EKF SC1-ALLEGRO User manual

User Guide
SC1-ALLEGRO •
CompactPCI
® Serial CPU Card
Intel®Core™ i7-3xxx Processor Quad-Core (Ivy Bridge)
Document No. 6782 • Edition 30 • 4 October 2018

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Contents
AboutthisManual ........................................................... 4
EditionHistory......................................................... 4
RelatedDocuments ..................................................... 5
Nomenclature ......................................................... 5
TradeMarks .......................................................... 5
Legal Disclaimer - Liability Exclusion ......................................... 5
Standards ............................................................ 6
Overview............................................................. 7
TechnicalFeatures ........................................................... 9
FeatureSummary ...................................................... 9
OperatingConditions .................................................. 10
PowerRequirements ................................................... 10
BlockDiagram........................................................ 11
TopViewComponentAssembly .......................................... 12
Front Panel Connectors ................................................. 13
FrontPanelSwitches&Indicators ......................................... 13
On-Board Connectors & Sockets .......................................... 14
PinHeaders .......................................................... 14
Jumpers ............................................................ 14
Microprocessor ....................................................... 15
ThermalConsiderations ................................................. 16
MainMemory ........................................................ 18
GraphicsSubsystem ................................................... 19
LANSubsystem ....................................................... 19
SerialATAInterface(SATA) .............................................. 20
PCIExpress®Interface.................................................. 20
UniversalSerialBus(USB) ............................................... 21
Utility Interfaces ...................................................... 21
Real-TimeClock....................................................... 22
SPIFlash ............................................................ 22
Reset............................................................... 23
Watchdog........................................................... 25
FrontPanelLEDs ...................................................... 25
PG(PowerGood)LED ............................................. 26
GP(GeneralPurpose)LED .......................................... 26
HD(HardDiskActivity)LED ......................................... 26
EB(EthernetBackplane)LED ........................................ 27
MainPowerSupplyControl(PS_ON#) ...................................... 27
PowerSupplyStatus(PWR_FAIL#)......................................... 27
MezzanineSideBoardOptions ........................................... 28
CompactPCI
®Serial .................................................... 35
SystemSlotController............................................. 35
PeripheralSlotOperation .......................................... 39
BoardHot-Plug.................................................. 39
InstallingandReplacingComponents............................................ 42
BeforeYouBegin...................................................... 42
InstallingtheBoard .................................................... 43
RemovingtheBoard ................................................... 44
EMCRecommendations................................................. 45
© EKF -2- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
ReplacementoftheBattery .............................................. 46
TechnicalReference ......................................................... 47
LocalPCIDevices ...................................................... 47
LocalSMBDevices ..................................................... 48
Hardware Monitor LM87 ................................................ 48
BoardControlandStatusRegisters ........................................ 49
Write/ReadControlRegister0 ....................................... 49
Read/ClearStatusRegister0 ........................................ 50
Read/ClearStatusRegister1 ........................................ 51
ReadPLDRevisionRegister ......................................... 51
GPIOUsage.......................................................... 52
GPIOUsageQM77PCH ........................................... 52
ConfigurationJumpers ................................................. 54
ConfigurationPCIExpressSwitch(DS-P) ............................... 54
LoadingUEFIBIOSSetupDefaults(P-GP)............................... 55
ManufacturerModeJumper(P-MFG) ................................. 55
RTCReset(P-RTC) ................................................ 56
Connectors .......................................................... 57
Front Panel Connectors ............................................ 57
DisplayPort Connectors ...................................... 58
VGA Video Connector ....................................... 61
USB Connectors ............................................ 62
Ethernet Connectors ........................................ 63
Mezzanine Connectors ............................................ 64
ExpansionInterfaceJ-EXP..................................... 65
High Speed Expansion Connector J-HSE .......................... 66
PCIExpress®ExpansionHeaderJ-PCIE ........................... 67
SDVO/DisplayPortExpansionHeaderJ-SDVO ...................... 68
PinHeaders&Debug ............................................. 71
FrontPanelHandleMicroswitchHeaderP-FPH ..................... 71
PLDProgrammingHeaderP-ISP ................................ 71
ProcessorDebugHeaderXDP1................................. 72
Backplane Connectors ............................................. 73
CompactPCI
®Serial Backplane Connector P1 ...................... 74
CompactPCI
®Serial Backplane Connector P2 ...................... 75
CompactPCI
®Serial Backplane Connector P3 ...................... 76
CompactPCI
®Serial Backplane Connector P4 ...................... 77
CompactPCI
®Serial Backplane Connector P5 ...................... 78
CompactPCI
®Serial Backplane Connector P6 ...................... 79
Appendix ................................................................. 80
MechanicalDrawing ................................................... 80
© EKF -3- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
About this Manual
This manual describes the technical aspects of the SC1-ALLEGRO, required for installation and system
integration. It is intended for the experienced user only.
