate 2x2 connector that plugs directly into the CPU Board. There is
an additional fan integrated in each power supply to cool the power supply subsystem and also
provide additional cooling for the whole system.
The Embedded Server Management logic in the system monitors the speed of the fans. A fan failure
or over-temperature in the system results in a notification by iDRAC6. All system fans are pulse width
modulated fans. Redundant cooling is supported with one fan failing at a time.

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PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 16
3.11 Cabling
Cabling includes:
2x30 Control Panel cable
oVGA, LCD, I2C, misc. (e.g., power and NMI buttons)
2x6 IO power cable
oDistributes +12V to IO planar from power distribution board
SATA data cable
SAS Interface cables
oSAS0 and SAS1 cables connect SAS adapter to backplane
2x10 bundled cables
o2-wire SATA device power cable
o5-wire USB data cable
o2x7 Backplane power cable
ZIF-connected LCD cable
Optional cable for Internal Dual SD module
Figure 7 shows a cabling diagram for the PowerEdge R715.

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 17
SATA Optical
PSU
(1+1 configuration)
IO Planar
PDB
CPU Planar
2.5" SAS HDD Bays
Control Panel
PSU Connector
32-signal/6 blade
connector
IO
PWR
AIR MAX
CPU1CPU2
FanFan Fan FanFan Fan
2x30
connector USB conn
USB
2.0 USB 2.0
LCD
Power
Button
BackPlane
Video
2x7
Power
USB
2.0
RIPS
Conn
2x10
head
er
SAS
Data SAS Data
SAS Connectors SAS Connectors SAS Connectors
R
is
e
r
1
S
l
o
t
3
S
l
o
t
4
R
is
e
r
2Storage Adapter
S
A
S
x
4
Quad RJ-45 USB
2.0 USB 2.0 Video
USB
2.0 Serial Drac
2
x
3
0
C
o
n
n
LCD
RIPS module +
SD
SATA
power/
data
SATA
data
ID
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
D
I
M
M
PERC
Battery
Figure 7. Cabling Diagram

Dell
PowerEdge R715 Technical Guide 18
3.12 Control Panel/LCD
The system control panel is located on the front of the system chassis to provide user access to
buttons, display, and I/O interfaces. Features of the system control panel include:
•ACPI-compliant power button with an integrated green power LED (controlled by iDRAC6)
•128x20 pixel LCD panel with controls
oTwo navigation buttons
oOne select button
oOne system ID button
•Non-Maskable Interrupt (NMI) button (recessed)
•Ambient temperature sensor
•Two external USB 2.0 connectors (with an internal USB connector and Optional Internal SD
Module)
•15-pin VGA connector
The LCD panel is a graphics display controlled by iDRAC6. Error codes can be sent to the display by
either iDRAC6 or BIOS.
BIOS has the ability to enter a Secure Mode through Setup, which will lock the Power and NMI
buttons. When in this mode, pressing either button has no effect but does not mask other sources of
NMI and power control.
Figure 8. LCD Panel
For more information on LCD Panel Features, see the LCD Panel Features section in the About Your
System chapter in the PowerEdge R715 Hardware Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com.

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3.13 Security
3.13.1 Cover Latch
A tooled entry latch is provided on the top of the unit to secure the top cover to the chassis. See the
Opening and Closing the System section in the Installing System Components chapter in the
PowerEdge R715 Hardware Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com for more information.
3.13.2 Bezel
A metal bezel is mounted to the chassis front to provide the Dell ID. A lock on the bezel is used to
protect un-authorized access to system peripherals and the control panel. System status on the LCD
is viewable even when the bezel is installed.
The bezel is optional for PowerEdge R715 systems. For more information, see the Front Bezel
(Optional) section in the Installing System Components chapter in the PowerEdge R715 Hardware
Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com.
3.13.3 Hard Drive
The optional front bezel of the system contains a lock. A locked bezel secures the system hard
drives. For more information, see the Hard Drives section in the Installing System Components
chapter in the PowerEdge R715 Hardware Owner’s Manual on Support.Dell.com.
3.13.4 TPM
The TPM is used to generate/store keys, protect/authenticate passwords, and create/store digital
certificates. TPM can also be used to enable the BitLocker™ hard drive encryption feature in Windows
Server 2008.
TPM is enabled through a BIOS option and uses HMAC-SHA1-160 for binding. A Trusted Computing
Module (TCM) version of the planar is available for use where TCM is the standard, for example, in
China.
3.13.5 Power Off Security
The control panel is designed such that the power switch cannot be accidentally activated. The lock
on the bezel secures the switch behind the bezel. In addition, there is a setting in the CMOS setup
that disables the power button function.
3.13.6 Intrusion Alert
A switch mounted on the left riser board is used to detect chassis intrusion. When the cover is
opened, the switch circuit closes to indicate intrusion to ESM. When enabled, the software can
provide notification to the customer that the cover has been opened. R715 only supports up to five
minutes of operation with the cover off.
3.13.7 Secure Mode
BIOS has the ability to enter a secure boot mode via Setup. This mode includes the option to lock out
the power and NMI switches on the Control Panel or set up a system password.

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3.14 USB Key
An optional USB memory key installed inside your system can be used as a boot device, security key,
or mass storage device. The USB connector must be enabled by the Internal USB Port option in the
Integrated Devices screen of the System Setup program.
3.15 Battery
A replaceable coin cell CR2032 3V battery is mounted on the planar to provide backup power for the
Real-Time Clock and CMOS RAM on the SP5100 chip. An optional 3.7V lithium ion RAID battery is
available.
3.16 Field Replaceable Units (FRU)
Both planars contain a serial EEPROM to contain FRU information including Dell part number, part
revision level, and serial number. The iDRAC6 Enterprise contains a FRU EEPROM. The backplane SEP
and the power supply microcontroller are also used to store FRU data.
3.17 User Accessible Jumpers, Sockets, and Connectors
See the Jumpers and Connectors chapter in the PowerEdge R715 Hardware Owner’s Manual on
Support.Dell.com.