Edition History
Ed. Contents/ Changes Author Date
1 User Manual SC1-ALLEGRO, english, preliminary edition
Text #6782, File: sc1_ug.wpd
gn 2012-07-16
2 Added photos jj 11 September 2012
3 Changed name of DS_P to DS-P, removed the “not connected” note of
2nd USB3 port on CompactPCI Serial connector P3, Memory Down and
SO-DIMM are changed to PC3-12800.
gn 2012-11-09
4 Added changes to PCH GPIO assignment coming with rev. 1 gn 2012-12-21
5 Added illustration backplane resources jj 14 February 2013
6 Changes to section “Serial ATA Interfaces” gn 2013-02-15
7 Added recommendation regarding DisplayPort cable (pin 20 issue) jj 5 March 2013
8 Added photos, e.g. SC1 with PCS-BALLET Side Card, and BlueLine Small
Systems Rack
jj 30 April 2013
9 Removed display of JMB393 failures via red part of HD LED;
Added changes to CompactPCI Serial and J-HSE SATA assignments
coming with rev. 2
gn 2013-05-07
10 Added Power Requirements gn 2013-06-03
11 Added MTBF gn 2013-06-04
12 Corrected tables concerning DS-P switch in section “Configuration PCI
Express Switch (DS-P)”
gn 2013-09-26
13 Reworked section “Watchdog” gn 2013-12-06
14 Added Section “Board Control and Status Registers”
Removed typo in table “P2 CompactPCI Serial Connector”
gn 2014-08-07
15 Added Power Requirements of SC1-041X gn 2014-09-29
16 Additions to section “CompactPCI Serial” gn 2014-11-19
17 Clarified resetting of UEFI BIOS settings to factory defaults gn 2015-01-16
18 Added comment to PCIe polarity inversion on table “P2 CompactPCI
Serial Connector”
gn 2015-01-26
19 Updated description of BCSR Control Register 0 gn 2015-02-26
20 Added illustration 'backplane resources' w. system slot right aligned,
added photos SC1 with SCS-TRUMPET side card
jj 26 February 2015
21 Updated description of BCSR Status Registers 0 and 1 gn 2015-04-01
22 Cleaned up section “Watchdog” gn 2015-04-07
23 Updated LM87 Information mib 2015-05-28
24 Added photos SC1-ALLEGRO with C48-M2 mezzanine module jj 28 May 2015
© EKF -4- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Ed. Contents/ Changes Author Date
25 Table 'Feature Summary' - added RTOS support jj 1 October 2015
26 Table 'Feature Summary' - added performance rating jj 30 October 2015
27 Marked backplane connector P1 pin G3 (SATA_SDI) as “not connected” gn 2016-08-05
28 Added Celeron® 1047UE processor to table 'Feature Summary' jj 31 March 2017
29 Celeron® 1047UE as SKU processor in table 'Feature Summary' jj 6 April 2017
30 Mixup fixed - MTBF valid for 40°C (not 50°C) jj 4 October 2018
Related Documents
Related Information SC1-ALLEGRO
SC1-ALLEGRO Home www.ekf.com/s/sc1/sc1.html
SC1-ALLEGRO Product Information www.ekf.com/s/sc1/sc1_pi.pdf
Nomenclature
Signal names used herein with an attached '#' designate active low lines.
Trade Marks
Some terms used herein are property of their respective owners, e.g.
<Chief River, Ivy Bridge, Panther Point, Core i7: ® Intel
<CompactPCI, CompactPCI PlusIO, CompactPCI Serial: ® PICMG
<Windows XP, Windows 7: ® Microsoft
<EKF, ekf system: ® EKF
EKF does not claim this list to be complete.
Legal Disclaimer - Liability Exclusion
This manual has been edited as carefully as possible. We apologize for any potential mistake.
Information provided herein is designated exclusively to the proficient user (system integrator,
engineer). EKF can accept no responsibility for any damage caused by the use of this manual.
Please note: If an EKF product has been labelled with this special sign according to ISO 7010 M002, please
contact [email protected] for availability of additional documentation which may be important for proper
usage.
© EKF -5- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Standards
Reference Documents
Term Document Origin
CFast™ CFast™ Specification Rev. 1.0 www.compactflash.org
CompactPCI
®CompactPCI Specification, PICMG® 2.0 R3.0, Oct. 1, 1999 www.picmg.org
CompactPCI
®
PlusIO
CompactPCI PlusIO Specification, PICMG® 2.30 R1.0,
November 11, 2009
www.picmg.org
CompactPCI
®
Serial
CompactPCI Serial Specification, PICMG® CPCI-S.0 R1.0,
March 2, 2011
www.picmg.org
DisplayPort VESA DisplayPort Standard Version 1.1a
January 11, 2008
VESA Mini DisplayPort Connector Standard Version 1
October 26, 2009
www.vesa.org
DVI Digital Visual Interface Rev. 1.0
Digital Display Working Group
www.ddwg.org
Ethernet IEEE Std 802.3, 2000 Edition standards.ieee.org
LPC Low Pin Count Interface Specification, Revision 1.1 developer.intel.com/design/
chipsets/industry/lpc.htm
HD Audio High Definition Audio Specification Rev.1.0 www.intel.com/design/chipsets/
hdaudio.htm
PCI Express® PCI Express®Base Specification 3.0 www.pcisig.com
SATA Serial ATA 2.5/2.6 Specification
Serial ATA 3.0 & 3.1 Specification
www.sata-io.org
USB Universal Serial Bus 3.0 Specification, Revision 1.0
November 12, 2008
www.usb.org
© EKF -6- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Overview
The SC1-ALLEGRO is a rich featured high
performance 4HP/3U CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU
board, equipped with an Intel® Core™ i7
Mobile 3
rd
Generation + ECC (dual- or quad-
core) processor based on 22nm technology. The
SC1-ALLEGRO front panel is provided with two
Gigabit Ethernet jacks, two USB 3.0 receptacles,
and two Mini-DisplayPort connectors for
attachment of high resolution digital displays,
configured e.g. as extended desktop.
The SC1-ALLEGRO is equipped with up to 16GB
RAM with ECC support. 8GB memory-down are
provided for rugged applications, and another
8GB are available via the DDR3 ECC SO-DIMM
socket. As an option, a low profile mezzanine
module with dual mSATA SSDs may serve as a
high-speed RAID mass storage solution. The
SC1-ALLEGRO backplane connectors comply
with the PICMG®
CompactPCI
®Serial system
slot specification.
While mechanically compliant to
CompactPCI
®
Classic, CompactPCI
®Serial (PICMG® CPCIS.0)
defines a completely new card slot, based on
PCI Express®, SATA, Gigabit Ethernet and USB
serial data lines. Up to 6 high-speed backplane
connectors P1 - P6 are provided on a system
slot controller such as the SC1-ALLEGRO, which
can be considered as a root hub with respect to
most signal lines. A passive backplane is used
for distribution of a defined subset of I/O
channels from the system slot to each of up to
eight peripheral slots in a CompactPCI
®Serial
system.
Most CompactPCI
®Serial peripheral slot cards
require only the backplane connector P1, which
comprises PCIe, SATA and USB signals, resulting
in a concise and inexpensive peripheral board
design. More powerful peripheral cards profit
from so called Fat Pipe slots (PCIe x 8).
The SC1-ALLEGRO is a native CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU card, suitable for usage in a pure
CPCI Serial environment. Due to its generous
backplane capabilities (20 x PCI Express® lanes,
6 x USB, 7 x SATA/RAID, 2 x GbE), very powerful
industrial systems can be built.
The SC1-ALLEGRO is equipped with a set of
local expansion interface connectors, which can
be optionally used to attach a mezzanine side
board. A variety of expansion cards is available,
e.g. providing legacy I/O and additional PCI
Express® based I/O controllers such as SATA,
USB 3.0 and Gigabit Ethernet, or a third video
output. Most mezzanine side cards can
accommodate in addition a 2.5-inch drive.
Typically, the SC1-ALLEGRO and the related side
card would come as a readily assembled 8HP
unit. As an alternate, low profile Flash based
mezzanine storage modules are available that
fit on the SC1-ALLEGRO while maintaining the
4HP profile. The C42-SATA module e.g. is
equipped with a very fast 1.8-inch SATA Solid
State Drive (SSD), which is suitable for
installation of any popular operating system.
© EKF -7- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Related Documents CompactPCI® PlusIO & CompactPCI® Serial
CompactPCI® Serial - Concise Guide www.ekf.com/s/serial_concise.pdf
CompactPCI® Serial - The Smart Solution www.ekf.com/s/smart_solution.pdf
CompactPCI® Serial Home www.ekf.com/s/serial.html
CompactPCI® PlusIO Home www.ekf.com/p/plus.html
© EKF -8- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Technical Features
Feature Summary
Feature Summary
< CompactPCI
®Serial (PICMG® CPCI-S.0) System Slot Controller
<Based on the Intel®
Chief River Platform ( Ivy Bridge + ECC CPU, Panther Point PCH)
<Intel® Core™ i7 (i5/i3) Mobile 3rd Generation ECC Processor, 22nm Process Technology, Low Power, Dual-Core and
Quad-Core, Code Name
Ivy Bridge
<i7-3612QE Processor 2.1GHz • 35W TDP Standard Voltage Quad-Core
<i7-3555LE Processor 2.5GHz • 25W TDP Low Voltage Dual-Core
<i7-3517UE Processor 1.7GHz • 17W TDP Ultra Low Voltage Dual-Core
<i5-3610ME Processor 2.7GHz • 35W TDP Standard Voltage Dual-Core
<i3-3120ME Processor 2.4GHz • 35W TDP Standard Voltage Dual-Core
<i3-3217UE Processor 1.6GHz • 17W TDP Ultra Low Voltage Dual-Core
<Celeron® 1047UE Processor 1.4GHz • 17W TDP Ultra Low Voltage Dual-Core
<Integrated HD Graphics Engine, 3 Independent Displays, Enhanced Media Processing
<Integrated Memory Controller up to 16GB DDR3 +ECC 1333 and 1600
<DDR3 +ECC Soldered Memory up to 8GB
<DDR3 +ECC SO-DIMM Memory Module Socket up to 8GB
<Performance Rating Passmark 8.0 SC1-680D (i7-i7-3612QE): Passmark Rating 2241, CPU Rating 7243
<Intel®
QM77 Platform Controller Hub (PCH), Code Name Panther Point
<Up to 3 Display Configuration (Front Panel: Dual mDP or Single VGA Connector Option)
<Max Resolution 2560 x 1600 (DisplayPort), 1920 x 1200 (VGA)
<2 + 1 SATA Channels 6Gbps/3Gbps for Mezzanine Storage Modules (Connector HSE)
<CompactFlash® Card with C40-SCFA Mezzanine Module Option (4HP Maintained)
<CFast™ Card with C41-CFAST Mezzanine Module Option (4HP Profile Maintained)
<SATA 1.8-Inch Solid State Drive with C42-SATA Mezzanine Card Option (4HP Maintained)
<Dual mSATA Modules with C47-MSATA RAID Mezzanine Card Option (4HP Maintained)
<Dual M.2 SATA SSD Modules with C48-M2 RAID Mezzanine Card Option (4HP Maintained)
<7 x SATA Channels 3Gbps to Backplane Connectors, 5 Channels Available for Hardware RAID Configuration Level 0/1/10
+ Hot Spare (Option RAID Level 3/5)
<4 x USB 3.0 XHCI SuperSpeed Channels (2 x to F/P Connectors, 2 x Backplane)
<10 x USB 2.0 EHCI (6 x to Mezzanine Connectors, 4 x Backplane)
<4 x Gigabit Ethernet Controllers (2 x F/P RJ-45 Jacks and 2 x Backplane Connector)
<8 + 8 x PCI Express® Gen3 Lanes to CPCI Serial Backplane (CPCI Serial Fat Pipe 1 + 2)
<4 + 4 x PCI Express® Gen2 Lanes (4 x Mezzanine Connector, 4 x Backplane)
<Legacy I/O Mezzanine Expansion Connector EXP (USB, HD Audio, LPC)
<High Speed I/O Mezzanine Expansion Connector HSE (3 x SATA, 4 x USB)
<PCI Express® Mezzanine Expansion Connector PCIE (4 Lanes)
<Third Display Mezzanine Expansion Connector SDVO/DP
<Variety of Mezzanine Expansion Boards (Side Cards) Available with and w/o PCIe
<Most Mezzanines Optionally Equipped with 2.5-Inch Single- or Dual-Drive
<UEFI Phoenix BIOS with ACPI
<Long Term Availability
<Coating, Sealing, Underfilling on Request
<RoHS compliant
<Designed & Manufactured in Germany
<ISO 9001 Certified Quality Management System
<RT OS BSP & Driver Support - VxWorks 7.0 Available, QNX and Others on Request
© EKF -9- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Operating Conditions
Operating Conditions
Thermal &
Environmental
Conditions
<Operating Temperature 0°C to +70°C (-40°C to +85°C on Request)
<Storage temperature: -40°C to +85°C, max. Gradient 5°C/min
<Humidity 5% ... 95% RH non Condensing
<Altitude -300m ... +3000m
<Shock 15g 0.33ms, 6g 6ms
<Vibration 1g 5-2000Hz
EC Regulations <EN55022, EN55024, EN60950-1 (UL60950-1/IEC60950-1)
<2002/95/EC (RoHS)
MTBF 104 x 103h (11.9 years) @ 40° C
Power Requirements
Power Requirements
Board
Load Current [A] at +12V (±5%)
Maximum Performance
LFM / HFM / Turbo 1)
Windows 7 Idle
LFM / HFM / Turbo 1)
SC1-68XX 3.8 / 4.0 / 4.5 2) 1.0 / 1.0 / 1.0 2)
SC1-42XX 2.6 / 3.2 / 3.4 2) 1.0 / 1.0 / 1.0 2)
SC1-22XX 2.5 / 2.6 / 2.6 2) 1.0 / 1.0 / 1.0 2)
SC1-041X 1.4 / 1.7 / NA 1.0 / 1.0 / NA
Load Current [A] at +5V[STDBY] (±5%) 3)
Full On / Sleep / Hibernate / Soft Off
(S0 / S3 / S4 / S5)
0 / 0 / 0 / 0.1
1) Intel SpeedStep Frequence Modes LFM: Low Frequency Mode, HFM: High Frequency Mode.
2) Add 60/200mA (link only/active) @1Gbps per Ethernet Port.
3) This power supply is optional. It can be left open if not available.
© EKF -10- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Block Diagram
SDVO/DP
Mezzanine
Side
Card
I
/
O
VGA
QM77
Mobile
PCH
DP1
Front Panel Stuffing Alternates -
either Mini DisplayPort or VGA
USB3
82579
LM
SPI
Flash
82574
IT
82574
IT
PCIe
Gen2
Switch
USB
Hub
Simplified Block Diagram
SC1-ALLEGRO Rev. 2
PICMG CompactPCI Serial
System Slot Controller
®®
Panther Point
PCIe PCIe
SPI
USB2/3
USB2/3
USB2 USB2
2+9
LPC/Audio/SMB/GPIO
4
4
2
2
DP2
DDR3 ECC Soldered
DDR3 SODIMMECC
DMI2
5GT/s
FDI
Ivy
Bridge
ECC
Embedded
Mobile
2/4-Core
CPU
8
DDR3 1600
Dual Channel
up to 16GB
Ivy Bridge
+ECC
PCIe Gen3
8
2+6
2
4 4
SATA 6G/3G
2/1
GbE
2
SATA
RAID
0/1/3/5/6
SATA 3G
1 5
SATA 3G
2
GbE GbE
Intel® Chief River Platform
PCIe Gen3
PCIe
PCIe Gen2
3G
Front
Panel
I/O
GbE
1
GbE
2
Backplane
CompactPCI
Serial
P1
P2
Fat
Pipe
1
P2
Fat
Pipe
2
© EKF -11- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Top View Component Assembly
SC1-ALLEGRO
© EKF • ekf.com
Ivy Bridge
i7
CPU
2 Channel ECC DDR3
SODIMM ECC DDR3
P1
P2 P3
P4
P5
P6
SDVO/DP
PCIE
EXP
HSE
SC1-ALLEGRO CompactPCI® Serial • © EKF • ekf.com•
Dual
GbE
VGA
P-GP
P-RTC
BAT
P-MFG
1
1
1
1
DP
2
DP
1
2 x
USB
3.0
QM77
PCH
Mobile
Soldered ECC DDR3
© EKF -12- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Front Panel Connectors
ETH1/2 Dual Gigabit Ethernet RJ-45 receptacles with integrated indicator LEDs
mDP1/2 Mini DisplayPort digital video output receptacle (VGA connector available as
alternate)
USB1/2 Universal Serial Bus 3.0 type A receptacles
VGA VGA analog video output connector (Mini DisplayPort connectors available as
alternate)
Front Panel Switches & Indicators
EB LED indicating Backplane Ethernet activity
FPH Front Panel Handle with integrated switch (programmable function, power event
button by default)
GP General Purpose bicolour LED
HD LED indicating any activity on SATA ports
PG Power Good/Board Healthy bicolour LED
RST System Reset Button (Option)
© EKF -13- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
On-Board Connectors & Sockets
J-EXPT
J-EXPB 1)
Utility EXPansion Interface Connector (LPC, USB, HD Audio, SMBus), available either
from top (T) or bottom (B) 1) of the board, interface to optional side board
J-HSE High Speed Expansion Connector (3 x SATA, 4 x USB), interface to optional low
profile mezzanine module or side board
J-PCIE PCI Express® Expansion Interface Connector, interface to optional side board
J-SDVO Digital Display Interface Connector (SDVO/DisplayPort)
P1 CompactPCI
®Serial Type A Connector
P2-P4 CompactPCI
®Serial Type B Connectors
P5
CompactPCI
®Serial Type C Connector
P6
CompactPCI
®Serial Type D Connector
SODM1 204-pin DDR3 ECC Memory Module SDRAM PC3-12800 Socket (ECC SODIMM)
XDP CPU Debug Port 1)
1) Connector populated on customers request only
Pin Headers
P-FPH Pin header suitable for Front Panel Handle switch cable harness
P-ISP PLD glue logic device programming connector, not populated
Jumpers
DS-P Switches to configure link width and speed on J-PCIE
P-GP Jumper to reset UEFI BIOS Setup to EKF Factory Defaults
P-MFG Jumper to enter Manufacturing Mode, not populated
P-RTC Jumper to reset RTC circuitry (part of PCH), not populated
© EKF -14- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Microprocessor
The SC1-ALLEGRO is equipped with Intel® CoreTM i7 or i5 3rd generation mobile ECC processor (code
name Ivy Bridge). These low power processors provide integrated graphics and memory controller,
which results in a very efficient platform design. The CoreTM processors almost can be considered as
a single-chip solution, since all functions of a typical north-bridge have been moved to the CPU.
The CoreTM i7 and i5 processor family includes beside the Standard-Voltage (SV) also several Ultra
Low-Voltage (ULV) and Low-Voltage (LV) processors as listed below. The processors are housed in a
Micro FC-BGA package for direct soldering to the PCB, i.e. the chip cannot be removed or changed by
the user.
The processors supported by the SC1-ALLEGRO are running at core clock speeds up to 2.1GHz for
quad core and up to 2.5GHz on dual core devices. Due to Enhanced Intel® SpeedStep® and Intel®
Turbo Boost Technology each core can decrease or increase its nominal operating frequency. The
clock speed is chosen depending on the power states of the processor cores/graphics engine, the
currently required performance, and the actual core temperature.
Power is applied across the CompactPCI
®connector P1 (12V). The processors core and graphics
voltages are generated by switched voltage regulators according to Intels IMVP-7 voltage regulator
specification.
Intel® CoreTM Processors Supported
Processor
Number
Physical
Cores
Core Clock
nom./max.
Cache Gfx
Clock
Junction
Temp.
TDP CPU ID Stepping SPEC
Code
i7-3612QE 4 2.1/3.1GHz 4MB 650MHz +105°C 35W 306A9h E-1 SR0ND
i7-3555LE 2 2.5/3.2GHz 4MB 550MHz +105°C 25W 306A9h L-1 SR0T5
i7-3517UE 2 1.7/2.8GHz 4MB 350MHz +105°C 17W 306A9h L-1 SR0T6
i5-3610ME 2 2.7/3.3GHz 3MB 650MHz +105°C 35W 306A9h L-1 SR0QK
© EKF -15- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Thermal Considerations
In order to avoid malfunctioning of the SC1-ALLEGRO, take care of appropriate cooling of the
processor and system, e.g. by a cooling fan suitable to the maximum power consumption of the CPU
chip actually in use. The processor contains digital thermal sensors (DTS) that are readable via special
CPU registers. DTS allows to get the temperatures of each CPU core separately.
Two further temperature sensors, located in the system hardware monitor LM87, allows for
acquisition of the boards surface temperature and the thermal state of the onboard system memory
channel. Beside this the LM87 also monitors most of the supply voltages. A suitable software on
Microsoft Windows® systems to display both, the temperatures as well as the supply voltages, is
Speedfan, which can be downloaded from the web. After installation, both temperatures and
voltages can be observed permanently from the Windows® taskbar.
The SC1-ALLEGRO is equipped with a passive heatsink. Its height takes into account the 4HP limitation
in mounting space of a CompactPCI
®board. In addition, a forced vertical airflow through the system
enclosure (e.g. bottom mount fan unit) is strongly recommended (>20m3/h or 2m/s (400LFM) around
the CPU slot). Be sure to thoroughly discuss your actual cooling needs with EKF. Generally, the faster
the CPU speed the higher its power consumption. For higher ambient temperatures, consider
increasing the forced airflow to 3m/s (600LFM) or more.
The table showing the supported processors above give also the maximum power consumption (TDP
= Thermal Design Power) of a particular processor. Fortunately, the power consumption is by far
lower when executing typical Windows® or Linux tasks. The heat dissipation increases when e.g.
rendering software like the Acrobat Distiller is executed.
The CoreTM i7 processors support Intel's Enhanced SpeedStep® technology. This enables dynamic
switching between multiple core voltages and frequencies depending on core temperature and
currently required performance. The processors are able to reduce their core speed and core voltage
in multiple steps down to 1200MHz (800MHz for LV/ULV processors). Additional a reduction of the
graphics core clock and voltage is possible. This leads to an obvious reduction of power consumption
resulting in less heating. This mode of lowering the processor core temperature is called TM2
(TM=Thermal Monitor).
Another way to reduce power consumption is to modulate the processor clock. This mode (TM1) is
achieved by actuating the 'Stop Clock' input of the CPU. A throttling of 50% e.g. means a duty cycle
of 50% on the stop clock input. However, while saving considerable power consumption, the data
throughput of the processor is also reduced. The processor works at full speed until the core
temperature reaches a critical value. Then the processor is throttled by 50%. As soon as the high
temperature situation disappears the throttling will be disabled and the processors runs at full speed
again.
These features are controllable by BIOS menu entries. By default the BIOS of the SC1-ALLEGRO
enables mode TM2 which is the most efficient.
© EKF -16- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
© EKF -17- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Main Memory
The SC1-ALLEGRO features two channels of DDR3 SDRAMs with support of ECC (Error Correction
Code). One channel is realized with 18 memory devices soldered to the board (Memory Down) and
delivers a capacity of up to 8GB with a clock frequency of 1600MHz (PC3-12800).
The 2nd channel provides a socket for installing a 204-pin ECC SODIMM module thus allowing a
simple expansion of system memory (max. module height = 1.25 inch). Supported are unbuffered
DDR3 ECC SODIMMs (72-bit) with VDD=1.5V featuring on-die termination (ODT), according the
PC3-12800 specification. Minimum module size is 512MB; maximum module size is 8GB. Please note
that standard DDR3 SODIMMs without ECC feature do not work on SC1-ALLEGRO.
It is recommended to add a SODIMM module with same size as the Memory Down to get best
performance (some of the system memory is dedicated to the graphics controller). This typically results
in a size of 2x4GB of memory which is recommended to run the operating systems Windows® Vista
or Windows® 7.
The memory controller supports symmetric and asymmetric memory organization. The maximum
memory performance can be obtained by using the symmetric mode. When in this mode, the memory
controller accesses the memory channels in an interleaved way. Since CoreTM i7 processors support
Intels Flex Memory Technology, interleaved operation isn't limited to systems using memory channels
of equal capacity. In the case of unequal memory population the smaller memory channel dictates the
address space of the interleaved accessible memory region. The remainder of the memory is then
accessed in non-interleaved mode.
In asymmetric mode the memory always will be accessed in a non-interleaved manner with the
drawback of less bandwidth. The only meaningful application of asymmetric mode is the special case
when only one memory channel is populated (i.e. the SODIMM socket may be left empty).
The contents of the SPD EEPROM on the SODIMM is used by the BIOS at POST (Power-on Self Test) to
get any necessary timing parameters to program the memory controller within the chipset.
© EKF -18- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Graphics Subsystem
The graphics subsystem is part of the Intel CoreTM i7 processor and the PCH QM77. While the graphics
controller is located within the CoreTM i7 processor, the different interfaces like DisplayPort, SDVO and
VGA are moved to the PCH. The SC1-ALLEGRO offers two Mini DisplayPort (mDP) interfaces in the
front panel.
Adapters to convert Mini DisplayPort to any other popular interface standard are available.
A 3rd DisplayPort or an SDVO port is fed in a multiplexed manner to the on-board connector J-SDVO.
EKF expansion boards like PCS-BALLET feature the possibility to gain access to the 3rd DisplayPort
interface. Additionally EKF offers a bundle of expansion boards that contain a display transmitter to
provide a DVI channel via a pure digital DVI-D connector.
As an option, the SC1-ALLEGRO can be equipped with an ordinary HD D-Sub 15-lead connector (VGA
style). This connector is suitable for analog signals only. Nevertheless also flat-panel displays can be
attached to the D-Sub connector but with minor reduced image quality.
Independent from the video connector actually in use, Mini DisplayPort, DVI or VGA, the VESA DDC
standard is supported. This allows to read out important parameters, e.g. the maximum allowable
resolution, from the attached monitor. DDC Power, +3.3V or +5V on DisplayPort or VGA connector
respectively, is delivered via a resettable fuse to protect the board from an external short-circuit
condition (0.5A).
Graphics drivers for the CoreTM i7 can be downloaded from the Intel web site.
LAN Subsystem
The Ethernet LAN subsystem is composed of four Gigabit Ethernet ports: One Intel 82579LM Physical
Layer Transceiver (PHY) using the PCH QM77 internal MAC and three Intel 82574IT Gigabit Ethernet
Controllers. These devices provide also legacy 10Base-T and 100Base-TX connectivity. Two of the
Ethernet ports are fed to two RJ45 jacks located in the front panel, the others are attached to the
CompactPCI
®Serial interface on P6. Each port includes the following features:
<One PCI Express lane per Ethernet port (250MB/s)
<1000Base-Tx (Gigabit Ethernet), 100Base-TX (Fast Ethernet) and 10Base-T (Classic Ethernet)
capability.
<Half- or full-duplex operation.
<IEEE 802.3u, 802.3ab Auto-Negotiation for the fastest available connection.
<Jumperless configuration (complete software-configurable).
Two bicoloured LEDs integrated into the dedicated RJ-45 connector in the front panel are used to
signal the LAN link, the LAN connection speed and activity status. A further bicoloured LED in front
panel labelled EB displays the state of the backplane network ports.
Each device is connected by a single PCI Express lane to the PCH. Their MAC addresses (unique
hardware number) are stored in dedicated FLASH/EEPROM components. The Intel Ethernet software
and drivers for the 82579 and 82574 is available from Intel's World Wide Web site for download.
When managing the board by Intel Active Management Technology (iAMT), the dedicated network
port to do so is accessible by the RJ45 connector GbE1 (the upper port within the front panel).
© EKF -19- ekf.com

User Guide • SC1-ALLEGRO • CompactPCI
®
Serial CPU Board • Intel® i7-3xxx Processor
Serial ATA Interface (SATA)
The SC1-ALLEGRO provides a total of ten serial ATA (SATA) ports, derived from two independent
SATA controllers. Two of these ports support data transfer rates of 6Gbps (600MB/s) while all ports
are capable to work with 3Gbps (300MB/s) or 1.5Gbps (150MB/s). The SATA controllers are located
within the QM77 Platform Controller Hub that holds 6 SATA interfaces.
The two 6Gbps and one 3Gbps ports are fed to the high speed expansion connector J-HSE. This
connector allows the installation of low profile expansion boards like C41-CFAST or C42-SATA to
attach the popular CFast cards or Micro SATA SSDs (1.8-inch) respectively. Another mezzanine is the
C47-MSATA, a carrier for two mSATA SSD modules, that is connected via J-HSE to the 6Gbps ports
for fast data storage. Also consider the C48-M2 mezzanine for mass storage, which can
accommodate two M.2 style SATA SSD modules.
Another of the 3Gbps ports is fed from the QM77 to a JMicron JMB393 6-port RAID controller
supporting RAID levels 0/1/3/5/10 as well as JBOD and CLONE. Five of the JMB393 ports as well as the
two remaining QM77 ports are used to supply the
CompactPCI
®Serial SATA interfaces on the
backplane.
A LED named HD located in the front panel, signals disk activity status of any of the SATA devices.
Additionally a variety of side cards is available, suitable for mounting on the SC1-ALLEGRO in a 4HP
(20.32mm) distance (resulting in 8HP front panel width for the assembly). Some of these side boards
can accommodate a SATA drive, e.g. a 2.5-inch SSD.
Available for download from Intel's web site are drivers for popular operating systems, e.g. Windows®
XP, Windows® Vista, Windows® 7 and Linux.
To manage the RAID configuration of the JMB393 a Windows® application is provided by JMicron
that can be downloaded from EKF’s website.
PCI Express® Interface
The SC1-ALLEGRO is provided with several PCI Express (PCIe) lanes for I/O expansion. Sixteen PCI
Express lanes, originating from the CoreTM i7 processor, are building the two fat pipes defined by
CompactPCI
®Serial. These two links consists of eight lanes with transfer rates of up to 8Gbps (PCI
Express Gen 3).
The QM77 offers a total of eight PCI Express ports supporting PCIe Gen 2 speed (5GT/s). Four of them
form the upstream link to a PCI Express switch. The output ports (downstream ports) of the PCIe
switch are connected to the CompactPCI
®Serial connector P4 (four lanes) and to the local PCIe
expansion interface connector J-PCIE (four lanes).
Two small DIP switches (DS-P) located on the backside of the board are used to configure different
lane widths to each of both downstream interfaces and to choose the interface transfer rate. Possible
settings are
<Four links x 1 lane to
CompactPCI
®Serial P4 and a single link x 4 lanes to J-PCIE
<Four links x 1 lane to
CompactPCI
®Serial P4 and four links x 1 lane to J-PCIE
<2.5GT/s or 5GT/s transfer speed
See section “Configuration PCI Express Switch (DS-P)” for details.
© EKF -20- ekf.com